On the 30th January 30 friends of Lux Mundi, Torre del Mar spent an enjoyable evening at the Centre listening to a talk by James Tayler introducing them to a taste of Italian Opera.
On arrival they were given a welcome drink and then followed the talk on how the origins of Italian opera go back to the early seventeenth century. The idea at the time was an attempt to reproduce what was thought of as being forms of ancient Greek theatre. It soon became apparent that this new musical form opened up in providing an entertainment which involved spectacular staging and even more spectacular singing.
Starting with the 18th century the group saw an excerpt from “Griselda” by Vivaldi sung by Cecilia Bartoli using her voice to produce a sort of vocal fireworks, which was amazing to listen to. There then followed an aria from a very modern production of “Julius Caesar” one of George Frederick Handel’s many Italian operas, in which Cleopatra is presented as a nineteen-twenties “flapper”, very amusing.
The presentation then moved on to the composer Gioacchino Rossini, famous for his comic operas, with an extended excerpt from “La Cenerentola” (“Cinderella”) featuring the Prince’s ball and the entrance of Cinderella. The costumes and staging were beautifully presented. In great contrast the final opera the friends viewed was by the Italian composer Giacomo Puccini – his masterpiece “La Bohème”. The whole presentation was a great success, informative, interesting and enjoyable and we look forward in future to hearing more about opera.
