Roberto Frontali

The tale of Cinderella set in today's Rome.

Relatives of a recently deceased wealthy man enlist the help of a wise man to help them inherit the dead man's properties.

Live from La Scala Saturday 07 July 2007. In this live performance of Giuseppe Verdi's opera, Violetta, a courtesan much wooed by Parisian society, organises a grand party that is attended, amongst others, by the young Alfredo Germont. He confesses his feelings to Violetta, who is already suffering from consumption. She vacillates between genuine affection and a realistic assessment of her situation as a "fallen woman", which precludes any lasting relationship with a man.

The opening work of the 2019-2020 season of the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma was Verdi's grand opera based on a historical uprising Sicily in 1282. Conducted by Daniele Gatti and directed by Valentina Carrasco. Given in the original French version as "Les Vêpres Siciliennes.”

The Graham Vicks production of FALSTAFF opened the new Covent Garden Royal Opera House, and was not to everybody's taste; the garish primary colours of the costumes. The staging is effective--the complicated counterpoint of the ensembles is reflected in unobtrusive blocking that keeps the vocal lines clear and separate, especially in the final fugue. Bryn Terfel's Falstaff is a memorable creation, self-mocking and self-aggrandising at the same time--so much so, in fact, that he almost does not need the vast prosthetic body he has to wear for the part. Desiree Rancatore is an admirably sweet-toned Nanetta; Bernadette Manca di Nissa an appropriately sardonic Mistress Quickly; Roberto Frontali as Ford, in his Act 2 scena, perfectly distils and parodies every jealousy aria ever written, including Verdi's own. Haitink's conducting is exemplary in the lyrical passages, gets almost everything out of the fast and furious comic sections.

Inspired by the life of the poet André Chénier at the time of the French Revolution, Giordano’s opera with libretto by Luigi Illica, faithfully portrays in detail the story of the protagonist, his love for Maddalena di Coigny, his arrest as a counter-revolutionary and their final hours. Teatro Comunale di Bologna’s 2022 production is conducted by resident Ukrainian music director Oksana Lyniv with an authentic staging by Pier Francesco Maestrini and a distinguished cast.

Live performance at Teatro La Fenice, Venice, September 25-28 2010. Myung-Whun Chung conducting Orchestra e Coro del Teatro La Fenice. Directed for the stage by Daniele Abbado.

Live from the Teatro Carlo Felice di Genova 2003

Part of Tutto Verdi series - Stiffelio (2012) Parma. 'Stiffelio' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, from an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. The origin of this was the novel “Le pasteur d’hommes”, by Émile Souvestre, which was published in 1838. This was adapted into the French play 'Le pasteur, ou L'évangile et le foyer' by Émile Souvestre and Eugène Bourgeois. That was in turn translated into Italian by Gaetano Vestri as 'Stifellius'; this formed the basis of Piave's libretto.

The acclaimed Italian director, Emma Dante, presents a powerful, barbaric and at time frenzied Macbeth with great attention to detail. Staged and filmed in Italy's largest theatre, the Teatro Massimo in Palermo, Sicily, this production captures remarkable performances by the Italian soprano Anna Pirozzi as Lady Macbeth, the renowned Verdi specialist, baritone Roberto Frontali, in one of his signature roles, and the rising star, Croatian bass-baritone Marko Mimica as Banco (Banquo). The conductor, Gabriele Ferro, has opted to use the 1865 Paris version of the score, sung in Italian and without the ballets, for a production that received generous praise in Palermo and on tour.

Au printemps 2016, la cinéaste Sofia Coppola dévoilait sa première mise en scène lyrique à l'Opéra de Rome : une Traviata sur son trente et un, avec des costumes conçus par la maison de couture Valentino. Après la diffusion du spectacle dirigé par le jeune chef Jader Bignamini, retour sur sa genèse en compagnie de Sofia Coppola et du couturier Valentino. L'histoire : un hôtel parisien au XIXe siècle. Oubliant la toux qui la consume, la demi-mondaine Violetta donne une soirée. Ce soir-là, son ami Gaston lui présente Alfredo Germont, un jeune homme de bonne famille qui lui déclare bientôt sa flamme. Violetta, qui s'était juré de ne plus jamais tomber amoureuse, succombe malgré tout.

A famous singer lives only for art and love. When she is caught in a web of politics, corruption, lies and lust, she is forced to make a terrible choice. Tosca is a timeless opera that features fundamental archetypes of the human condition: ruthless power grabbers, idealist revolutionaries and strong women ready to sacrifice it all. These characters truly come alive at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, the natural home of Puccini's masterpiece.

At first it came as a delightful surprise to see this Simon Boccanegra (libretto: Francesco Maria Piave) from the Teatro Comunale di Bologna available on DVD. In November, 2007, thirteen opera lovers from Michael Tisma’s Ovations International opera tour travelled to Teatro Municipale Valli in Emiglia Romana to see Bologna’s production of Boccanegra. Without exception, everyone considered it an emotionally gripping performance of Verdi’s pessimistic tale of spiritual disturbance and foreboding. What is evident while watching the DVD is the difference between the confident execution and polish of the Teatro Valli performance and the unfinished, yet promising rendition caught at the opera’s prima in Bologna.

Verdi's opera, performed by the choir and orchestra of the La Scala theatre under Riccardo Muti.

Andrea Chénier is a verismo opera in four acts by Umberto Giordano, set to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica, and first performed on 28 March 1896 at La Scala, Milan. The story is based loosely on the life of the French poet André Chénier (1762–1794), who was executed during the French Revolution.

Mario Martone signs direction and scenes of this new film-work of Verdi's masterpiece. On the podium of the Orchestra of the Teatro dell'opera in Rome its musical director, maestro Daniele Gatti. the new set-up of the opera to a libretto by Francesco Maria Piave is embellished with costumes by Anna Biagiotti and photography by Pasquale Mari.