Italian ambassador to Việt Nam Antonio Alessandro (left) and tenor Giovanni Maria Palmia at a press conference in Hà Nội. Photo toquoc.vn

HÀ NỘI - One of the most popular Italian operas Cavalleria Rusticana will be performed at Hà Nội Opera House on April 15 and 16. 

The one-act opera was composed by Pietro Mascagni (1863-1945) based on the original short story and play with the same title by Giovanni Verga (1840-1922). It is a classical opera in the verismo style of Italian opera. 

Cavalleria Rusticana, a small village on the island of Sicily, is a tale of love, betrayal, and revenge. The inner struggles of ordinary people when caught in the whirlpool of passion and jealousy are shown through the relationship between the characters Turiddu, Lola, Alfio, and Santuzza.

"We want to introduce Italian culture, people and art to Vietnamese," said Italian ambassador Antonio Alessandro at the press conference in Hà Nội. 

"This is a chance for local audiences to watch an international standard performance of opera."

The opera will feature over 200 artists from Việt Nam National Opera & Ballet, Sài Gòn Philharmonic Orchestra and international artists including conductor Fan Ting, director Cindy Leung and tenor Giovanni Maria Palmia.

Palmia will act as the male lead Turiddu. He graduated in opera in 2014, at the Conservatory of Parma and in the following years, he worked at Bologna Municipal Theater’s Academy and in various masterclasses, studying with Renata Scotto and Mariella Devia.

He has conquered prestigious opera competitions such as Concorso Lirico Internazionale Crescendi in 2019 and 2020. 

"This is an interesting experience to perform in a new country like Việt Nam for me," he said at the press conference. 

"It is not easy to combine singing and acting. I have to discuss with the conductor and the director how to sing and act well. However, I think that music and lyrics are more important than acting in an opera.

"I hope that the Italian traditional opera will be received enthusiastically by the Vietnamese audience."

Other characters will be performed by tenor Henry Ngan; soprano Vicki Wu; baritone Michael Chun Ting Lam and Vietnamese mezzo-soprano Nguyễn Thu Quỳnh.

Quỳnh graduated from the Việt Nam National Academy of Music. She has participated in works such as Verdi’s Requiem, Beethoven’s Symphony No9, played Dorabella in Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte, Carmen in the opera of the same name by Bizet, and Fantine in Les Miserable.

Since the first showcase on 17 May 1890, Cavalleria Rusticana has become one of the most famous operas and is reenacted at various prestigious theatres all over the world.

The emotions will be conveyed under the baton of conductor Fan Ting. He has more than 40 years of experience as a concertmaster and violin conductor in Hong Kong.

Cindy Leung, who has been involved in directing high-class operas for decades, will join the show as general director, being the finishing touch for this emotional realistic opera, promising to bring an international standard performance from music, staging to acting.

The opera is one of a series of activities to commemorate the 50 years of diplomatic relations between Italy and Việt Nam. - VNS