With the backdrop or the English Civil War, this week’s Sunday Opera (8/9 3:00 p.m.) will feature Vincenzo Bellini’s “I Puritani” from the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Elvira is in love with Arturo who is a Royalist, but unbeknownst to her, her father has promised her hand to Riccardo who is a Puritan. When Elvira is told his, her horror quickly turns to madness and loss. Her madness is compounded when Arturo tries to help Queen Enichetta escape from the hands of the Puritans. Albina Shagimuratova is Elvira, Laurence Brownlee her Arturo, Anthony Clark Evans Riccardo, and Lauren Decker as Queen Enichetta. They’re joined by Adrian Sampetrean, Alan Higgs, and Alec Carlson. Enrique Mazzolla conducts the Lyric Opera Chorus and Orchestra.
Stay tuned after the opera for a bit more Bellini after which host Michael Kownacky will be bringing you Henryk Gorecki’s Symphony No. 3, the Symphony of Sorrowful Songs, featuring soloist Dawn Upshaw, which looks at parent/child loss from three vastly different perspectives.
