25th Anniversary of the Summer Event
Opera in the Warden's Garden
La Locandiera
(The Mistress of the Inn)
by Antonio Salieri
Conductor - Steven Devine; Director - Michael Burden
The Old Member nights of the New College Opera in the Warden's Garden are:
- Saturday 11 July 2015 - SOLD OUT
- Friday 17 July 2015
Tickets are £44.00 each to include a pre-performance glass of wine from 5.00pm in the Cloisters.
The pre-performance talk will be at 5.00pm - tickets are £3.00 each. Venue to be announced nearer the time.
The supper interval of 75 minutes will be held in the Cloister. The evening finishes at around 10.15pm. Please bring your own picnic; chairs and tables will be provided.
For any enquiries please contact Jonathan Rubery on +44 (0) 1865 279337 or jonathan.rubery@new.ox.ac.uk
Antonio Salieri (1750-1809) is best known for his supposed role in the poisoning of Mozart, but was also a major teacher and (if now neglected), composer.
The composer, Antonio Salieri, was born in Legnago, south of Verona,in the Republic of Venice, but spent his career in the service of the Habsburgs Monarchy. For much of that time, from 1774 to 1792, he was Director of the Court opera, and not only a major figure in Vienna, but he also composed operas which were performed in Paris, Rome, and London. As a student, he had studied with Florian Gassmann (whom he succeeded in the court theatre) and was a protégé of Gluck. Goldoni’s play, La Locandiera, was written in 1753, and is regarded as one of Goldoni’s finest; it has been described by one critic as his Much Ado About Nothing. It tells the story of the fascinating Mirandolina, who is the landlady of a wayside inn. All her customers fall in love with her, including the arrogant Cavaliere di Ripfratta, who claims to be immune from female charms. The other characters in the opera are the waiter Fabrizio, who is jealous of those who fall for his mistress; the maid Lena, who is looking for a husband; the poor Marquis of Forlimpopoli, who promises much and delivers little; and the contrastingly wealthy Conte d’Albafiorate. The operatic version, with a libretto by Domenico Poggi, was first performed in Vienna in 1773. It was an astounding success, with performances in theatres in France, Germany, Italy and Austria. However, by the end of the century it had fallen from favour, and it did not receive its first modern performance until 1989. The New Chamber Opera performances will be the first in England in modern times, and will have a new translation by Simon Rees.