Among the conductors and directors of Martina Franca’s 46th festival, names such as Fabio Luisi and Walter Pagliaro, Michele Spotti and Davide Gasparro, George Petrou and Andrea Chiodi will tread the boards of the Palazzo Ducale.
Star of the Symphonic concert is violinist Francesca Dego, with the Orchestra del Petruzzelli involved in all the productions
For the “Opera in masseria” series, an intermezzo by Piccinni conducted by Sabino Manzo and directed by Marco Bellocchio
The Festival della Valle d’Itria discloses the first names of the artists involved in the main productions of the next festival, at its 46th edition, to be held between the 14th July and the 2nd August in Martina Franca. After announcing the titles and the opening of ticket sales, new details are streaming in for the 2020 programme.
The opening title was chosen to mark the occasion of the 150 years from the death of Apulian composer Saverio Mercadante. It’s La rappresaglia (14, 26, 29 July), entrusted, much as per the Festival’s tradition, to the hands of two young artists who received much praise during last year’s festival: conductor Michele Spotti and director Davide Gasparro. The former conducted Cimarosa’s Il matrimonio segreto at the Palazzo Ducale; the latter was the mind behind the intermezzi for the project “L’opera in masseria”.
Music director Fabio Luisi will lead two shows from the podium of the Palazzo Ducale. First, the opera Gli amanti sposi by Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari (19, 24 July and 1 August) set to a famous work by Goldoni, directed by our own Apulian Walter Pagliaro – an artist whose fame precedes him in the field of both prose theatre and opera. Second, the Symphonic Concert of the 2nd August with solo star violinist Francesca Dego, one of the most requested musicians on the international music scene; she will play Wolf-Ferrari’s Violin Concerto, recorded by Deutsche Grammophon. The programme of the concert is topped with Beethoven’s Symphony n. 7; this will be our occasion to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the composer’s birth.
Another much-awaited comeback is that of George Petrou, who conducted Porpora’s Orfeo last summer: in 2020 he will conduct Ferdinando Paër’s Leonora (25, 28, 31 July), written following the same theme as Beethoven’s Fidelio; Martina Franca’s staging is by Andrea Chiodi, a theatre director at his debut in the world of opera.
The orchestra for all these appointments at the Palazzo Ducale will be the Petruzzelli di Bari.
For the “Opera in masseria” series, the festival’s initiative most enjoyed by foreign audiences (17, 21, 23, 27 July), we have chosen the intermezzo Il perucchiere by Niccolò Piccinni, conducted by Sabino Manzo – returning to Martina Franca as director of his Baroque orchestra S. Teresa dei Maschi – and Marco Bellocchio, director of the final two editions of the Festival Junior.
Tickets are available for purchase on this website, on Vivaticket, and in 700 shops all over Italy.
In the provinces of Taranto and Bari alone, tickets are available in 83 shops affiliated with our Box Office at the Feltrinelli store in Bari (via Melo, 119) and the Box office in Taranto (via Nitti, 106/a). Check the Vivaticket website for the exact location of the different shops.
Ticket prices for the operas at the Palazzo Ducale are 60 euros (stalls) and 30 euros (gallery); for the opening night on the 14th July it’s 70 euros (stalls) and 40 euros (gallery). Tickets for the “Opera in masseria” are worth 30 euros, whereas the Concert on the 2nd August 30 euros (stalls) and 15 euros (gallery).
We have special prices for the residents of Martina Franca, as we have for under-30s who benefit from a 50% discount on all tickets (except the opening night, on the 14th July); we also grant 20% off for over-65s. Group bookings receive a 20% discount. We also have a variety of ticket booklets, particularly aimed at our international audiences: at the moment they are available for purchase on our website and receive a 20% discount.
46th Festival della Valle d’Itria
Martina Franca, 14 July-2 August 2020
Palazzo Ducale, 14, 26 and 29 July
La rappresaglia
Melodramma buffo in two acts
Music by Saverio Mercadante
Libretto re-elaborated by Cesare Sterbini and Felice Romani
Conductor Michele Spotti
Director Davide Gasparro
Orchestra of the Teatro Petruzzelli di Bari
La rappresaglia, opera buffa by Apulian composer Saverio Mercadante (1795-1870) with libretto re-elaborated by Cesare Sterbini and Felice Romani, was first performed in Cadiz in 1829. We propose a first performance in modern times based on the critical edition by Francesco Lora and Elisabetta Pasquini, marking the 150th anniversary of the death of the Altamura composer. The score shows Mercadante’s connection with the Neapolitan school; it is an excellent example of how Rossini’s buffo style was received, with clear references to the Barbiere di Siviglia and Cenerentola, which Mercadante conceived for a Spanish audience eager to know about the new trends in Italian opera.
Palazzo Ducale, 19, 24 July and 1 August
Gli amanti sposi
Opera giocosa in three acts
Music by Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari
Libretto by Giovacchino Forzano based on Il ventaglio by Carlo Goldoni
Conductor Fabio Luisi
Director Walter Pagliaro
Orchestra of the Teatro Petruzzelli di Bari
Gli amanti sposi, opera giocosa in three acts with libretto by Giovacchino Forzano, was first staged at La Fenice in 1925. It is one of the least known amongst the works of the Venetian composer Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari (1876-1948). The author perfectly incarnates the role of the Italian opera composer who, in the 1900s, was hopeful towards hypotheses of eclecticism, even when based on tradition – in this case, a libretto based on a work by Goldoni (Il ventaglio) and a crystalline score, almost reminiscent of Rossini.
Palazzo Ducale, 25, 28 and 31 July
Leonora
ossia L’amore coniugale
Melodramma semiserio in two acts
Music by Ferdinando Paër
Libretto by Giovanni Schmidt from Léonore ou L’amour conjugal by Jean-Nicholas Boully
Conductor George Petrou
Director Andrea Chiodi
Orchestra of the Teatro Petruzzelli di Bar
Our choice of the opera Leonora, melodramma semiserio by Ferdinando Paër (1771-1839), is connected to the 250th anniversary of the birth of Ludwig van Beethoven: the composer, born in Parma, in fact, with his 1804 Leonora precedes by a few years Beethoven’s Fidelio. The opera was successful across Europe (from Dresden to Paris, from Florence to Palermo) thanks to a fresh score, as commentators and critics across the nineteenth and twentieth centuries recognised.
Palazzo Ducale, 2 August
Symphonic concert
Conductor Fabio Luisi
Violinist Francesca Dego
Orchestra of the Teatro Petruzzelli di Bari
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari Violin concerto in D op. 26
Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony n. 7 in A op. 92
Marking the 250th anniversary of the birth of Ludwig van Beethoven
L’opera in masseria
17, 21, 23, 27 July
Il perucchiere
Intermezzo
Music by Niccolò Piccinni
Libretto attributed to Giuseppe Petrosellini
Conductor Sabino Manzo
Director Marco Bellocchio
Baroque Orchestra S. Teresa dei Maschi
Ticket prices
for the operas at the Palazzo Ducale:
opening night on the 14 July: 70 euros (stalls) and 40 euros (gallery)
other dates: 60 euros (stalls) / 30 euros (gallery)
for L’opera in masseria:
30 euros
for the concert on the 2 August:
30 euros (stalls) / 15 euros (gallery)
Reductions
For residents of Martina Franca and under-30s: 50% discount (except for the opening night)
Groups, over-65s and ticket booklets: 20% discount
