© Maria Agresta / Anna Pirozzi
Next November at the Gran Teatre del Liceu, Maria Agresta was supposed to sing Donna Leonora in La Forza del Destino for the first time on stage. She has decided not to do so, believing that the time has not yet come. She will be replaced by Anna Pirozzi.
From 9th to 19th November, Barcelona's Gran Teatre del Liceu will be staging Verdi's La Forza del Destino, in a production by director Jean-Claude Auvray, which Paris audiences have already seen in 2011 and will see again in 2019 and December 2022. This revival, however, aroused a certain curiosity because it was to be marked by Maria Agresta's debut as Donna Leonora. The role is notoriously demanding. The Italian soprano decided not to take on the role, believing that it was not yet the right time for her.
She explains her reasons in a short video in Italian posted on social networks: “(...) I'm making this little video because I want to tell you all, in a direct, very clear and simple way, the decision I've made in the last four or five days regarding my non-participation in the production of La Forza del Destino at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona.
This carefully considered - and believe me, very painful - decision stems from the fact that, at this particular moment in my life, I feel the need to listen to my feelings and sensations and to slow down a little. I feel that this is the right decision for my own feelings, for the theatre and for all those who will be working on this production. I'm convinced that I wouldn't have been able to put the same energy and enthusiasm into it as I always do at this moment.
So first of all I'd like to thank the theatre for understanding my need. I'd like to thank everyone who understands this very painful decision. I would also like to wish all the best to my colleagues and to the entire production of this masterpiece, and I hope that this is just a farewell before we meet again soon at my beloved Teatre del Liceu, a theatre where I have nothing but fond memories, starting with my Suor Angelica, which still arouses enormous emotion in me (...).” (Maria Agresta made her debut at the Gran Teatre del Liceu during the 2013/14 season in Suor Angelica, editor's note).
Understandably, Maria Agresta does not (yet) feel ready to take on the role of Donna Leonora and has cancelled her performances on 9, 12, 15 and 18 November. Who will replace her in the role on these dates? The Barcelona Opera has called on the Neapolitan soprano Anna Pirozzi, a great connoisseur not only of the role but also of Jean-Claude Auvray's production. It was she who replaced Anna Netrebko in the same production in December 2022 at the Opéra Bastille (for her Paris debut), where she received a “well-deserved ovation” from the audience. In our review of the show, we highlighted “a timbre that is above all sunny and radiant, a voice that is broad and dense throughout the spectrum, with rich colours and a musicality that inhabits the entire line (...)”.
For this revival in Barcelona, Anna Pirozzi will be joined by Artur Ruciński as Don Carlo and Brian Jagde as Don Alvaro. Baritone Pietro Spagnoli will sing Fra Melitone (replacing Gabriele Viviani, who had to leave the production for medical reasons) and mezzo-soprano Caterina Piva will sing Preziosilla, replacing Vasilisa Berzhanskaya. In the second cast, Saioa Hernández will sing the role of Leonora on 10, 13, 16 and 19 November.
free translation of our article first published in French
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