Gioacchino Rossini's Opera 'Maometto II' to be staged at AKM
Gioacchino Rossini's opera 'Maometto II' (II. Mehmet) will premiere on February 24. The work will be performed at the Istanbul Atatürk Cultural Center (AKM) under the direction of the renowned Italian conductor and director Alessandro de Marchi.
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The Istanbul State Opera and Ballet's production of the opera Maometto II (II. Mehmet), which will premiere on February 24, 2024, at the Atatürk Cultural Center (AKM) Türk Telekom Opera Hall, is one of the most significant operas concerning the Turks, written by Gioachino Rossini, one of the most important composers of the Romantic opera literature, and librettist Cesare della Valle.
Considered Rossini's most innovative and ambitious opera, the work features a rich orchestration.
In its carefully planned yet complex dramatic structure, it carries melodramatic elements such as political intrigue, conspiracy, and tragedy. In the love story set against the backdrop of Venice, the heroic conflict between two enemies turns into the drama of an impossible love.
ABOUT THE OPERA 'MAOMETTO II'
This two-act opera, which had its world premiere on December 3, 1820, at the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, tells the story of Anna, with whom Fatih Sultan Mehmet, the seventh sultan of the Ottoman Empire and the conqueror of Istanbul, fell in love during the siege of the island of Eğriboz (Negroponte), which was under the rule of the Republic of Venice (1470).
Venetian Anna, who falls in love with Fatih Sultan Mehmet without knowing his true identity, must choose between her loyalty to her father and country and her love for the Turkish Sultan Mehmet.
The work, which had its Turkey premiere in Turkish on November 3, 1990, at the Atatürk Cultural Center, is preparing to meet art lovers again at the Atatürk Cultural Center in its original language after exactly 34 years.
The orchestra for the work is led by the world-famous Italian conductor Alessandro de Marchi, who has conducted at the world's most prestigious opera houses, masterfully directs music from the Baroque to the geniuses of Belcanto, and has signed many important opera recordings including Opus, Naïve, Hyperion, and Sony.
The Istanbul State Opera and Ballet Orchestra is preparing to bring Rossini's music to art lovers in this production under the baton of both Maestro Alessandro De Marchi and Zdravko Lazarov, one of the esteemed opera and ballet conductors of the IDOB Orchestra.
BRINGING IMAGINATION TO ART LOVERS AT IDOB
The direction of the work belongs to a director from Italy who is both young and possesses a rich repertoire: Renato Bonajuto.
Renato Bonajuto, who has gained worldwide fame with numerous successful works he has staged at the world's most important opera houses, primarily Teatro Regio di Parma, Teatro Lirico di Cagliari, and Teatro Coccia, and who has previously staged the operas "Prima la Musica e Poi Le Parole", "Der Schauspieldirektor", and "Falstaff" at the Istanbul State Opera and Ballet, is once again bringing his imagination to art lovers at IDOB with the opera Maometto Secondo (II. Mehmet).
The set design of the work is by Zeki Sarayoğlu, costume design by Gizem Betil, and lighting design by Ahmet Defne. The Istanbul State Opera and Ballet Choir is directed by Paolo Villa. The choreography in the work is by Nil Berkan.
Burak Bilgili and Doğukan Özkan alternate in the role of II. Mehmet; Dilruba Bilgi and Gülbin Günay in the role of Anna; Barbora Hitay, Asude Karayavuz, and Esen Demirci in the role of Calbo; Mert Süngü and Ufuk Toker in the role of Paolo Erisso; Berk Dalkılıç and Yoel Keşap in the role of Condulmiero; and Hazal Ata and Anıl Önder in the role of Selim.