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“Opera”
Recorded during the 2018 Donizetti Festival, Il castello di Kenilworth was first staged at Naples’s San Carlo in 1829. Based on a novel by Sir Walter Scott and adapted by librettist Leone Tottola, this rare opera has long been unjustly neglected. The recording features the original version of the score, with the role of Warney entrusted to a tenor (the composer changed the voice to baritone in his 1836 revision). Il castello di Kenilworth was followed by several other successful works that Donizetti similarly based on British history (Maria Stuarda, Anna Bolena, Rosmonda d’Inghilterra, Emilia di Liverpool, Lucia di Lammermoor); it presents the character of Queen Elizabeth I, torn by the inner struggle between a monarch’s duty and a woman’s feelings. The fundamental pivot of the drama is the antagonism between the two female characters who both dwell and suffer in loneliness in a male-dominated world.
Status
Released
Original Language
EN
Lambourne
In Verona, bad blood between the Montague and Capulet families leads to much bitterness. Despite the hostility, Romeo Montague manages an invitation to a masked ball at the estate of the Capulets and meets Juliet, their daughter. The two are instantly smitten but dismayed to learn that their families are enemies. Romeo and Juliet figure out a way to pursue their romance, but Romeo is banished for his part in the slaying of Juliet's cousin, Tybalt.