Poison, vengeance and passion — Lucrezia Borgia lies at the very heart of dark Romanticism. Inspired by Victor Hugo’s scandalous play, Donizetti weaves a gripping lyrical drama in which vocal virtuosity meets intense psychological depth. At its centre stands a woman torn between maternal love and the weight of a name synonymous with treachery and death. Her haunting aria “Era desso il figlio mio” lays bare this poignant duality, while the score — both sumptuous and shadowed — glows with the brilliance of bel canto.
Surrounded by a gallery of doomed characters, pulsing choruses and sharply defined orchestration, Lucrezia’s tragedy unfolds with relentless dramatic tension.
Premiered in Milan in 1833, the opera was swiftly censored for its scandalous content. But its power defied the ban: Lucrezia Borgia secured its place as a masterpiece of the Romantic repertoire.
Part historical thriller, part intimate tragedy, Donizetti plunges us into a turbulent Renaissance world where love, power and fate clash with searing intensity.
In a staging steeped in sacred symbolism, Jean-Louis Grinda explores the near-religious dimension of maternal love, creating a world where fantasy and poetry merge in a shared quest for redemption…
Cast
Alfonso d'Este: Marko Mimica
Lucrezia Borgia: Jessica Pratt
Maffio Orsini: Julie Boulianne
Gennaro: Dmitry Korchak
Don Apostolo Gazella: Luca Dall'Amico
Liverotto: Roberto Covatta
Vitellozzo: Marco Miglietta
Rustighello: Lorenzo Martelli
Gubetta: Francesco Leone
Astolfo: William Corrò
Ascanio Petrucci: Rocco Cavalluzzi
Un usciere: Jonathan Vork
Un coppiere: Marc Tissons
Ensemble
Orchestre: Orchestre de Opéra Royal de Wallonie-Lièg
