Abay Kazakh State Opera and Ballet Theatre 12 May 2022 - L’elisir d’amore | GoComGo.com

L’elisir d’amore

Abay Kazakh State Opera and Ballet Theatre, Main Stage, Almaty, Kazakhstan
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Important Info
Type: Opera
City: Almaty, Kazakhstan
Starts at: 19:00
Acts: 2
Intervals: 1
Duration: 2h 40min
Sung in: Italian
Titles in: Russian,Kazakh

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Overview

"L'elisir d'amore" is one of the most brilliant comic operas written by the composer Gaetano Donizetti. A work that literally from the very beginning captures the attention of every viewer by the rapid development of the action. Full of pastoral charm, the opera is renowned for the beauty of its melodies and one of the most popular arias in the art of opera singing "Una furtiva lagrima".

The action takes place in an Italian village on the outskirts of Rome. The cunning wandering charlatan Dulcamara deceives the shy young man Nemorino with a "magic drink." An expensive potion, in fact, turns out to be just a bottle of red wine, but Nemorino sincerely believes in the miraculousness of the drink, because having tasted the "magic potion", he will be able to win the heart of the beautiful Adina. Having given Dulcamar the last money, Nemorino realizes that the magic elixir does not work, and now, penniless, he is determined to achieve his goal.

Having passed a difficult path, Nemorino receives the second coveted "love drink". And now all the girls, including Adina, are looking at him with loving eyes. But did the potion really have such an effect, or maybe this is a huge inheritance, the owner of which suddenly became Nemorino?

Obviously, Donizetti was inspired by the humor and grace of his creation. And nevertheless, at the end of the opera "Love Potion", the composer leaves his listener with the question: what is love - the result of genuine affection, sincere relationships, or did it become real due to a deceptive "love drink" and a huge inheritance?

History
Premiere of this production: 12 May 1832, Teatro della Canobbiana, Milan

L'elisir d'amore (The Elixir of Love) is a comic opera (melodramma giocoso) in two acts by the Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto, after Eugène Scribe's libretto for Daniel Auber's Le philtre (1831). The opera premiered on 12 May 1832 at the Teatro della Canobbiana in Milan.

Synopsis

Place: A small village in the Basque Country
Time: The end of the 18th century

Act 1
Nemorino, a poor peasant, is in love with Adina, a beautiful landowner, who torments him with her indifference. When Nemorino hears Adina reading to her workers the story of Tristan and Isolde, he is convinced that a magic potion will help him to gain Adina's love. The self-important Sergeant Belcore appears with his regiment and immediately sets about courting Adina in front of everyone. Nemorino becomes anxious (although, Adina meanwhile secretly derides Belcore's complacency) and, alone with Adina, reveals his love for her. Yet Adina rebuffs him, saying she wants a different lover every day and following her example would do Nemorino better. Nemorino declares that his feelings will never change. The travelling quack doctor, Dulcamara (the self-proclaimed Dr. Encyclopedia), arrives, selling his bottled cure-all to the townspeople. Nemorino innocently asks Dulcamara if he has any of Isolde's love potion. Despite failing to recognise the name "Isolde", Dulcamara's commercial talents nevertheless enable him to sell a bottle of the cure-all – in reality only cheap wine – to Nemorino, withdrawing all his savings.

To make a safe escape, Dulcamara tells Nemorino the potion needs 24 hours to take effect – by which time, the doctor will be long gone. Nemorino drinks the potion in a haste in order to watch the effect tomorrow. Emboldened by the "elixir" (in fact, drunk), Nemorino feigns indifference when he encounters Adina, as he expects that the elixir will facilitate his conquest of Adina the following day. She becomes increasingly annoyed; perhaps she has feelings for Nemorino after all? Belcore returns and proposes marriage to Adina. Still riled by Nemorino and wishing to give him a lesson, Adina falsely promises to marry Belcore in six days' time. Yet Nemorino only laughs in response: such confidence is sustained in the belief in the magic potion. However, when Belcore learns that his regiment must leave the next morning, Adina promises to marry him before his departure. This of course panics Nemorino, who cries out for Dr. Dulcamara to come to his aid. Adina, meanwhile, invites everyone to the wedding.

Act 2
Adina and Belcore's wedding party is in full swing. Dr. Dulcamara encourages Adina to sing a duet with him to entertain the guests. The notary arrives to make the marriage official. Adina is annoyed to see that Nemorino has not appeared, for the whole deal has been intended only to punish him. While everyone goes to witness the signing of the wedding contract, Dulcamara stays behind, helping himself to food and drink. Having seen the notary, Nemorino appears, depressed, as he believes that he has lost Adina. He sees Dulcamara and frantically begs him for a more powerful, faster-acting elixir. Although Dulcamara is proud to boast of his philanthropy, upon discovering that Nemorino now has no money he changes his tune and marches off, refusing to supply him anything. Belcore emerges, musing about why Adina has suddenly put off the wedding and signing of the contract. He spots Nemorino and asks his rival why he is depressed. When Nemorino says he needs cash, Belcore suggests joining the army, as he'll receive funds on the spot. Belcore tries to excite Nemorino with tales of military life, while Nemorino only thinks of getting the potion and thus winning Adina, if only for a day before departure. Belcore produces a contract, which Nemorino signs in return for the money. Nemorino privately vows to rush and buy more potion, while Belcore muses about how sending Nemorino off to war has so easily dispatched his rival.

After the two men have left, Giannetta gossips with the women of the village. Swearing them all to secrecy, she reveals that Nemorino's uncle has just died and left his nephew a large fortune. However, neither Nemorino nor Adina is yet aware of this. Nemorino enters, having spent his military signing bonus on – and consumed – a large amount of the fake elixir from Dr. Dulcamara. Hoping to share his fortune, the women approach Nemorino with overly friendly greetings. So out of character is this that Nemorino takes it as proof of the elixir's efficacy. Adina sees Nemorino with the women, is rattled by his newfound popularity, and asks Dr. Dulcamara for an explanation. Unaware that Adina is the object of Nemorino's affection, Dulcamara explains that Nemorino spent his last penny on the elixir and joined the army for money to get more, so desperate was he to win the love of some unnamed cruel beauty. Adina immediately recognises Nemorino's sincerity, regrets her behaviour and realises that she has loved Nemorino all along. Although Dulcamara seizes the opportunity to try to sell her some of his potion to win back Nemorino, Adina declares that she has full confidence in her own powers of attraction.

Nemorino appears alone, pensive, reflecting on a tear he saw in Adina's eye when he was ignoring her earlier. Solely based on that, he convinces himself that Adina loves him. She enters and asks why he has chosen to join the army and leave the village. When Nemorino explains that he was seeking a better life, Adina responds that he is loved and that she has purchased back his military contract from Sergeant Belcore. She offers the cancelled contract to Nemorino and reassures him that, if he stays, he will be happy. As he takes the contract, Adina turns to leave. Nemorino believes she is abandoning him and flies into a desperate fit, vowing that if he is not loved he might as well go off and die a soldier. Deeply moved by his fidelity, Adina finally declares that she will love Nemorino forever. Nemorino is ecstatic. Adina begs him to forgive her, which he does with a kiss. Belcore returns to see Nemorino and Adina in an embrace. When Adina explains that she loves Nemorino, the Sergeant takes the news in stride, noting that there are plenty of other women in the world. Adina and Nemorino learn about the inheritance from his uncle. Dulcamara returns and boasts of the success of his elixir: Nemorino is now not only loved but also rich. He exults in the boost this will bring to the sales of his product. As he prepares to leave, everyone queues up to buy the elixir and hails Dulcamara as a great physician.

Venue Info

Abay Kazakh State Opera and Ballet Theatre - Almaty
Location   St. Kabanbai batyra, 110

Modern GATOB named after Abay - one of the largest theaters of the Eurasian space in which creative structure, along with the glorified masters of a scene perfect the art and young talents.

The building of the Kazakh state academic theatre named Abay containing 793 seats is one of the most known sights of the city of Almaty.

The Decision of Board of the National Commissariat of Education Kazakh The Assr of September 29, 1933 in Alma-Ata has Created the Musical Studio Consisting of Fifty Actors, Twenty Musicians Symphonic and Twelve People National Orchestras

On January 13, 1934 the first public performance of the musical comedy "Ayman-Sholpan" put by forces of musical studio according to M. O. Auezov's play, which has marked according to Narkompros's decision, the birth of the first "… the Kazakh musical opera and ballet theatre" has taken place.

Construction of the building of theater on the project of the Moscow architect N. A. Kruglov whose work has been recognized as the best in the All-Union competition announced on this occasion in 1933, has begun in 1936 and has been finished in 1941 by architects N. A. Prostakov and T. K. Basenov

On November 7, 1941 the Theatre has opened in own building. Same year the theater has received the status academic, and in 1945 the name of Abay has been appropriated to him.

From June, 1995 to December 13, 2000 in theatre the general reconstruction which has kept the main architectural style – the empire style which is combined with the Italian classicism and traditional elements of a national form in architecture of Kazakhstan has been carried out.

In general the decor and the main art and style solutions of a construction have been kept, modern finishing materials are added, and the stucco molding of the foyer of the second floor and auditorium has included elements of the ornament decorating a suit of "The gold person". The wealth and a variety of traditions of the Kazakh folk art have found application and in finishing of other interiors of theatre.

Important Info
Type: Opera
City: Almaty, Kazakhstan
Starts at: 19:00
Acts: 2
Intervals: 1
Duration: 2h 40min
Sung in: Italian
Titles in: Russian,Kazakh
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