MUSIC

Don’t miss your chance to hear soprano Barbara Quintiliani’s return to the Boston stage in Maria Padilla, reprising her triumphant performance at the 2009 Wexford Festival: “the evening belonged, thrillingly and unequivocally, to Barbara Quintiliani as Maria” (Opera News). Maria, determined to rise to power and to preserve her honor, forces her lover—King Pedro the Cruel of Castile—to secretly marry her, despite his impending politically-motivated marriage to another, or she will kill herself. The score abounds with dramatic moments—including Donizetti’s only mad scene for tenor—and colorful orchestral writing.

Conducted by Gil Rose
Directed by Julia Pevzner

Barbara Quintiliani as Maria Padilla
Adriano Graziani as Don Ruiz di Padilla
Laura Vlasak Nolen as Ines Padilla

Sung in Italian with English titles. Free pre-performance talk by Richard Dyer: one hour before curtain!