Teatro alla Scala bill of 'Adriana Lecouvreur' gearing up with Anita Rachvelishvili in cast
Anita Rachvelishvili will be cast in the role of the Princess of Bouillon in four shows at the Milan theatre. Photo: Teatro alla Scala/Brescia - Amisano.
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Anita Rachvelishvili will be on the stage of Milan's famed Teatro alla Scala as Princess de Bouillon in the opera classic Adriana Lecouvreur, with four appearances scheduled for the Georgian mezzo-soprano in the bill starting this week.
Selected for David McVicar's staging of the four-act co-production between five major opera houses of Europe and the United States, Rachvelishvili will be in the roster of performers featuring other big names including Anna Netrebko (as Adriana), Freddie De Tommaso (Maurizio) and Alessandro Corbelli (Michonnet).
The Georgian singer will alternate her role with mezzo Elena Zhidkova, with the former being given the stage for four shows, and the latter appearing in three evenings.
In its preview of the production, the Italian theatre said Adriana Lecouvreur was "enjoying new popularity and esteem, winning over a new generation of operagoers." The staging comes via a co-production involving the Royal Opera House, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Wiener Staatsoper, Opera National de Paris and San Francisco Opera.
Set to run with Teatro alla Scala Orchestra and Chorus, the bill will feature conductor Giampaolo Bisanti, set design by Charles Edwards and costumes by Brigitte Reiffenstuel. Adam Silverman has worked on lighting design for the performances, while Andrew George contributed via choreography.
In 2019, Rachvelishvili was praised for her “show-stopping” debut portrayal of Princess de Bouillon by critics of The Washington Post, The New York Times and the Operawire review website, after performances at the Metropolitan Opera House.
Reviewing the bill, The Post's Anne Midgette said "[T]he real showstopper was not Netrebko, fine as she often was, but the mezzo-soprano Anita Rachvelishvili as Adriana’s rival and poisoner, the Princess of Bouillon, singing with an old-school blood-and-guts approach in a voice several sizes larger than that of anyone else onstage, to the loud delight of the audience."
Set in the 18th century Paris, the opera follows actress Adriana Lecouvreur, in love with Maurizio, the Count of Saxony, and desired by Michonnet. The unrequited love between Princess of Bouillon and Maurizio completes the intricate love net in the production.
Teatro alla Scala's bill of the opera will run between March 4-19.