After a 15 year absence, Elijah Moshinsky returns to Australia to direct his epic production of Don Carlos, a sumptuous affair, rich in detail like a Velázquez painting, at Arts Centre Melbourne until 29 May 2015.
The biggest Opera Australia production since The Ring, Don Carlos features an international cast of nearly 200 led by Mexico’s Diego Torre in the title role, Serbia’s Milijana Nikolic, Russia’s Victoria Yastrebova, Italy’s Giacomo Prestia and Australia’s José Carbó and Daniel Sumegi, all under the baton of Conductor, Andrea Licata.
A three-time winner of the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Opera, Moshinsky returns to Australia having directed productions for Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Metropolitan Opera New York, Vienna State Opera, Grand Théâtre de Genève Switzerland and Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Italy.
“We are thrilled to have tempted Elijah Moshinsky back to Australia to stage Don Carlos,” says Opera Australia Artistic Director Lyndon Terracini. “Those that saw the original 1999/2000 production were floored by the audacity of its scale and immense sound, and there is no doubt this refreshed staging will be one for the history books.”
Melbourne audiences will be the first to see Don Carlos before it tours to Sydney in July/August 2015, and marks the debut of OA Young Artist Julie Lea Goodwin, who has already made a name for herself in the music theatre world appearing opposite Anthony Warlow in The Phantom of the Opera.
Verdi’s masterpiece is set when the Spanish Inquisition is at its height, and Prince Don Carlos falls in love with Elisabeth de Valois, the eldest daughter of the King of France. But politics conquers love, and Elisabeth is married off to Carlos’ father, the King, as part of a peace treaty.
Horrified his lover is now his stepmother, Don Carlos retreats to the safety of his friendship with Rodrigo, whose humanitarian pursuits have aroused the ire of the Inquisition. The King cannot understand why his new bride doesn’t love him, whilst Princess Eboli pursues an uninterested Don Carlos.
Soon the truth is discovered, with marriages, romances and friendships all tested to the extreme whilst the Inquisition’s pyre burns ever-closer.
Don Carlos
State Theatre – Arts Centre Melbourne, 100 St. Kilda Road, Melbourne
Season continues to 29 May 2015
Bookings: 1300 182 183 or online at: www.artscentremelbourne.com.au
For more information, visit: www.opera.org.au for details.
Image: Opera Australia’s Don Carlos – photo by Jeff Busby