La Lucia di Lammermoor, a dramatic work in three acts of Gaetano Donizettishould have opened the Season of the La Scala Theatre 2020/21 but, due to the pandemic, it was rescheduled.
These days it is finally on stage until 5 May directed by Riccardo Chailly which offered the original version in its entirety. The opera, composed between April and July 1835, was first performed at the San Carlo Theatre in Naples on 26 September 1835. Although the opera achieved universal success, it has suffered cuts and tampering over the years, which have altered the original structure of the opera.
The restoration of the original version with the harmonic glaze was a key choice to restore Lucia's sense of mental instability in the madness scene. The direction, sets and costumes are by Yannis Kokkos and create an evocative and dramatic atmosphere.
The story is set in the 17th century and inspired by Walter Scott's novel, 'The Bride of Lammermoor'. A tragic plot of love and death where Lucia Ashton, a young Scottish girl and Edgardo Ravenswood fall in love, but are thwarted by Lucia's brother, Henry, who forces the young woman to marry Arturo Bucklaw. Lucia kills the groom on their wedding night and will later kill himself as a victim of his own despair. In the finale, Edgardo, inconsolable over the loss of his beloved, decides to end his own life and stabs himself in the heart, shortly before discovering that Lucia had always loved him.
A stellar cast: Lisette Oropesa is a sublime Lucia with intense colouring, a splendid Juan Diego Flórez embodies Edgardo, Boris Pinkhasovich is Lord Henry Ashton, Arthur Bucklaw is played by Leonardo Cortellazzi, Raimondo is Michele Pertusi, the young Alisa is Valentina Pluzhnikova, Norman is Giorgio Misseri and an amazing choir.
A poignant and beautiful work that Riccardo Chailly has given us with great artistic generosity. A must-see!
Also available on LaScalaTv.co.uk
Photos Brescia Amisano
