Mozart: La finta semplice
6 & 8 June 2018, 7.00pm - Queen Elizabeth Hall
Intro
Classical Opera makes its Southbank Centre début at the newly renovated Queen Elizabeth Hall with two semi-staged performances of Mozart’s first full-length opera, La finta semplice.
Written when the composer was just twelve years old, the opera is based on a sparkling comedy by Carlo Goldoni, and combines situations of great comic invention and genuine humour with music of extraordinary beauty, energy and psychological insight. Ian Page directs a superb international cast of world-class young singers, headed by the rapidly emerging Swiss soprano Regula Mühlemann, whose solo recording contract with Sony Classical was recently launched with a highly acclaimed disc of Mozart arias.
Pre-performance lecture by Dr Robert Cannon on Friday, 8 June:
Dr Robert Cannon, renowned speaker and author of Cambridge University Press Introduction to Opera, will give a lecture on Mozart’s La finta semplice as part of a series that he will present for Classical Opera to run alongside their opera performances. The lecture will commence at 5.30pm and will last for one hour. Kings College Auditorium (Waterloo campus), Stamford St, SE1 9NH. To book tickets (£25 including programme), please email Lizzie@classicalopera.co.uk
Synopsis
Cremona, Northern Italy, 1768. Fracasso and Simone, two soldiers, want to marry Giacinta and Ninetta, but cannot do so without the consent of Giacinta’s eccentric brothers, Cassandro and Polidoro. When Fracasso’s sister, Rosina, arrives, a plot is hatched – but can she soften the misogynistic brothers and make them recognise the pleasures of love…?