MUSIC BY GIUSEPPE VERDI
Libretto by Arrigo Boito
PRODUCTION NEW TO SAN FRANCISCO OPERA
Bryn Terfel, the "definitive" Falstaff of our day (Chicago Tribune), returns to San Francisco Opera in one of his truly legendary roles. Based on Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor and Henry IV, Verdi's last opera is a wise, wistful comedy about a self-deluded old man who vainly attempts to seduce two women at once. "Terfel is so irascible, nimble on his feet and altogether charming that he almost makes you forget how splendidly he sings the music" (The New York Times). Music Director Nicola Luisotti leads a cast that also features Ainhoa Arteta, the "vocally alluring" Roxane of San Francisco Opera’s Cyrano de Bergerac (2010) (San Francisco Chronicle); the "impressive" Meredith Arwady (The New York Times); Fabio Capitanucci, renowned for his "robust, warm voice and impressive Italianate lyricism" (The New York Times); the "wonderfully lyrical" Francesco Demuro (MusicalCriticism.com); and Heidi Stober, who brought "lustrous tone, technical precision and saucy humor" to her roles in San Francisco Opera’s Xerxes (2011) and The Magic Flute (2012) (San Francisco Chronicle).
Fromm Class: A Verdi Celebration by Professor Keolker
Tuesdays, Sep 9–Oct 31: Celebrate the Verdi bicentennial with a thematic survey of this beloved composer's most important works through libretto extracts, a discussion of Verdi's life and times and musical examples.
Humanities West Class: Verdi's Masterwork: Opera and the Birth of Modern Italy
November 1–2: During this seminar, learn how Verdi became the leading artist of Italy's resurgent movement, the "Risorgimento," and how it affected his life and art.
Sung in Italian with English supertitles
Approximate running time: 3 hours including two intermissions
Pre-Opera Talks are free to ticketholders and take place in the main theater in the Orchestra section, 55 minutes prior to curtain.
MUSIC BY GIUSEPPE VERDI
Libretto by Arrigo Boito
PRODUCTION NEW TO SAN FRANCISCO OPERA
Bryn Terfel, the "definitive" Falstaff of our day (Chicago Tribune), returns to San Francisco Opera in one of his truly legendary roles. Based on Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor and Henry IV, Verdi's last opera is a wise, wistful comedy about a self-deluded old man who vainly attempts to seduce two women at once. "Terfel is so irascible, nimble on his feet and altogether charming that he almost makes you forget how splendidly he sings the music" (The New York Times). Music Director Nicola Luisotti leads a cast that also features Ainhoa Arteta, the "vocally alluring" Roxane of San Francisco Opera’s Cyrano de Bergerac (2010) (San Francisco Chronicle); the "impressive" Meredith Arwady (The New York Times); Fabio Capitanucci, renowned for his "robust, warm voice and impressive Italianate lyricism" (The New York Times); the "wonderfully lyrical" Francesco Demuro (MusicalCriticism.com); and Heidi Stober, who brought "lustrous tone, technical precision and saucy humor" to her roles in San Francisco Opera’s Xerxes (2011) and The Magic Flute (2012) (San Francisco Chronicle).
Fromm Class: A Verdi Celebration by Professor Keolker
Tuesdays, Sep 9–Oct 31: Celebrate the Verdi bicentennial with a thematic survey of this beloved composer's most important works through libretto extracts, a discussion of Verdi's life and times and musical examples.
Humanities West Class: Verdi's Masterwork: Opera and the Birth of Modern Italy
November 1–2: During this seminar, learn how Verdi became the leading artist of Italy's resurgent movement, the "Risorgimento," and how it affected his life and art.
Sung in Italian with English supertitles
Approximate running time: 3 hours including two intermissions
Pre-Opera Talks are free to ticketholders and take place in the main theater in the Orchestra section, 55 minutes prior to curtain.
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