Friday 19 August 2011

Stefano Ranzani conducts Cavalleria/Bajadser


“Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci are pure Italian passion, both in music and drama.” Kasper Holten, director




Tempers flare under the blazing sun of Southern Italy in two popular operas dealing with hypocrisy and murder. Both are musically and dramatically in tune with Puccini’s Tosca and La bohème and feature such operatic highlights as the ‘Easter Hymn’ in Cavalleria rusticana and the tenor aria in Pagliacci.

One of the world’s leading and highly sought-after opera stars, tenor José Cura, will appear in the first four performances of both operas.

Critically acclaimed designer Mia Stensgaard has creates the captivating sets that invite audiences on a journey to hot-blooded Sicily and its world of seduction and jealousy.

Cavalleria rusticana/I pagliacci is performed in Italian with Danish supertitles | Co-production with Den Norske Opera | José Curas participation is made possible with support from OAK Foundation Denmark | Nykredit is the exclusive sponsor for Cavalleria Rusticana/I pagliacci.



Cast
Gallery
Show dates


DIRECTOR: Kasper Holten | DIRECTOR: Paul Curran | SET DESIGNER: Mia Stensgaard | COSTUME DESIGNER: Anja Vang Kragh | LIGHTING DESIGNER: Bruno Poet

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And just some days before I finally got my ticket for Cavalleria/Bajadser in Copenhagen I got the video of Opernhaus Zürich production of Cav/Pag with Stefano Ranzani (conductor) and José Cura (Turriddu/Canio).

It was such a pain and a wait till finally the website kglteater.dk was ready to put my ticket in the basket, because for a long time I chose and got nothing in my basket. Really, it was another example of do not try to get into the buying process on the day and time as it is supposed to open, but wait... Naturally one doesn't get the front row or maybe not even a ticket if you wait too long. To make matters worse it took ages for the website to react, ages..., and then suddenly you have extra costs even if you are buying the most expensive ticket, just at the end, an extra cost of 2 times DKK 48,70, so instead of DKK 1250, it is almost 1350. That was the bad surprise, and I am not happy about it. :-(




Stefano Ranzani conducts Mascagni & Leoncavallo
Live Recording from The Zurich Opera, 2009


Leoncavallo:

I Pagliacci

José Cura, Fiorenza Cedolins & Carlo Guelfi


Mascagni:

Cavalleria Rusticana

José Cura, Paoletta Marrocu & Liliana Nikiteanu



Zurich Opera House, Stefano Ranzani (conductor) & Grischa Asagaroff (director)


Set Design by Luigi Perego.

Two timeless stories of love, honour, justice and violence, captured on just one DVD – a highlight for every opera lover.

Pietro Mascagni‘s “Cavalleria rusticana” and Ruggero Leoncavallo‘s “Pagliacci” speak to one‘s heart and soul. They are regarded as the most absorbing tragedies of Italian music theater. Adultery, jealousy and betrayal are leading to passionate conflicts that jointly connect both operas. The impressively embellished stage waives exaggerated decoration to underline the unflattering realistic brutality. Both operas are supported by a musical variety of great arias, short duets and amazing choir passages that add to the unveiled expression of feelings. As a special guest the Argentinian Tenor José Cura stands out with his fascinating singing and acting performance. Besides him Soprano Paoletta Marrocu with her expressive interpretation of Santuzza, Carlo Guelfi as Tonio or Fiorenza Cedolins as Nedda can convince the audience with their great voices. These atmospheric performances directed by Grischa Asagaroff and conducted by Stefano Ranzani are capable to fascinate every opera lover.

Sound Format: PCM STEREO, DD 5.1

Picture Format: 16:9

DVD Format: DVD 9, NTSC

Subtitle Languages: IT, GB, DE, FR, ES, JP

Running Time: 151 mins

FSK: 0


For reviews from my travels, see www.operaduetstravel.com

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