The effects of Coronavirus
It was sadly inevitable that this rare event would fall a victim to the burgeoning threat of the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic that swept the world during the first quarter of the year, continuing to the year-end. It was made clear on Monday, 16 March, that all meeting places of any significance - pubs, restaurants, concert halls, theatres and opera houses - would be closed for a significant duration. Not only was the new staging of A Midsummer Night's Dream cancelled, but also the subsequent productions of The Gondoliers and Utopia Limited. The concert performances of Cavalleria rusticana and Zingari also bit the dust. It is hoped that they will all be revived when the theatres reopen, with luck sooner rather than later.
The original performance was scheduled for Saturday 02/05 at 19.30 in the Usher Hall, Edinburgh.
Leoncavallo's opera, in two acts, was based on the same Pushkin poem that had inspred the young student Sergei Rachmaninov a couple of decades earlier. That work, Aleko, has already featured in Scottish Opera's series of concert performances of neglected works.
Zingari was premiered in London at the Hippodrome, a popular theatre the shell of which survives, above Leicester Square tube station. It was well received and enjoyed a significant run as a West End entertainment.
This semi-staged performance is paired with Cavalleria Rusticana. Three soloists have been identified so far for the entire evening, without specifying roles. They are all welcome returnees in baritone Evez Abdulla with mezzos Justina Gringyte and Julia Sporsén.
Scottish Opera's 2019/20 Season
The season opened at the Edinburgh International Festival with the European premiere of Breaking the Waves by Missy Mazzoli. The autumn performances got under way with a visit to the Lammermuir Festival on 20 September with a single performance in concert of an unusual double bill - Mascagni's Zanetto and Wolf-Ferrari's Susanna's Secret. The Glasgow season opens with a welcome revival of Tosca. There is a Sunday afternoon concert of Iris, another rare work by Mascagni. In the New Year there are new productions of Nixon in China by John Adams as well as Britten's Midsummer Night's Dream. and Sullivan's Gondoliers. Further concerts include a pairing of Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana with Leoncavallo's Zingari. There are also concert performances of a late Sullivan piece, Utopia, Limited, as well as the usual Opera Highlights tour of the Highlands and Islands.
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