Organization

Singer

Tenor

Dietrich Henschel

Orfeo

Soprano

Maria Grazia Schiavo

Euridice

Proserpina

Music

Sonia Prina

The messenger

Hope

Bass

Luigi De Donato

Caronte

Antonio Abete

Pluto

Hanna Bayodi

The nymph

Xavier Sabata

First shepherd

Cyril Auvity

Second shepherd

First spirit

Baritone

Juan Sancho

Third shepherd

Second spirit

Jonathan Sells

Fourth shepherd

Third spirit

Ludovic Provost

Echo

Conductor

William Christie

Stage director

Pier Luigi Pizzi

Costume designer

Set designer

Teatro Real de Madrid

L'Orfeo -  (Orfeo)

Madrid

Spain

Teatro Real

Claudio Monteverdi first presented L’Orfeo in the ducal palace of the Duke of Mantua on 24 February 1607, the date now regarded as the birth of opera. The Cremona-born composer defined the new genre with his favola in musica on the myth of Orpheus and its revolutionary treatment of drama and music.

Working from an erudite libretto by Alessandro Striggio based on Ovid’s Metamorphoses and Virgil’s Georgics, Monteverdi wrote a score so perfect that it would become the essential work of reference for opera in the centuries to come.

Thanks to its extraordinary conception and meticulous orchestration, L’Orfeo reaches a level of excellence rarely seen in the history of opera. Monteverdi was the first musician for whom the expression of deeply moving human feelings and passions was an absolute priority.

This is the first recording in the complete Monteverdi cycle with William Christie and Les Arts Florissants, made possible by a three-year collaboration between Dynamic and Teatro Real. Luigi Pizzi’s attractive and original staging is enhanced by the rich colour of 17th century costumes. The musicians - and Christie himself - also perform in costume, with the conductor clad in a flowing red cloak and white ruffed colla

L'Orfeo Monteverdi

Approved

Orfeo by Monteverdi, From (2008/2008), Directed by Pier Luigi Pizzi,, Conductor William Christie, Teatro Real, Madrid, Spain

Performance credits (Cast & Crew )

Cast

Crew

Programme, About & Synopsis

Photos

Further reading

Performance Dates & Venues

Venues