If ever there were a 19th-century opera to have stood the test of time it is Verdi’s soaringly romantic and dramatic Aida. Its exotic, golden images of Egypt, spine-tingling arias, potent choruses, conflicting allegiances and cruel twists of fate make it one of the pillars of the grand opera repertoire.
The director and choreographer Graeme Murphy’s triumphant staging of the masterpiece is both intimate and epic. Brilliantly designed by Roger Kirk and strikingly lit by Damien Cooper, the production evokes the opera’s splendour and unsurpassed musical characterisation through vivid projected images and soaring voices.
At its core,
Aida is a tale of star-crossed lovers – the fragile but strong-willed Ethiopian princess Aida, the heroic yet all-too-human general of the Egyptian army Radamès and the king’s status-conscious, lovelorn daughter, the Egyptian princess Amneris. Aida is captured in battle and given to Amneris as a slave. Our heroine falls for Radamès and must ultimately choose between her love for Radamès or her love for her country. The passion intensifies with three remarkable performers making their role debuts – the stunning Daria Masiero in the title role, having recently won acclaim as Liù in Murphy’s acclaimed
Turandot, Carlo Barricelli as Radamès (Calaf in
Turandot) and former principal artist at Hamburg State Opera, Deborah Humble, as Amneris. Verdi specialist and acclaimed international conductor Renato Palumbo wields the baton in his Opera Australia debut.
