Wexford Festival Opera presents Le maschere by Mascagni
Well, it's opening night at the WFO 2024 and Paul Herriott is there to bring us Mascagni's Le maschere the title of which is a reference to the masks of the commedia dell'arte. In the Prologue the players and their impresario present the characters they are about to play. The cast includes: Brighella (sung by tenor Gillen Munguia), a travelling salesman; Dr. Graziano, a man of law performed by Irish baritone Rory Musgrave; Columbina, his maidservant (in love with Brighella) sung by Ioana Pipelea; Pantalone a wealthy resident sung by bass baritone Mariano Orozco; his daughter Rosaura (in love with Florindo) sung by Lavina Bini; a stuttering Tartaglia sung by Giorgio Caoduro; Capitan Spaventa sung by Matteo Mancini and his servant Arlecchino performed by Benoit Joseph Meier. Principal guest conductor Francesco Cilluffo returns to conduct the Wexford Festival Opera Orchestra and Chorus.
Wexford Festival Opera presents The Critic by Charles Villiers Stanford
The Critic takes place on the stage of a theatre, where a new opera, The Spanish Armada, is in rehearsal. The composer, Mr. Dangle (performed by Jonathan White) and the librettist and impresario, Mr. Puff, have invited the eponymous critic, Mr. Sneer performed by Arthur Riordan, to attend. Mr. Puff launches into a discussion of his profession, the theatre and the many merits of his new piece. The rehearsal begins, and we are transported to the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. The cast conducted by Ciaran McAuley includes Rory Lynch, Rory Dunne, Ben McAteer and Ava Dodd
Wexford Festival Opera 2024 presents Donizetti's Le convenienze ed inconvenienze teatrali
Paul Herriott brings us Le convenienze ed inconvenienze teatrali (Conventions and Inconveniences of the Stage), a two-act farce that shines an exaggerated spotlight on the behind-the-scenes working of a theatre and the rehearsal process, showing what can go wrong when the egos of the performers get in the way of putting on a good show. A regional (and mediocre) operatic troupe is rehearsing a new work and faces numerous obstacles. The prima donna acts every bit the diva, refusing to rehearse. The tenor finds himself in the wrong production and quite out of his depth. The Seconda Donna's mother (played by a baritone) demands that her daughter be given a more prominent role, before deciding to take on several roles herself. Not be outshone, the Prima Donna's husband takes to the stage too. When the show eventually collapses and the company tries to flee under cover of night, rather than pay back all the investors (whose money has already been spent), the Impresario has other plans... Danila Grassi conducts the Wexford Festival Opera Orchestra and Chorus.