MILAN 鈥� Riccardo Muti and Pl谩cido Domingo will headline the 2021 Verona Arena Opera Festival, essentially last year's season revived as a sign of 鈥済reat optimism and utmost seriousness," the festival's general director said Thursday.
After an abbreviated 2020 season of concerts due to the pandemic, operas will be fully staged with a complete cast and chorus. But the Arena鈥檚 elaborate sets, including a full pyramid for 鈥淎ida,鈥� will be substituted with technology, including projectors and holograms, to reduce the number of people backstage and maintain distancing requirements.
Seating will be limited to 3,200 at the start of the season, but organizers said they hoped the vaccine campaign will advance in a way to allow more seating as the season progresses. In a normal year, a sold-out show seats 13,550.
鈥淲e have more experience, and we know better our enemy," general director Cecilia Gasdia told a news conference. 鈥淲e have strict protocols that can evolve. We have virus tests, and above all we have the vaccine.鈥�
Muti will open the season on June 19 and 22, conducting a concert version of 鈥淎ida鈥� to mark the 150th anniversary of the Verdi title whose pageantry has made it a festival mainstay.
The summer festival will then pick up with the 2020 calendar of operas that never were staged, starring the cast as announced last year: 鈥淐avalleria rusticana鈥� by Pietro Mascagni together with 鈥淧agliacci鈥� by Ruggero Leoncavallo, 鈥淎ida,鈥� 鈥淣abucco鈥� and 鈥淟a Traviata鈥� by Verdi and Puccini鈥檚 鈥淭urandot.鈥�
Domingo will headline one of five gala events, which include also Verdi鈥檚 鈥淩equiem,鈥� Beethoven鈥檚 Symphony No. 9, an opera gala featuring German tenor Jonas Kaufmann and a ballet gala starring Roberto Bolle.
Colleen Barry, The Associated Press
