Opera in 4 acts
Libretto: Francesco Maria Piave with Andrea Maffei [Based: Shakespeare: Macbeth]
First performance: March 14, 1847, Teatro della Pergola, Florence
Recorded: 1972, Glyndebourne Festival Opera
This epic opera inspired by Shakespeare's tragic masterpiece was written in 1847, but did not receive its British premiere until 1938 when it was presented for the first time at Glyndebourne.
The tragedy is a penetrating, concentrated, and harrowing study of the ambition of Macbeth and his wife, Lady Macbeth. In the end both seem to verge on hallucination and madness as they recoil from the mayhem they have created around them.
The production features an outstanding international cast, with the Greek baritone Kostas Paskalis in the title role and British star Josephine Barstow making an exciting debut as Lady Macbeth. Proceedings are conducted by the sympathetic baton of John Prithard. The designer, Emanuele Luzzati, has created a series of stunning visual impressions, including the chilling witches' chorus, the sumptuous banquet at which Macbeth sees the ghost of Banquo and Lady Macbeth's heart-rending sleepwalking scene. |
[ PAL ]