Liceu stages Bellini’s Romeo and Giulietta in one changing set
Barcelona’s Gran Teatre del Liceu presents Bellini’s I Capuleti e i Montecchi in seven performances from 30 October to 11 November. Allex Aguilera’s production turns one set into palace, bedroom and crypt. Lisette Oropesa and Marina Monzó share Giulietta, with Raffaella Lupinacci and Caterina Piva as Romeo; the action moves to around 1830.
Arts··Morning
Bellini returns to Barcelona’s opera house
Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona’s opera house, is staging Bellini’s I Capuleti e i Montecchi.[1], [2]
The announced run comprises seven performances from 30 October to 11 November. Lisette Oropesa and Marina Monzó share Giulietta, while Raffaella Lupinacci and Caterina Piva sing Romeo, a part written for mezzo-soprano. Riccardo Frizza directs the music; Rodrigo de Vera conducts the performance on 10 November. Iván Ayón-Rivas and Antoni Lliteres share Tebaldo, with Marko Mimica as Lorenzo and Alejandro López as Capellio.[1]
One set changes from palace to crypt
Allex Aguilera’s production was originally conceived for the Opéra Royal de Wallonie in Liège, Belgium. Columns, walls and a small pit form a space that becomes Capellio’s palace, Giulietta’s bedroom and the crypt where Romeo dies. The pit fills with water in the final scene. Video images appear on the set at certain moments, while the lighting uses contrasts of light and shadow.[1]
The action moves to Bellini’s own period
Aguilera places the story around 1830, rather than in the Renaissance. Felice Romani’s libretto centres on the conflict between Romeo and Giulietta’s families. The house notes that this version has neither the balcony scene nor Mercutio from Shakespeare’s play. Aguilera describes a staging intended to give singers the space to concentrate on the score, ahead of the announced opening on 30 October.[1]
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