A Rossini UK Premiere at the RCM
Thursday 5 June 2014
Following on from last year’s hit production of Offenbach’s La vie parisienne, this summer the RCM International Opera School once again offers up an entertaining and tuneful comic rarity. But this time there is something extra special on offer…
Rossini’s La gazzetta or Il matrimonio per concorso (“The Newspaper” or “The Marriage Contest”) centres on Don Pomponio’s desperate use of a newspaper advertisement to try to find a suitable husband for his flirtatious daughter. The opera received its UK premiere at Garsington Opera in 2001, and proved a huge success: it was described as “a triumph” in The Guardian, and a “rare treat” in the Telegraph.
But in the middle of Act 1, something was missing: a quintet for the five major characters, which appeared in the earliest libretto but not in the autograph score. Thankfully, in 2011 the missing quintet was identified by librarian Dario Lo Cicero and Rossini scholar Philip Gossett. So this summer we’re celebrating the opera’s 200th anniversary by finally presenting the quintet’s UK premiere as part of our brand new production.
To direct, we’re delighted to welcome Donald Maxwell, one of Britain’s best-loved comic singers. Donald is uniquely qualified to bring this comic masterpiece to life, having appeared as Don Pomponio in the 2001 Garsington production. His comic genius and experience, combined with the brilliantly talented young RCM singers, promises to offer up an entertaining and enchanting evening.
For information and to book tickets, visit the RCM website.
