Francesca Ascioti

Alessandro Scarlatti is one of the key figures of Italian Baroque opera and the influential Neapolitan school in particular. Griselda is the last of Scarlatti's operas to have survived intact to the present day. Its narrative is set in motion by the marriage of the King of Sicily to a poor shepherdess; the ensuing complications of love and the tensions between country and court deliver an entertainment full of lyrical charm and lively action. Performed by a superb team of Baroque specialists and acclaimed singers, this production is set in Puglia's magnificent Palazzo Ducale and celebrates the 300th anniversary of Griselda's premiere.

Handel’s Rinaldo was presented at the 2018 Festival della Valle d’Itria in its rare Neapolitan version of 1718, reconstructed from historical sources by musicologist Giovanni Andrea Sechi. Created in Naples by Leonardo Leo and other composers after the opera’s success in London, this version incorporates additional music, comic characters and intermezzi, and was performed in modern times for the first time. Fabio Luisi conducted the baroque ensemble La Scintilla, with Teresa Iervolino as Rinaldo and Carmela Remigio as Armida. Giorgio Sangati’s colourful, rock-inspired production transformed the protagonists into pop-culture figures, including Rinaldo as Freddie Mercury and Armida as Cher.

With her village under siege, a daring widow implores the invading general for mercy. Catching the military man with his trousers down, she uses all her cunning and charisma to try and save her people. Courage triumphs in this allegorical oratorio. Though not intended for the theatre, the twists and turns of the plot lend itself perfectly for staged production. Distinguished Baroque and Vivaldi specialist Andrea Marcon conducts his own early music ensemble, La Cetra Barockorchester Basel.