16.09.2020
Cavalleria Rusticana Love enough for two
On 4 October, Alexander Vedernikov, Musical Director and Principal Conductor of the Mikhailovsky Theatre, will take the baton to conduct Pietro Mascagni’s Cavalleria rusticana. Starring the internationally renowned Olesya Petrova and Dmitry Golovnin, this masterpiece of Italian verismo opens our opera season.
Our audiences will be familiar with this production by Italian director Liliana Cavani, which has already graced the stages of Europe’s leading opera houses. It has been part of the Mikhailovsky Theatre’s repertoire since 2008 thanks to Elena Obraztsova, who always regarded the role of Santuzza as one of her favourites. Aesthetically, the production is comparable to the neorealism of the Golden Age of Italian cinema. The power and expression of Mascagni’s music, combined with outstanding directing, helps transport audiences to a small Sicilian town. The parched ground and burning sun form the backdrop to this tragedy, as the main characters, overpowered by their emotions, are brought to a dramatic climax.
“Santuzza suppresses her identity so much, she gives up so much of herself for her love of Turiddu, that she doesn’t care even when she is being humiliated, saying: ‘Just love me, and even if you do not love me, my love will be enough for both of us’. Enough to make her heart burst,” says Olesya Petrova about her character. “One can, of course, love like that, but is that really the right way? And in love, can anything be the right thing to do, anyway? Some people love quietly, ‘keeping it to themselves’, where it’s all hidden deep inside them. But there are those who love with all their heart. Santuzza is one of them. I understand her very well, but I can’t say that I would do the same in my own life. What’s especially remarkable about Cavalleria rusticana is that through the brief duration of the opera, one can show very different sides of the character. It’s not all suffering for her; there are moments of wild happiness.”
“Turiddu is a very simple character, which becomes very clear if you read the short story by Giovanni Verga on which the libretto is based,” says Dmitry Golovnin. “Turiddu starts courting Santuzza when Lola leaves him. His heart is broken; he is enraged, and seeks comfort in the arms of another woman. This is all very understandable. The fact that his actions end up having fatal consequences is another matter. My character is not a bad person. But he does succumb to his emotions, be they love or jealousy. Finally, before his death, he shows his best qualities, trying to secure Santuzza’s future, who is expecting a child by him. It’s very true to real life.”
Our audiences will be familiar with this production by Italian director Liliana Cavani, which has already graced the stages of Europe’s leading opera houses. It has been part of the Mikhailovsky Theatre’s repertoire since 2008 thanks to Elena Obraztsova, who always regarded the role of Santuzza as one of her favourites. Aesthetically, the production is comparable to the neorealism of the Golden Age of Italian cinema. The power and expression of Mascagni’s music, combined with outstanding directing, helps transport audiences to a small Sicilian town. The parched ground and burning sun form the backdrop to this tragedy, as the main characters, overpowered by their emotions, are brought to a dramatic climax.
“Santuzza suppresses her identity so much, she gives up so much of herself for her love of Turiddu, that she doesn’t care even when she is being humiliated, saying: ‘Just love me, and even if you do not love me, my love will be enough for both of us’. Enough to make her heart burst,” says Olesya Petrova about her character. “One can, of course, love like that, but is that really the right way? And in love, can anything be the right thing to do, anyway? Some people love quietly, ‘keeping it to themselves’, where it’s all hidden deep inside them. But there are those who love with all their heart. Santuzza is one of them. I understand her very well, but I can’t say that I would do the same in my own life. What’s especially remarkable about Cavalleria rusticana is that through the brief duration of the opera, one can show very different sides of the character. It’s not all suffering for her; there are moments of wild happiness.”
“Turiddu is a very simple character, which becomes very clear if you read the short story by Giovanni Verga on which the libretto is based,” says Dmitry Golovnin. “Turiddu starts courting Santuzza when Lola leaves him. His heart is broken; he is enraged, and seeks comfort in the arms of another woman. This is all very understandable. The fact that his actions end up having fatal consequences is another matter. My character is not a bad person. But he does succumb to his emotions, be they love or jealousy. Finally, before his death, he shows his best qualities, trying to secure Santuzza’s future, who is expecting a child by him. It’s very true to real life.”
