AGI – At the premiere of Don Carlo by Giuseppe Verdi, which will open the Teatro alla Scala’s next season this year on December 7th the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella will not attend, always close to Piermarini. “President Mattarella is not coming this year, but he will be back next year. We would have liked to welcome him again, but he couldn’t this year,” the superintendent explained Dominique Meyer in the press conference to present the premiere.
On opening night Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will also be absent: “He won’t come, I don’t believe that,” said Meyer. For a less crowded royal box than usual (at the moment the President of the Senate Ignazio La Russa, the Deputy Prime Minister Salvini and the Minister Sangiuliano have ensured their presence) the entire theater will be “sold out”. “There will also be names from art and culture. I think it will be a good audience,” concluded Meyer, who then responded to a question about his future and, in particular, the possibility of reconfirmation when his mandate expires in 2025.
© Teatro alla Scala
Interior of the Teatro alla Scala Interior of the Teatro alla Scala
Any decision, as Milan Mayor Beppe Sala has said several times, will be made after the premiere of “Don Carlo,” when the ministry announces its direction. “I did a good job, let’s hope for the best,” admitted Meyer, adding, “I’m available. I’ve known Scala since 1980, I love it, I work there 80 hours a week.”
The details of the premiere will be announced by The Spanish director Lluìs Pasqual who spoke of an “exciting work from a musical point of view” that was brought to the stage by a “glorious cast” with a Shakespearean touch. “It is anti-clerical, shows a look behind the scenes of the power of the Church.” As every year, the show will be filmed by Rai Cultura’s cameras and broadcast live on television on Rai1 and on the radio on Radio3.
The premiere is preceded by the under-30 preview on Sunday, December 3rd, followed by seven sold-out performances until January 2nd. The opera of “premieres”, which opened the 1868, 1878, 1912, 1926, 1968, 1977, 1992 and 2008 seasons, will be conducted by musical director Riccardo Chailly from the podium of the Teatro alla Scala orchestra and will feature a cast Francesco Meli as Don Carlo, Anna Netrebko as Elisabeth of Valois, Michele Pertusi as Philip II, Elna Garana as Princess of Eboli, Luca Salsi as Marquis of Posa and Ain Anger as Grand Inquisitor are convincing.
“I conceived this work as a Shakespearean tragedy,” explained director Pasqual. Don Carlo reveals the background of power. We’re used to social media now, but in the 19th century it wasn’t like that, no one had seen a queen in a swimsuit. We’ll go behind the scenes with the characters who are incredibly lonely. But not because Spain was sad, but because of what happened.”
The work, as conceived by the director, reveals the mechanisms of power. “Humans have invented two terrible things: nationalism and religion, which separate us from the knowledge of others. And you just have to look at what’s happening in the world to see what consequences these two original sins have.” Commissioner Meyer sees it similarly: “You just have to open the newspaper and read what’s happening in the Middle East to understand that the intertwining of political and religious power is a dangerous thing.”
In Don Carlo the plot is complex, the themes that are close to the composer’s heart are all present: friendship, the subjugated people, the problems between father and son. And there are characters with different facets. It wasn’t easy to get everything on stage. But as the director explained: “You have to be ready to change everything, because the material is human: there are singers and music. I feel like the one who puts coal in the furnace for the chief engineer of the train, who is the captain. It is he who will make the composer’s breath heard.
A work like this required a large, well-rehearsed and experienced cast. What sometimes seemed like a “criticism” because the same singers were often at the premiere as Netrebko (for the sixth time), is not for Superintendent Meyer and has an obvious explanation: “They are the best. A glorious cast.” So, enough complaining and let’s enjoy these extraordinary voices. Anna is a lioness and Ilina a tiger.” The direction emphasizes the singers. “I placed them at the front, like a close-up of the cinema,” explains Pasqual, “I didn’t want to leave them lost in a large space.”
Lots of black, gold and alabaster on stage. “People think that Black exists because the Spanish court was closed, sad, but that is not the case. Black was a great sign of wealth, only very rich people could afford it. Just think of Armani, he uses black and no one he thinks is me make sad clothes.
The costumes had to be historical and romantic at the same time and Franca Squarciapino succeeded. “She makes costumes that look historical, but in reality are not, but have the movement of Verdi’s music.” In addition to the black costumes, there is alabaster architecture on stage. “We chose it,” he remarked, “because it brings with it a scent of incense and church, because I believe that in the end the victor is the Grand Inquisitor.”
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