Le villi | Giacomo Puccini
A heartbroken young woman is transformed into a villi, a legendary evil supernatural creature, to take revenge on her unfaithful lover: she forces him to dance until death. This is, in a nutshell, Le Villi, the opera with which Puccini made his debut, immediately making his mark due to the intensity of the melodies and the force of the symphonic writing.
Initially written as a single act, a few months after its debut, the opera was revised by its author in an expanded version, with new arias and a new orchestral interlude, which debuted precisely at Teatro Regio in 1884. The audience appreciated the skilful combination of Italian tradition and Wagnerian elements and saw it as a triumph. After that resounding success, Le Villi is revived for the first time at our Theatre under the conduction of Riccardo Frizza, a specialist in the Italian opera repertoire.
The new production is led by Pier Francesco Maestrini: the director delves into the theme of the occult. The director assumes that the fact that the composer took inspiration by the ballet Giselle by Adolfe Adam to compose the opera-ballet Le villi, should not be misleading, because in the music Puccini pours all his rash of youth with the aim, not mediated by maturity prudence, of shocking the audience.
Lecture-Concert: Wednesday 17 April at 6 pm - Piccolo Regio Puccini
Opera-ballet in two acts
Characters and cast
Roberta Mantegna
Laura Giordano
Azer Zada
Raffaele Abete
Simone Piazzola
Gëzim Myshketa
Performances
Turno C
Durante questa recita è attivo il Bimbi Club
During this performance the Baby Club is available
Synopsis
atto
Spring
Family and guests dance at a celebration of the engagement in marriage of Roberto and Anna. Roberto must leave before the ceremony to collect an inheritance, and Anna worries that she will never see him again (Aria: Se come voi piccina). Roberto comforts Anna telling her that it will be fine and they will marry when he returns from Mainz. Anna tells Roberto of her dreams of him dying but Roberto tells Anna that she should not worry about his love failing and that she may doubt her God but not his love for her. The crowd returns and Anna is still worried about Roberto leaving. Roberto then asks Guglielmo, Anna's father, to bless them before his journey and Roberto sets off for Mainz.
atto
Roberto is enchanted by a siren, and forgets Anna. Anna waits through the summer and the autumn and in the winter dies in his absence. The legend of the fairies (Le Villi) is then explained. When a woman dies of a broken heart, the fairies force the heart breaker to dance until death.
Winter
Anna's father, Guglielmo, holds Roberto responsible for Anna's death and calls upon the Villi to take vengeance on Roberto (Aria: Anima santa della figlia mia). The Villi call upon the ghost of Anna and lure Roberto into the forest. Roberto, now penniless and abandoned by the seductress, returns when news of Anna's death reaches him. He hopes for forgiveness, but the Villi stalk him as he mourns the loss of the days of his youth (Aria: Torna ai felici dì). Roberto then finds the one last flower left alive in the winter and tries to find hope that Anna lives but is repelled by the Villi when he tries to knock on the door of Guglielmo's house. Roberto then tries to pray for forgiveness but finds he cannot because of the curse put upon him by the Villi. As Roberto curses his fate Anna appears to him and tells him of the suffering that she had to endure. Roberto begs for forgiveness and he too feels the pain of Anna burning in his heart. But Roberto is not forgiven and Anna calls upon the Villi, who curse Roberto with cries of "traitor." There, the Villi and Anna dance with Roberto until he dies of exhaustion at Anna's feet.