La Vestale
Gaspare Spontini
Spontini was celebrated in his time by the general public and many composers. La Vestale, at the crossroads of styles, is of imperial flamboyance.
Cast
Marina Rebeka | Julia
Stanislas de Barbeyrac | Licinius
Tassis Christoyannis | Cinna
Aude Extrémo | The Great Vestal
Nicolas Courjal | The Great Pontiff
David Witczak | Un Consul, le Chef des Aruspices
Christophe Rousset | direction
Les Talens Lyriques
Chœur de la Radio flamande
Sung in French, surtitled in French and English
About
Guilty of allowing the sacred fire in the temple of Vesta to be extinguished while she declared her love for General Licinus, Julia is to be executed when divine intervention occurs. If the plot of the libretto relies on simplicity, it favours both the psychological depth of the protagonists and the transparency of political allusions. How can one not assimilate, in this opera dedicated to Josephine, the character of Licinus to Napoleon Bonaparte? More than a work of propaganda, La Vestale is, thanks to Spontini's score, one of the links between the operatic tragedy of the Ancien Régime and the grand opera genre. The work requires the presence on stage of an exceptional soprano: the young Latvian soprano Marina Rebeka takes up the challenge by playing Julia after Caroline Branchu at the premiere in 1807 and Maria Callas in 1954 at La Scala.
COPRODUCTION Palazzetto Bru Zane | Théâtre des Champs-Elysées | Les Talens Lyriques | Chœur de la Radio flamande
Dans le cadre du 9e Festival Palazzetto Bru Zane Paris
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