Woody Allen might be best-known for his romantic comedies but he's an opera fan as well, which is why he'll be teaming up with renowned opera singer Plácido Domingo for a performance of Gianni Schicchi at the Los Angeles Opera to open the 2015-'16 season. It will be the second time the director has staged a production of Schicchi (from Billboard).
Domingo, known by wider audiences for his role within The Three Tenors, will star in the title role of the one-act opera. The plot is comedic, although perhaps not in the traditional Allen sense, and features Schicci as man trying to temporarily steal the identity of his friend Buoso Donati and ensure the latter's will treats him well. The plot is derived from a brief reference in Dante's Inferno, where the title character visits the Circle of Impersonators. Giacomo Puccini would premiere the piece as part of his Il trittico (The Triptych) during 1918.
Allen's production of the opera is inspired by black-and-white Italian television comedies of the '40s and '50s, according to The Los Angeles Times, featuring sets and costumes that take on the relatively drab colors of the era.
Attendees at the Los Angeles Opera's opening during September will get more than just Gianni Schicchi of course, due to that piece's short nature. Domingo will return for the second act of the night when he conducts Ruggero Leoncavallo's Pagliacci, another short (two act) opera. Domingo has served as General Director at the Opera since 2003, occasionally guest conducting.
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Los Angeles Opera and will include productions of Moby Dick, Norma, Madama Butterfly, La Boheme and Mozart's The Magic Flute.
Schicchi/Pagliacci will run from September 12 to October 3. This will be Domingo's 144th role as an opera performer during his career.
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