ROSSINI MANIA

Apart from making a brief appearance at a concert, the exceptional artist Cecilia Bartoli has never actually sung at the Vienna State Opera. A failure regularly criticized by many and a painful gap in the performance history of the house - which is now being closed in a special way: Different than usual, the upcoming season will not end on June 30th, but will be extended into July through an anniversary week in honor of Rossini. So, the jubilant season finale which has been conceived by the internationally enthusiastically celebrated singer herself on the one hand, and on the other hand, within this framework, it is self-evident that she wants also to appear in front of her audience as the central singer. This will be part of guest performances by the Monte Carlo Opera, which will take place under the patronage of Prince Albert II of Monaco.

These appearances are dedicated to that composer Cecilia Bartoli affectionately and reverently refers to as her mentor, and for whom she has repeatedly created incomparable milestones through her art and career: Gioachino Rossini. That this will happen especially in the summer of 2022 is not by chance. After all, exactly 200 years earlier, a unique, much-noticed cultural event took place, known as “Viennese Rossini Fever” which “went down in music history” and also lead to the lasting popularity of the Italian musical creator in this country. It is all the more astonishing that the Vienna State Opera so far has only presented a small portion from his extensive musical theater work: The Barber of Seville is certainly one of the most popular titles in the repertoire, but already the equally ingenious La Cenerentola, the modern re-telling of the Cinderella story, was first seen quite late in the day on the repertoire plan of the house, and to date has been performed only a modest 120 times. And the lively and clever comedy, which is now often shown around the world, Il Turco in Italia has never been presented regularly here, but rather given only three times as part of a guest performance. Therefore, when La Bartoli with her own orchestra, the Musiciens du Prince-Monaco, perform at the Vienna State Opera, and the same artists present two different operas as well as a festive gala by Rossini, it will also offer the possibility to get to know and enjoy additional facets of someone who perhaps you only think you may know.