Adriana Lecouvreur Is the Jan. 12, 2019, Met Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast

Summary: Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur is the Jan. 12, 2019, Met Opera Saturday matinee broadcast, numbering seventh of 24 in the 2018-2019 season’s schedule.

Russian operatic soprano Anna Netrebko adds the title role of Francesco Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur to her resumé at The Metropolitan Opera during the 2018-2019 Met Opera season: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera via Facebook July 11, 2018

Francesco Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur is the Jan. 12, 2019, Met Opera Saturday matinee broadcast, airing as the seventh of 24 scheduled Saturday matinee radio broadcasts during the 2018-2019 Met Opera season.

Italian composer Francesco Cilea (July 23, 1866-Nov. 20, 1950) set his musical score for Adriana Lecouvreur to an Italian libretto by Italian journalist and librettist Arturo Colautti (Oct. 9, 1851-Nov. 9, 1914). Colautti’s literary source was a five-act tragedy, Adrienne Lecouvreur, by French dramatists Gabriel Jean Baptiste Ernest Wilfred Legouvé (Feb. 14, 1807-March 14, 1903), known as Ernest, and Augustin Eugène Scribe (Dec. 24, 1791-Feb. 20, 1861), known as Eugène.

Legouvé and Scribe’s play premiered April 14, 1849, in Paris, France, at la Comédie-Française, also known as Théâtre-Français. The premiere took place at Salle Richelieu, the primary venue for Théâtre-Français. Salle Richelieu is located at 2 rue de Richelieu, in the southwestern corner of the Palais-Royal complex, in the first arrondissement of Paris (1er arrondissement de Paris).

Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur premiered Nov. 6, 1902, at Teatro Lirico in Milan, Lombardy, north central Italy. Italian operatic tenor Enrico Caruso (Feb. 25, 1873-Aug. 2, 1921) appeared in the principal role of Maurizio, County of Saxony.

The Metropolitan Opera premiere of Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur took place Nov. 18, 1907. Caruso reprised the role of Maurizio.

The 2018-2019 Met Opera season premiere of the opera house’s new production of Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur takes place Monday, Dec. 31, at 6 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Opening night premieres the opera company’s new production of Cilea’s historical opera.

Including the season premiere, eight performances are scheduled for the 2018-2019 Met Opera season. Seven performances take place in January 2019. The new year’s performances are scheduled for Friday, Jan. 4, at 7:30 p.m.; Tuesday, Jan. 8, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Jan. 12, at 1 p.m.; Wednesday, Jan. 16, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Jan. 19, at 8 p.m.; Wednesday, Jan. 23, at 7:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Jan. 26, at 8 p.m. The performance Saturday, Jan. 12, airs as the 2018-2019 Met Opera season’s seventh Saturday matinee radio broadcast.

Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur has an estimated run time of 3 hours 33 minutes during the 2018-2019 Met Opera season. Act I spans 86 minutes. An intermission of 30 minutes follows. Act II covers 28 minutes. An intermission of 25 minutes follows. Act III claims 44 minutes.

Gianandrea Noseda conducts all performances. The Italian conductor’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened March 12, 2002, in the opera company’s eighth performance of War and Peace by Soviet composer, conductor and pianist Sergei Prokofiev (April 23, 1891-March 5, 1953).

Anna Netrebko appears in the title role in the 2018-2019 season’s first six performances (Dec. 31; Jan. 4, 8, 12, 16, 19). The Russian operatic soprano’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Feb. 14, 2002, as Natasha Rostova in the Metropolitan Opera premiere of Prokofiev’s War and Peace. During the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Anna Netrebko also sings the title role of Aida by 19th century opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901).

Anna Netrebko shares the title role with Jennifer Rowley, who sings in the last two performances, Jan. 23 and 26. Jennifer Rowley’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened March 19, 2014, as Musetta during the opera company’s 1,251st performance of La Bohème by Italian opera composer Giacomo Puccini (Dec. 22, 1858-Nov. 29, 1924). In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, the American soprano also sings the title role in Verdi’s Tosca.

Anita Rachvelishvili appears in all performances as the Princess of Bouillon, who forms a love triangle with her former lover, Maurizio, and his new love, Adriana. The Georgian operatic mezzo-soprano’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened as the title role in the opera company’s 970th performance of Carmen by French Romantic Era composer Georges Bizet (Oct. 25, 1838-June 3, 1875). In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season Anita Rachvelishvili also appears as Amneris in Verdi’s Aida and as Dalila in Samson et Dalila by French Romantic Era composer Camille Saint-Saëns (Oct. 9, 1835-Dec. 16, 1921).

Piotr Beczala appears in all performances as Maurizio, Count of Saxony. The Polish operatic tenor’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Dec. 19, 2006, as the Duke of Mantua in the opera company’s 814th performance of Verdi’s Rigoletto.

Carlo Bosi appears in all performances as the Abbé de Chazeuil, who accompanies the Prince de Bouillon, husband of Adriana’s rival. The Italian tenor’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Dec. 6, 2013, as Dr. Cajus in the opera company’s 176th performance of Verdi’s Falstaff. In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Carlo Bosi also appears as Nick in Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West.

Ambrogio Maestri appears in all performances as Michonnet, a Comédie-Française stage manager who experiences unrequited love in a love triangle with Adriana and Maurizio. The Italian operatic baritone’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Nov. 15, 2004, as Amonasro in the opera company’s 1,074th performance of Verdi’s Aida. In the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Ambrogio Maestri also sings the title role in Verdi’s Falstaff.

Maurizio Muraro appears in all performances as the Prince de Bouillon, husband of the Count of Saxony’s former lover. The Italian operatic bass-baritone’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened 2005, as Dr. Bartolo in the opera company’s 419th performance of Le Nozze di Figaro by Classical Era composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Jan. 27, 1756-Dec. 5, 1791). During the 2018-2019 Met Opera season, Maurizio Muraro also appears in Puccini’s Il Trittico as Talpa in Il Tabarro segment and as Simone in the Gianni Schicchi segment; and as Sulpice in La Fille du Régiment by 19th century Italian bel canto opera composer Gaetano Donizetti (Nov. 29, 1797-April 8, 1848).

The 2018-2019 Met Opera season’s performances of Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur premiere the opera house’s new production, directed by Sir David McVicar. The Scottish opera and theatre director’s Metropolitan Opera debut happened Feb. 16, 2009, in the opera company’s 600th performance of Verdi’s Il Trovatore.

Sir McVicar's production team comprises Charles Edwards, set designer; Brigitte Reiffenstuel, costume designer; Adam Silverman, lighting designer; and Andrew George, choreographer. The production’s associate director is Justin Way.

Sir McVicar’s new production replaces staging by Mark Lamos. The American theater and opera director debuted his Met Opera staging Feb. 6, 2009, as an updated revival for the opera house’s 67th performance of Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur.

Lamos’s update revived American opera and stage director Nathaniel Merrill’s (Feb. 8, 1927-Sept. 9, 2008) production, which debuted Jan. 21, 1963, in the opera house’s fourth performance of Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur. Nathaniel Merrill’s production featured designs by Carlo Maria Cristini from sketches by Italian designer Camillo Parravicini (1902-1978).

The takeaway for Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur as the Jan. 12, 2019, Met Opera Saturday matinee broadcast is that the historical operatic tragedy airs as the seventh of the 2018-2019 Met Opera season’s 24 scheduled Saturday matinee radio broadcasts.

Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur concerns 18th century French actress Adrienne Lecouvreur’s possible fatal preference for violets; portrait of Adrienne Lecouvreur by an unknown artist, ca. 1725, Musée des Beaux Arts et d’Archéologie, Châlons-en-Champagne, Marne, northeastern France; November 2011: Garitan, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Russian operatic soprano Anna Netrebko adds the title role of Francesco Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur to her resumé at The Metropolitan Opera during the 2018-2019 Met Opera season: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera via Facebook July 11, 2018, @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532/10160768870150533/

Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur concerns 18th century French actress Adrienne Lecouvreur’s possible fatal preference for violets; portrait of Adrienne Lecouvreur by an unknown artist, ca. 1725, Musée des Beaux Arts et d’Archéologie, Châlons-en-Champagne, Marne department, Grand Est region, northeastern France; November 2011: Garitan, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1515_Adrienne_Lecouvreur.jpg?uselang=fr

For further information:

“Adriana Lecouvreur.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 352856 Adriana Lecouvreur {67} Metropolitan Opera House: 02/06/2009.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=352856

“Debut: Gianandrea Noseda.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 350263 War and Peace {8} Metropolitan Opera House: 03/12/2002.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=350263

“Debuts: Ambrogio Maestri, Armando Braswell.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 351078 Aida {1074} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/15/2004.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=351078

“Debuts: Anita Hartig, Jennifer Rowley, Nicolas Testé.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 355378 La Bohème {1251} Metropolitan Opera House: 03/19/2014.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=355378

“Debuts: Anita Rachvelishvili, Margaret Thompson.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 353729 Carmen {970} Metropolitan Opera House: 01/05/2011.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=353729

“Debuts: Anna Netrebko, Ekaterina Semenchuk, Oleg Balashov . . .” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] Metropolitan Opera Premiere CID: 350257 War and Peace {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 02/14/2002.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=350257

“Debuts: David McVicar, Charles Edwards, Brigitte Reiffenstuel, Leah Hausman.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 353605 New Production Il Trovatore {600} Metropolitan Opera House: 02/16/2009.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=353605

“Debuts: Mark Wigglesworth, Maurizio Muraro . . .” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 351338 Le Nozze di Figaro {419} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/02/2005.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=351338

“Debuts: Peter Van Praet, Paolo Fanale, Carlo Bosi, Christian Van Horn.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 355173 New Production Falstaff {176} Metropolitan Opera House: 12/06/2013.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=355173

“Debuts: Piotr Beczala, Kate Aldrich.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 351731 Rigoletto {814} Metropolitan Opera House: 12/19/2006.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=351731

Hamilton, Theodore Ely, ed. Adrienne Lecouvreur by Scribe and Legouvé: Edited With an Introduction and Notes. Oxford French Series by American Scholars. New York NY: Oxford University Press-American Branch, 1917.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/adriennelecouv00scri/
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/adriennelecouvre00scriuoft/

Marriner, Derdriu. “Otello Is the Jan. 5, 2019, Met Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast.” Earth and Space News. Monday, Dec. 31, 2018.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/12/otello-is-jan-5-2019-met-opera-saturday.html

“Metropolitan Opera Premiere: Adriana Lecouvreur.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 40000 Metropolitan Opera Premiere Adriana Lecouvreur {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/18/1907.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=40000

“New Production: Adriana Lecouvreur.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 193000 New Production Adriana Lecouvreur {4} Metropolitan Opera House: 01/21/1963.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=193000