"The Traviata" by Giuseppe Verdi at the Gran Teatre del Liceu

From January 17 to February 2, you can enjoy La Traviata at the Gran Teatre del Liceu. La Traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The libretto is by Francesco Maria Piave based on Alexandre Dumas fils's "La dame aux camélias". It premiered at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice on March 6, 1853. In 2855, it premiered at the Gran Teatre del Liceu where it has been performed 267 times, the last one in December 2020.

La traviata, or Violetta Valéry, is a courtesan from Paris with a very glamorous life who sells her body as "La dame aux camélias" from Dumas fils, the origin of Verdi's opera. A woman with her own light who, sick with tuberculosis, will have to sacrifice her pure love for Alfredo Germont for social conventions. Alfredo's father does not approve of the relationship and the family's reputation is called into question.

Violetta, initially consumerist and vain, will be the new victim of a capitalist system that is devouring dreams. With brilliant and virtuoso music, it brutally criticizes a society of appearances, a machine that destroys personalities; especially when they are women who aspire to be free. Thus, "Sempre libera," Violetta's most famous aria, is an anthem, a desperate cry to claim a space that she still does not know she is about to lose. The origins of this story can be traced back to a historical figure: the courtesan Marie Duplessis, who died of consumption in 1847. Shortly before her death, Duplessis had a brief affair with Alexandre Dumas (son), who turned this personal chapter into a semi-autobiographical novel: "La dame aux camélias", published in 1848.

Later, Dumas adapted the work for the theater, premiered at the Théâtre du Vaudeville in Paris on February 2, 1852. Giuseppe Verdi often drew inspiration from French theater. "Ernani" and "Rigoletto" were based on works by Victor Hugo, and a few months after the premiere of "La dame aux camélias," Verdi had already decided that it would be the basis for the new opera commissioned by La Fenice in Venice. Alongside librettist Francesco Maria Piave, Verdi created one of the most realistic dramas of his career, an opera that does not shy away from the moral and medical tensions of the original material, themes he considers "contemporary issues."

Verdi faced his contemporaries for their own hypocritical morals.

The role of Violetta requires an exceptionally versatile singer and actress. It is said - with reason - that the ideal is for the role to be played by three different sopranos: one for each act. Soprano Nadine Sierra, queen of this theater, will embody the tragic heroine alongside Javier Camarena, the charismatic Mexican tenor who will be her "dear Alfredo." The trio of principal roles is completed by the Verdi baritone Artur Ruci?ski.

The brilliant production signed by David McVicar announces the vulnerability of the "camellia" in the omen of this broken desire.