A night at the Opéra de Québec in Canada for the emotionally charged performances of Cavalleria rusticicana and I Pagliacci at the Grand Théâtre de Québec proved to be a most memorable evening.

We had the splendid fortune of being in the right place at the right time during a trip to Québec, Canada, where we had the opportunity to obtain tickets to the Opéra de Québec to see a double performance of the two famous Italian operas, Cavalleria rusticicana and I Pagliacci.

Cavalleria rusticicana at Opera de Québec

Seeing Cavalleria rusticicana by Pietro Mascagni in May 2009, 119 years after its debut performance in Rome, Italy, was indeed an exhilarating rush of adrenaline as we tried to imagine how the first audience to view Mascagni's work must have felt. The opera, beautifully sung in the original Italian with French subtitles by the stellar cast of the Opéra de Québec, is described as a peasant tragedy, realistic and violent in its telling, an ill-fated love story that takes place in the Sicilian countryside on a Sunday in 1890. It is a tale of love, betrayal, jealousy, and in the end, vengeance; it is a strong story of loss that tears at the heart with the thought of what might have been.

Cavalleria rusticicana at Opera de Québec

The cast is spectacular from the very beginning with Geneviève Lévesque in the role of Lola, Lori Phillips as Santuzza, Rosalind Elias as Mamma Lucia, Marc Hervieux as Turiddu, and Gaétan Laperrière as Alfio, taking the audience on a wild ride through life's various twists and turns all the way to the final note sung, leaving the audience feeling as emotionally bereft at the end as the title characters.

Cavalleria rusticicana at Opera de Québec

Combined with the talents of Guest Conductor Daniel Lipton, L‘Orchestre symphonique de Québec, and Le Choeur de l‘Opéra de Québec, with beautiful costumes by Judith Fortin, accessories by Annabelle Roy, lighting by Serge Gingras, sets by Michel Baker and Élène Pearson, and managed by Jacqueline Langlais, it was no surprise that the cast received a rousing standing ovation from the appreciative audience where there was not a dry eye in the house, and more than a few "Bravos" called out.

  Cast of Cavalleria rusticicana: 

After a much needed intermission to recover our collective breaths after the intense performance of Cavalleria rusticicana, we returned to the Grand Theatre for Ruggero Leoncavallo's opera, I Pagliacci, which debuted in Milan in 1892, and consists of a prologue and two acts, and was sung in the original Italian with French subtitles. Frequently performed with Cavalleria rusticicana, Ruggero Leoncavallo wrote the opera, I Pagliacci, based on an actual case that his father, a magistrate had judged.

I Pagliacci at Opera de Québec

Like Cavalleria rusticicana, I Pagliacci is another powerful story of love. Art imitates life when a touring troupe of actors travels to a small village to present their play. However, life and art become dangerously intertwined with love and jealousy rearing its ugly head and ultimately and sadly taking its toll. The cast was magnificent with Gaétan Laperrière in the role of Tonio, with Gianna Corbisiero as Nedda, Tonio DiPaolo as Canio, Alexander Dobson as Silvio, and Antonio Figueroa as Peppe.

I Pagliacci at Opera de Québec

Once again, the gifted cast took the audience on an emotional roller coaster ride as they told this intriguing tale, and like the performance of Cavalleria rusticicana, also received such a prolonged standing ovation that it seemed the audience was reluctant to end such a remarkable and memorable evening at the Opéra de Québec.

I Pagliacci at Opera de Québec

The Opéra de Québec Box Office is open during the year from Monday - Friday from 9:00 am until 12:00 pm, and from 1:30 pm until 5 pm; and from May 25th until September 4, 2009 it is open from 9:00 am until 12 pm, and from 1:30 pm until 4:00 pm. Check their website for upcoming their upcoming performance schedule.

Opéra de Québec
1220, avenue Taché
Québec, (Québec), Canada G1R 3B4    
Telephone:       +1-418-529-0688
Email:              This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  
www.OperadeQuebec.qc.ca 

Read other articles on Québec in the Destinations, Hotels and Resorts, Restaurants, Chefs' Recipes (in English) and (in French), and Spas sections.

For more information on Québec, please visit the websites: www.QuebecRegion.com, and www.bonjourQuebec.com.

For information on traveling by train in Canada, please visit the Via Rail Canada website at: www.ViaRail.ca or contact them at: +1-888- 842-7245.

For weather information in Canada, please visit the websites: www.Weather.EC.qc.ca and www.TheWeatherNetwork.com.

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