Maria Stuarda
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Maria Stuarda (Mary Stuart) is a tragic opera, tragedia lirica, in two acts, by Gaetano Donizetti, to a libretto by Giuseppe Bardari, based on Friedrich von Schiller's 1800 play Maria Stuart.
It received its premiere on December 30, 1835 at La Scala, Milan.
The subject is based on the lives of Mary, Queen of Scots (Mary Stuart) and her cousin Queen Elizabeth I. The king banned performances of the opera, and Donizetti responded by removing large segments of the score for use in a different work, Buondelmonte. However, Maria Malibran (a famous mezzo-soprano who often sang soprano parts) forced a premiere at La Scala and ignored the censoring revisions, but a ban by the city was enforced.
Realizing the impossibility of a run in Italy, a London premiere was planned, but Malibran's death at the age of 28 in 1836 cancelled the project. Except for several productions of the Buondelmonte version, the work was neglected until 1958 when a production in Bergamo, Donizetti's hometown, brought the original work into popularity. The premiere in England was held on March 1, 1966.
When forced to simplify part of the music for the original Elisabetta, Donizetti scribbled on the margin "But it's ugly!", and further on refused a change, writing "Do it, and may you live for a hundred years!"[1]
Contents |
[edit] Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, December 30, 1835 (Conductor: - ) |
|---|---|---|
| Maria Stuarda, Queen of Scotland | soprano | Maria Malibran |
| Elisabetta, Queen of England | mezzo-soprano | Giacinta Puzzi Tosi |
| Anna Kennedy, Maria's companion | mezzo-soprano | Teresa Moja |
| Roberto, Earl of Leicester | tenor | Domenico Reina |
| Lord Guglielmo Cecil, Chancellor of the Exchequer | baritone | Pietro Novelli |
| Giorgio Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury | bass | Ignazio Marini |
| A herald | tenor |
[edit] Synopsis
- Place: Palace of Westminster, London and Fotheringay Castle, Northamptonshire, England.
- Time: 1587.
[edit] Act 1
Scene 1: Elisabetta's court at Westminster
Scene 2: Fotheringay Castle
[edit] Act 2
Scene 1: A room in Elisabetta's apartments
Scene 2: Maria's room
Scene 3: The courtyard at Fotheringay
[edit] Selected recordings
| Year | Cast (Maria, Elisabeta, Leiceser, Talbot) |
Conductor, Opera House and Orchestra |
Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | Beverly Sills, Eileen Farrell, Stuart Burrows, Louis Quilico |
Aldo Ceccato, London Philharmonic Orchestra with John Aldis Choir |
Audio CD: Deutsche Grammophon Cat: 289 465961-2 (Part of "3 Queens" box set) |
| 1975 | Joan Sutherland, Huguette Tourangeau, Luciano Pavarotti, Roger Soyer |
Richard Bonynge, Teatro Comunale di Bologna Orchestra and Chorus |
Audio CD: Decca Cat:00289 425 4102 |
| 1989 | Edita Gruberova, Agnes Baltsa, Francisco Araiza, Simone Alaimo |
Giuseppe Patanè, Münchner Rundfunkorchester |
Audio CD: Phillips Cat: 426233-2 |
[edit] External links
- Libretto (Italian)
[edit] References
- ^ L'Indipendente, 22 April 1865, cited in Jeremy Commons, "Maria Stuarda", The Musical Times, Vol. 107, No. 1477. (March 1966), p. 207.
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