In 1857, Verdi was called on to write an opera for the San Carlo Theatre in Naples, and he immediately began his search for the perfect story. His initial idea was King Lear by Shakespeare, but the lack of time available forced him to fall back on a libretto by Scribe, Gustave III ou Le bal masqué, which had already been set to music by Auber and by Mercadante. The story was inspired by actual events from 1792; the assassination of King Gustav III of Sweden by one of his officers during a ball. The subject was undoubtedly controversial, the on-stage murder of a monarch would not pass unnoticed by the Neapolitan censors, who in fact imposed numerous cuts and modifications. But the writer was too fond of the 18th-century traits and the lively French-influenced style of his new opera to be able to accept, among the many requests, the moving of the action to the 12th century, where it would have been impossible “to find a princeling, a duke, a devil, even from the North, who had seen a little of the world and experienced the atmosphere of Louis XIV”. With its Neapolitan debut thus grounded, Un ballo in maschera was staged at the Apollo Theatre in Rome, where it was performed on 17 February 1859.

Un ballo in maschera

Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Theatre

Pjotr I. Tschaikovsky’s »Nutcracker«, which premiered in St. Petersburg in 1892, is a Christmas classic as popular with Semperoper audiences as Dresden Stollen or the famous Striezelmarkt. In their interpretation, Aaron S. Watkin and Jason Beechey have drawn on the stories of E. T. A. Hoffmann to create a fairy-tale classical ballet set in Dresden during the festive period: On Christmas Eve, Marie is given a nutcracker that immediately becomes her prized possession. Soon, however, danger appears in the form a horde of belligerent mice. Then the nutcracker springs to life and does battle with the enemy army. Accompanied by her new protector, the girl embarks on a journey through a land of sweet dreams, and into adulthood.

The Nutcracker

Semperoper Dresden

Der Nussknacker / The Nutcracker

An opera seria in a prologue and three acts to a libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, Simon Boccanegra debuted at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice on 12 March 1857. However, after many years, Verdi became convinced of the need to rework it, and assisted by Arrigo Boito for the libretto, he prepared a second version that debuted successfully on 24 March 1881 at La Scala in Milan. The action, set in and around Genoa around the middle of the 14th century, recounts the drama of the protagonist, Doge Boccanegra, victim of intrigues and conspiracies. The subject was taken from the drama of the same name by the Spaniard Antonio García Gutiérrez, from whose repertoire Verdi had already drawn inspiration for Trovatore. After its debut, the Gazzetta di Venezia described Boccanegra as an opera “too grand and severe”, characterised by a “lugubrious hue”. Verdi, deliberately and precisely because of the nature of a drama characterised by a thirst for power, a desire for revenge, and respect for the reason of state, chose to focus all his attention on the dark-toned male voices (basses and baritones), entrusting them with the narration of the intestine struggles that torment the republic of Genoa.

Marco Filibeck

Events

Upcoming events

15 - 24 Nov, 2026

Simon Boccanegra · Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino

Past events

12 - 24 May, 2026

Un ballo in maschera · Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino

Nov 28 - Dec 25, 2025

The Nutcracker · Semperoper Dresden

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