SCO is the City of Swansea's flag-ship opera company, touring high quality opera to venues throughout the UK, including Scotland and the Isle of Man.
Our new production for 2008/09 is The Elixir of Love (L'Elisir d'Amore) by Gaetano Donizetti
Popular since its premiere in Milan in 1832, this charming comedy has delighted audiences throughout the world. It tells of the peasant Nemorino who takes some magic elixir sold to him by a quack doctor, so that he can win the heart of a wealthy land-owner, who (to spite Nemorino) has announced her marriage to a sergeant. The score is full of memorable tunes, including Adina’s “Prendi” and Nemorino’s “Una furtiva lagrima”, a favourite of tenors from Caruso to Gigli, and the aria that catapulted Pavarotti to fame.
L’Elisir d’Amore is expertly sung by the fine singers of Swansea City Opera to music which will truly charm the senses.
A Word from the Directors
This is now our sixth production since becoming Swansea City Opera and building on the popularity of The Daughter of the Regiment two years ago. we have returned to another Donizetti masterpiece - The Elixir of Love (L’Elisir d’Amore).The opera is loads of fun, and was the one that catapulted the late, great Luciano Pavarotti to fame, with his faultless singing of ‘Una Furtive Lagrima’.
The opera’s story is a timeless one, and for this production we are taking it out of rural Italy and slightly updating the setting of the opera to the late 1920’s in rural North Wales. The inspiration came from our set designer Gary McCann, who had recently spent some time in the village of Portmeirion. He thought it so beautiful that he suggested using its architecture in his design for The Elixir of Love. Designed by the celebrated architect Clough Williams-Ellis (and the setting for the famous ‘The Prisoner’ series), Clough described the village as his ‘light opera approach to architecture’. This, coupled with the reference to the Celtic legend of Tristan and Isolde at the beginning of the opera we thought it all most appropriate!
We are also very fortunate that for this year’s production we are working as co-producers with Theatr Brycheiniog in Brecon and The Coliseum in Aberdare, we are proud to be working alongside them and owe them a big thank you for their support.
Sung in: English
Please click here for a synopsis.
Please call back soon for more information and we look forward to welcoming you soon at a performance near you!
Please note, our associated company, Opera Box, may also have a performance near you soon ...
Please visit the Opera Box Web site to view their current repertoire
Please also click here to visit the Web site of The Opera School Wales, our well-established, post-graduate training school for talented young Artists.
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