© Teatro alla Scala / Brescia - Amisano
From 25 June, Milan's La Scala will be staging a new production of Turandot by director Davide Livermore, starring Anna Netrebko in the role of the Ice Princess. The production, which will be broadcast live on 4 July on ScalaTV and Arte Concert, is generating a certain amount of curiosity.
As part of the commemoration of the centenary of Puccini's death, La Scala has programmed two new productions of the composer's operas this season. The first was La Rondine, performed last April, and the second, starting on 25 June, is Turandot in an original production by Davide Livermore, whose taste for grand spectacle and productions designed to impress audiences is well known.
Although the new production will be fully revealed when it goes on stage at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, it already promises to mix real stage elements with digital effects created by the D-WOK company (whose work with digital projections has already been seen at the opening of the Teatro alla Scala in Atila a few years ago, as well as at the Arena in Verona and the Macerata Festival, among others).
New production of Turandot by Davide Livermore Ph. Teatro alla Scala / Brescia - Amisano
This new production of Turandot is perhaps worth more for its version and its cast. As we know, Puccini did not have time to complete his last opera, and there are several versions of the third act - notably that of Franco Alfano, which was composed from Puccini's notes, but which was shortened by Arturo Toscanini for the premiere of the work at La Scala in 1926 (before this complete ending was restored many years later, in 1982). It is Alfano's version that La Scala intends to offer in its new production, conducted by Michele Gamba - La Scala chose the version completed by Luciano Berio in its previous production in 2015, conducted by La Scala's Music Director Riccardo Chailly.
Anna Netrebko as Turandot
However, if this new production is attracting attention, it is mainly because of its cast, led by Anna Netrebko in the title role. The soprano has been one of the great interpreters of the role since she took it on in Munich in 2020, and she will be following in the footsteps of a number of other greats who have interpreted the Ice Princess at La Scala - including Birgit Nilsson in the late 1950s, Ghena Dimitrova (in a production conducted by Lorin Maazel) or Nina Stemme in 2015, accompanied by Ricardo Chailly.
Alongside Anna Netrebko, Rosa Feola will sing Liù, while Yusif Eyvazov will be Calaf - alternating with Roberto Alagna (on 9, 12 and 15 July), who has long been at odds with the opera house, until his return to the Milan stage for Fedora in 2022.
New production of Turandot by Davide Livermore Ph. Teatro alla Scala / Brescia - Amisano
Understandably, this production is the highlight of the end-of-season season, and if you can't attend it in Milan, you can watch it live. From 4 to 11 July, the production will be broadcast on La ScalaTV, the Milanese company's (pay-per-view) streaming platform. It will also be broadcast live (free of charge) by Arte Concert, on 4 July from 8 pm. The broadcast will be available at this address.
free translation of our article first published in French
the 22 of June, 2024 | Print
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