L’incoronazione di Poppea
Boston Baroque presents Monteverdi’s final opera, L’incoronazione di Poppea, with an all-star cast on Friday, April 26, at 7:30 pm and on Sunday, April 28 at 3:00 pm at New England Conservatory’s Jordan Hall.
These will be the first performances of a new performing edition of the opera by Boston Baroque founder and Music Director Martin Pearlman. The all-star cast includes soprano Amanda Forsythe in the title role and countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo making his Boston Baroque debut as Nero.
The opera’s cast is a roster of world-class singers who grace opera and concert halls around the world: soprano Amanda Forsythe in the title role of Poppea; countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo in his Boston Baroque debut as Nero; contralto Emily Marvosh as Ottavia; Ryan Belongie making his Boston Baroque debut as Ottone; tenor Brian Giebler making his Boston Baroque debut as Arnalta; bass Kevin Langan as Seneca; soprano Maggie Finnegan making her Boston Baroque debut as Damigella; tenor Jonas Budris as Lucano; soprano Sonja Tengblad as Drusilla; and Tara Faircloth stage directing in her Boston Baroque debut.
Boston Baroque’s semi-staged operas have become a celebrated annual tradition, as Boston’s acoustical jewel, Jordan Hall, is transformed with sets and lighting for one weekend. Boston Baroque has performed all three of Monteverdi’s operas—in 2014 it performed and recorded Monteverdi’s Il ritornio d’Ulisse in patria; the recording, released on Linn records, was nominated for two GRAMMY® awards in the categories of Best Opera Recording and Best Engineered Album.
Boston Baroque’s performances will use a new performing edition by Martin Pearlman. No original manuscript of Monteverdi’s I’incoronazione di Poppea has survived; performers and scholars use a combination of extemporaneous copied manuscripts that originated in Venice and Naples during Monteverdi’s lifetime. In Pearlman’s performing edition, he uses the Venice manuscript—which was developed by Francesco Cavalli, the celebrated opera composer and boy soprano for Monteverdi in the choir St. Mark’s Basilica—as his inspiration. The resulting edition promises to bring Monteverdi’s vision to brilliant and evocative musical life for today’s audiences.
TICKETS:
Single tickets range from $25-$105, with discounts for students and seniors, and can be purchased at Boston Baroque’s Website and 617-987-8600.
Image Credit: Boston Baorque Orchestra and Chorus – Photo by Julian Bullitt