VERDI PATRON-IN-CHIEF DR HARUHISA HANDA Celebrating the return of World Class Opera HSBC, as proud partner of Opera Australia, supports the many returns of 2021. Together we thrive Issued by HSBC Bank Australia Limited ABN 48 006 434 162 AFSL No. 232595. Ernani Composer Ernani State Theatre, Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901) Diego Torre Arts Centre Melbourne Librettist Don Carlo, King of Spain Performance dates Francesco Maria Piave Vladimir Stoyanov 13, 15, 18, 22 May 2021 (1810-1876) Don Ruy Gomez de Silva Alexander Vinogradov Running time: approximately 2 hours and 30 Conductor Elvira minutes, including one interval. Carlo Montanaro Natalie Aroyan Director Giovanna Co-production by Teatro alla Scala Sven-Eric Bechtolf Jennifer Black and Opera Australia Rehearsal Director Don Riccardo Liesel Badorrek Simon Kim Scenic Designer Jago Thank you to our Donors Julian Crouch Luke Gabbedy Natalie Aroyan is supported by Costume Designer Roy and Gay Woodward Kevin Pollard Opera Australia Chorus Lighting Designer Chorus Master Diego Torre is supported by Marco Filibeck Paul Fitzsimon Christine Yip and Paul Brady Video Designer Assistant Chorus Master Paul Fitzsimon is supported by Filippo Marta Michael Curtain Ina Bornkessel-Schlesewsky and Matthias Schlesewsky Opera Australia Actors The costumes for the role of Ernani in this production have been Orchestra Victoria supported by the Concertmaster Mostyn Family Foundation Sulki Yu You are welcome to take photos of yourself in the theatre at interval, but you may not photograph, film or record the performance. Cover photo © Prudence Upton Natalie Aroyan and Diego Torre. Photo © Jeff Busby Production Partner Carlo Montanaro - Conductor Carlo Montanaro is the former Music Director at Warsaw’s Teatr Wielki and has appeared internationally at Bayerische Staatsoper (La Traviata, Aida, Tosca, L’Elisir d’Amore, Carmen), Paris Opera (Il Barbiere di Siviglia, La Traviata), Seattle Opera (Don Quichotte, Attila, La Bohème, Maria Stuarda, Nabucco, Il Trovatore, Rigoletto), Korea National Opera (La Bohème, Tosca), and with Opera Australia (La Bohème, Lucia di Lammermoor, La Traviata, Werther). He has conducted symphony orchestras across the US and Europe. Sven-Eric Bechtolf - Director After establishing himself as an actor in Germany and Switzerland, Sven-Eric Bechtolf began working as a stage director in 1993, subsequently making his opera debut with Lulu in Zurich. Directing highlights include the Vienna State Opera’s Wagner Ring Cycle and a Mozart/Da Ponte cycle at the Salzburg Festival, where he was artistic director from 2015 to 2016. Other credits include Teatro alla Scala, Theater an der Wien and the Berlin State Opera. Liesel Badorrek - Rehearsal Director Liesel is a Sydney-based performer, writer and director. She is the founder and Artistic Director of Loose Canon Arts, where she has created and toured productions internationally for 15 years. She is the director of the Treehouse series based on the books by Andy Griffiths, Horrible Harriet, Magic Beach and the forthcoming Guess How Much I Love You. For Opera Australia she has worked on productions of La Bohème, Madama Butterfly and West Side Story. Julian Crouch - Scenic Designer Julian Crouch is a director, designer and writer whose career spans theatre, opera, ballet, film and television. Highlights include the co-creation, co-direction and design of the award-winning Shockheaded Peter. Opera credits include Satyagraha (English National Opera, Metropolitan Opera), The Merry Widow (Metropolitan), Le Petit Prince (Lausanne Opera), The Magic Flute (Welsh National Opera) and Mackie Messer (Salzburg Festival). Broadway credits include Hedwig and the Angry Inch (Tony Nomination), The Addams Family, Big Fish and Head Over Heels. Kevin Pollard - Costume Designer After training in textiles, fashion and history of costume in the early 1980s, Kevin Pollard has worked for stage and screen, creating character-based designs founded on immersive research. His operatic credits include Akhnaten (English National Opera, LA Opera and the Metropolitan Opera, winning an Olivier Award for best production) as well as Ernani and Hansel and Gretel (La Scala) and productions for Berlin State Opera, Welsh National Opera, Canadian Opera Company and the Salzburg Festival. Marco Filibeck - Lighting Designer Marco Filibeck began his career as a lighting console operator, working on more than two hundred live concerts. In 1983 he was appointed lighting technician at Bologna’s Teatro Comunale; he joined the Teatro alla Scala in Milan two years later, and in 2009 was appointed lighting manager. During his career, he has worked with some of the most important European directors including Franco Zeffirelli, Luca Ronconi, Liliana Cavani and Àlex Ollé (La Fura dels Baus). Filippo Marta - Video Designer Filippo Marta was born in Milan, where he continues to live and work. He studied stage photography at the Teatro alla Scala Academy, graduating in 2016. Since then he has collaborated on a range of audio-visual projects in fashion and theatre as well as holding the position of post-production manager in the multimedia design studio Karmachina. Paul Fitzsimon - Chorus Master Paul has been Chorus Master at Opera Australia since 2019, with recent highlights including the national tour of Madama Butterfly, Brian Howard’s Metamorphosis, and The Merry Widow. He has conducted all the symphony orchestras in Australia, and in Europe has conducted the Hamburg Ballet, Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, and Ensemble Intercontemporain in Paris. Paul was Assistant Conductor of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra before completing his orchestral conducting studies at the Universität der Künste in Berlin. Sulki Yu - Concertmaster Sulki Yu is a critically acclaimed violinist, having appeared as a soloist with orchestras including the Royal Flemish Philharmonic, Orchestre Nationale de Lille, Budapest Symphony, Moscow State Academic Symphony, and Royal Wallonie Chamber Orchestra. She won the 2006 Yehudi Menuhin and the 2007 Szigeti-Hubay International Violin Competitions, and is a founding member of the highly awarded Fournier Trio. Prior to Orchestra Victoria, Sulki served as Principal First Violin at the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London. Production Partner Diego Torre - Ernani A leading tenor with Opera Australia for many years, in 2021 Diego Torre will also sing Radamès (Aida) and Cavaradossi (Tosca). His celebrated OA repertoire also includes leading roles in Cavalleria Rusticana, Pagliacci, Turandot, Madama Butterfly, Lucia di Lammermoor, La Bohème, Un ballo in maschera, Rigoletto, Simon Boccanegra, Luisa Miller and Don Carlo. Recent international engagements have included performances in Geneva, Torino, Parma, Genoa, Oslo and China as well as his native Mexico City. Vladimir Stoyanov - Don Carlo, King of Spain Vladimir Stoyanov has gained international recognition for his interpretative skills and musical talents. He has sung in theatres including Opéra de Paris, Vienna State Opera, La Scala in Milan, Metropolitan Opera in New York, and Teatro Real in Madrid, working with renowned conductors including Riccardo Muti, Zubin Mehta and Antonio Pappano. Among his recent successes are Ernani in Sydney, Rigoletto in Bregenz and Valencia, Otello in Baden Baden, and Queen of Spades in London. Alexander Vinogradov - Don Ruy Gomez de Silva After his debut at Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow at the age of 21, Alexander Vinogradov began an acclaimed career performing in world-leading opera houses. Among his most celebrated performances are Roméo et Juliette at Teatro alla Scala, Lucia di Lammermoor and Luisa Miller at Metropolitan Opera, and Don Carlo at Los Angeles Opera. Alexander has performed his most successful role, Escamillo in Carmen, at Metropolitan Opera New York, Staatsoper Munich, and London’s Royal Opera House. Natalie Aroyan - Elvira Armenian-Australian soprano Natalie Aroyan’s roles with Opera Australia include Odabella (Attila), Mimì (La Bohème), Amelia Grimaldi (Simon Boccanegra), Micaëla (Carmen) and the title role in Aida, which she will reprise in November. Her performance as Eva (Die Meistersinger, 2019) won her a Helpmann Award and other recent highlights have included her Italian debut, singing Amelia Grimaldi and Aida, and Marguerite (Faust) and Mimì with West Australian Opera. Concert appearances have included the Melbourne and Queensland symphony orchestras. Jennifer Black - Giovanna American lyric soprano Jennifer Black made her Opera Australia debut in 2019, singing Maddalena (Il viaggio a Reims) and covering the title role in Anna Bolena at short notice. Returning to OA in 2021, she will also sing the High Priestess in Aida. She is a graduate of the Metropolitan and San Francisco operas’ young artist programs and enjoys a flourishing career with regular appearances for the finest opera houses worldwide, including the Metropolitan Opera. Simon Kim - Don Riccardo Simon Kim trained in Korea before undertaking postgraduate study in Italy and at the Salzurg Mozarteum. Returning to Korea in 2001, he sang many leading tenor roles, including Alfredo (La Traviata) and Werther, as well as performing in concert with major Korean orchestras and orchestras in Russia and Ukraine. In 2009 he became a principal artist with Opera Australia, with role highlights including Macduff (Macbeth), Remendado (Carmen) and Parpignol (La Bohème on Sydney Harbour). Luke Gabbedy - Jago Baritone Luke Gabbedy regularly sings leading roles for Opera Australia, including the title role in The Barber of Seville,