Bellini's I Puritani

Live from the New York Met, Bellini's operatic depiction of madness, I Puritani.

Brought together by love, and torn apart by the political rifts of the English Civil War, the soprano Lisette Oropesa and tenor Lawrence Brownlee take to the stage of the New York Met as the protagonists - Elvira and Arturo - in Bellini’s final masterpiece: I Puritani. Baritone Ricardo José Rivera plays Riccardo, betrothed to Elvira against her will, and bass-baritone Christian Van Horn takes on the role of Elvira’s sympathetic uncle, Giorgio, in Bellini's portrayal of madness - both in individuals and in communities - and demonstration both of how sanity can slip away at any moment and how madness can plunge a person into a destructive abyss.

A great exponent of the bel canto (literally, “beautiful singing”) style of opera, the Sicilian composer penned his final work for four of the best singers of the period, and the work's success depends almost entirely on the vocal gymnastics (and artistic sensibilities) of the performers. Orbiting long lyrical lines, such as the tenor’s Act I solo, which develops into the celebrated quartet “A te, o cara”, while the soprano’s ravishing Act II aria “Qui la voce sua soave” works the same way and depends entirely on the singer’s ability to spin forth an elegant vocal line. Bellini’s unique mastery of melody is present, too, in the rousing martial duet “Suoni la tromba, e intrepido” in Act II and the bass’s gorgeous showpiece in Act II, “Cinta di fiori.”

Presented from the Met by Debra Lew Harder and Ira Siff.

Bellini: I Puritani

Elvira Walton ..... Lisette Oropesa (soprano)
Lord Arturo Talbot ..... Lawrence Brownlee (tenor)
Riccardo Forth ..... Ricardo José Rivera (baritone)
Giorgio Walton ..... Christian Van Horn (bass)
Orchestra and Chorus of the Metropolitan Opera, New York
Marco Armiliato (conductor)