Performance

The Italian Gala "O SOLE ITALIANO" - New Year's Eve Concert

 

Italy is associated with magnificent culture and breathtaking landscapes. It is the birthplace of opera. Venice is not only known for its beautiful architecture but also for its carnival, which unlike Rio de Janeiro, is elegant. Venetian masks are often works of art, and costumes dazzle with their richness, choice of materials, and colors. We will conjure up a world from the operatic fairy tale, where characters from different musical works will meet during one evening on the stage of the Grand Theatre in Łódź. The musical direction is led by conductor and composer, artistic director of the Grand Theatre in Łódź, Maestro Rafał Janiak.

 

The gala, directed by Krzysztof Korwin-Piotrowski and choreographed by Beata Brożek-Grabarczyk, will take us to the carnival in Venice and sunny Naples, also in elements of set design and projections on the screen. The rich repertoire will include works by the greatest Italian composers: Bellini, Donizetti, Leoncavallo, Puccini, Rossini, and Verdi. The evening will be complemented by overtures to Johann Strauss' "Italian" operettas, "Carnival in Rome" and "Night in Venice." The famous Neapolitan songs will sound in the last part.

 

The overture to "I Vespri Siciliani" by Giuseppe Verdi will briefly transport us to the largest Italian island, which music lovers associate with the impressive and powerful Teatro Massimo in Palermo. In front of it stands the bust of Verdi, and on the stairs, the finale of "The Godfather Part III" took place. The famous "Bolero" by Elena will be sung by the prima donna of the Grand Theatre in Łódź, Joanna Woś. In her performance, the aria "Casta Diva" from Vincenzo Bellini's "Norma" will also sound. The magnificent tenor Paweł Skałuba will sing the audience's beloved arias from "Rigoletto": "Questa o quella" and "La donna è mobile."

 

The joyful mood will be introduced by the cavatina of Figaro "Largo al factotum" from Gioachino Rossini's "The Barber of Seville," performed by the excellent Ukrainian baritone Stepan Drobit, and the humorous "Music Lesson" from this comic opera will be presented by Aleksandra Borkiewicz-Cłapińska and Dawid Kwieciński.

 

The Choir of the Grand Theatre in Łódź will perform during the Italian gala, among others, one of the most famous pieces in the history of music, "Va, pensiero" from Verdi's "Nabucco," and the enchanting "Bell Chorus" from Ruggero Leoncavallo's "Pagliacci," and Krzysztof Marciniak will complete it with the "Serenade of Harlequin." In the performance of soloists and choir, the most famous operatic toast in honor of love, "Libiamo," from Verdi's "La Traviata," will sound.

 

The duet "Flower Duet" from Giacomo Puccini's "Madama Butterfly" performed by Joanna Woś and Agnieszka Makówka will evoke emotion. Meanwhile, Patrycja Krzeszowska will sing the aria "O mio babbino caro" from this composer's comic opera, "Gianni Schicchi."

 

Italy also has an extraordinary tradition of commedia dell'arte, based on improvisation. On the stage of the Grand Theatre in Łódź, characters such as the cunning Harlequin, resolute Columbina, stingy Venetian merchant Pantalone, his pedantic friend Dottore from Bologna, and the cowardly braggart Capitano will appear. They will add color to the preparations for the Venetian carnival, where masquerades and various surprising situations will be possible.

 

From Venice, we will move to sunny Naples to succumb to the charm of famous Neapolitan songs. We will hear pieces that were sung by the world's most famous tenors, but increasingly by baritones, sopranos, and mezzo-sopranos. We will hear, among others: "Mamma son tanto felice" by Cesare Bixio, "Torna a Surriento" by Ernesto De Curtis, "La Spagnola" by Vincenzo di Chiara, "Funiculì, Funiculà" by Luigi Denza, and "O sole mio" by Eduardo di Capua. You will surely leave the Grand Theatre in Łódź in a pleasant mood, ready to start the new year optimistically.

 

Welcome!

 

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