Double bill: Gianni Schicchi Giacomo Puccini (1918) Opens Sat 16 Feb 2019 (7 performances) Sung in Italian with English titles Inspired by an episode in Dante’s Inferno, Puccini’s short opera Gianni Schicchi is an irresistible satyr play, set around the death-bed of a rich man. The scheming relatives who vie for a chunk of the dead man’s fortune are all too recognisable, revealing the greed and avarice which lie just below the thin veneer of their family loyalties. With its vivid characterisation and the spontaneity of its musical invention, Gianni Schicchi is a comic masterpiece in miniature which also contains one of Puccini’s best known arias, ‘O mio babbino caro’. Christopher Alden’s witty and imaginative contemporary staging, first seen in 2015, is revived in a double-bill with Stravinsky’s avant-garde ballet The Rite of Spring, co-produced with Phoenix Dance Theatre. Written just five years apart, premiering either side of the First World War, both works are modernist and experimental in tone, offering very different reflections on the decline of an old order, and the beginning of the new. Scottish conductor Garry Walker conducts both pieces, returning to Opera North following Billy Budd (2016). Richard Burkhard sings the title role, returning to Opera North after recent appearances including Tonio (Pagliacci, 2017) and Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro, 2015), with a supporting cast including Tereza Gevorgyan as Lauretta, Diego Silva as Rinuccio and Rebecca de Pont Davies as Zita. Cast and Creative team includes: Gianni Schicchi Richard Burkhard Lauretta Tereza Gevorgyan Rinuccio Diego Silva Nella Victoria Sharp Zita Rebecca de Pont Davies Marco Peter Savidge La Ciesca Claire Pascoe Betto di Signa Dean Robinson Simone Stephen Richardson Dante/ Buoso Donati Tim Claydon Conductor Garry Walker Director Christopher Alden Set Designer Charles Edwards Costume Designer Doey Lüthi Lighting Designer Adam Silverman Choreographer Tim Claydon
Double bill: Gianni Schicchi Giacomo Puccini (1918) Opens Sat 16 Feb 2019 (7 performances) Sung in Italian with English titles Inspired by an episode in Dante’s Inferno, Puccini’s short opera Gianni Schicchi is an irresistible satyr play, set around the death-bed of a rich man. The scheming relatives who vie for a chunk of the dead man’s fortune are all too recognisable, revealing the greed and avarice which lie just below the thin veneer of their family loyalties. With its vivid characterisation and the spontaneity of its musical invention, Gianni Schicchi is a comic masterpiece in miniature which also contains one of Puccini’s best known arias, ‘O mio babbino caro’. Christopher Alden’s witty and imaginative contemporary staging, first seen in 2015, is revived in a double-bill with Stravinsky’s avant-garde ballet The Rite of Spring, co-produced with Phoenix Dance Theatre. Written just five years apart, premiering either side of the First World War, both works are modernist and experimental in tone, offering very different reflections on the decline of an old order, and the beginning of the new. Scottish conductor Garry Walker conducts both pieces, returning to Opera North following Billy Budd (2016). Richard Burkhard sings the title role, returning to Opera North after recent appearances including Tonio (Pagliacci, 2017) and Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro, 2015), with a supporting cast including Tereza Gevorgyan as Lauretta, Diego Silva as Rinuccio and Rebecca de Pont Davies as Zita. Cast and Creative team includes: Gianni Schicchi Richard Burkhard Lauretta Tereza Gevorgyan Rinuccio Diego Silva Nella Victoria Sharp Zita Rebecca de Pont Davies Marco Peter Savidge La Ciesca Claire Pascoe Betto di Signa Dean Robinson Simone Stephen Richardson Dante/ Buoso Donati Tim Claydon Conductor Garry Walker Director Christopher Alden Set Designer Charles Edwards Costume Designer Doey Lüthi Lighting Designer Adam Silverman Choreographer Tim Claydon