It’s off to Barcelona and the Gran Teatre del Liceu and a recent production of Gaetano Donizetti’s “Elixir of Love” on this week’s Sunday Opera (8/9 3:00 p.m.)
Nemorino (Michael Spyres) is in love with Adina (Pretti Yende), but Adina isn’t interested in him. She flirts with Belcore (Jan Antem), a sergeant in the local militia, and they decide to marry which truly upsets Nemorino.
Enter Dr. Dulcamara (Fabio Capitanucci), a quack doctor and purveyor of snake oil. Nemorino asks him for a love potion that will make him irresistible to Adina. Thinking quickly, Dulcamara hands Nemorino a bottle of Bordeaux which he quickly drinks. Now, feeling that he is irresistible, he attracts a great deal of attention from the local girls except for Adina.
Along with Nemorino’s attitude, he inherits a legacy, and Adina’s friend Giannetta (Nura Vila) learns of this and spreads the news around as is her wont. Nemorino then becomes even more desirable to the young ladies. Finally, even Adina begins to notice him.
Is there a happy ending where our young lovers end up together? Of course, there is.
Diego Matheuz conducts the Gran Theatre del Liceu Orchestra and Chorus.
After “Elixer,” we’ll turn to another opera of Donizetti, one that’s been pretty much forgotten outside of Europe. “Theatrical Conveniences and Inconveniences” started as a one-act opera in 1827 and was adapted into a short, two-act work in 1831. This farce about mounting an opera in a provincial opera house features temperamental sopranos, smarmy husbands, and an opiniated mother who’s forced to take over the lead in the opera before it is eventually abandoned.
The cast includes Maria Angeles Peters, Roberto Scaltriti, Sergio Tedesco, and Domenico Trimarchi who performs the drag role of Mamma Agata for whom the opera is sometimes named. They’re joined by the OIrchestra Sinfonica Dell’Emilia Romagna – Artruro Toscanini and the Coro del Teatro Rossini di Lugo conducted by Bruno Rigacci.
We’ll close our time together with one of Donizetti’s String Quartets performed by the Mitja Quartet.
