From 12 June to 7 July, the Teatro Marquina in Madrid (Calle Prim, 11) will host the First Summer Opera Season with three classic titles in contemporary versions: Rigoletto, Lucia di Lammermoor and La Bohème.
Okapi Producciones and Ópera Garage Producciones are putting on three innovative shows with artistic advisor Ainhoa Arteta and stage direction by Emiliano Suárez. This new cycle creates a new formula for experiencing opera, with an unprecedented and groundbreaking format, and prices accessible to all audiences to democratise access to the world of opera.
This summer opera festival will bring to the stage of the private theatre more than 20 top artists such as Javier Franco, Jose Luis Solá, Manuel Mas, Ruth Terán or Sandra Ferrández, to give life to three classic titles but in versions adapted to the new times and that deal with current and universal themes. All in an experience that brings artists and audiences closer together than ever before in the world of opera.
Guiseppe Verdi’s Rigoletto will be performed from 12 to 23 June. This drama, with a libretto in Italian by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the play The King Amuses Himself by Victor Hugo, contains the classic lyric themes of passion, deceit, filial love and revenge, but adds other themes such as the abuse of power, the hostility of classism and corruption as a way of life, which bring the title to the present day.
From 26 to 30 June, Gaetano Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor will be performed in a free version brought to the present day. A tragic story of love and misunderstanding between rival families is the nexus to rescue concerns and problems of modern society. A subjective and hyperrealistic focus on universal themes and controversies such as: class struggles, social exclusion, moral prejudice, religion and politics. All of this framed in a cruel canvas of addictions, drugs and self-destruction.
Finally, from 3 to 7 July, Puccini’s La Bohème, one of the greatest love stories of all time, will close the cycle. With a simple, imaginative and innovative stage design and a more attractive and contemporary setting, this production is a unique opportunity to enjoy one of the great cultural spectacles of our time. Love, jealousy, illusions, hope, nostalgia and dreams form the mortar of this beautiful story that, through unforgettable melodies, leads to a climax of tension, until the thrilling final scene. Tickets for all three operas can be purchased here.
