Gaetano Donizetti is one of the representative masters of Italian operatic style in the first half of the 19th century, along with Rossini and Bellini, considered the three giants of bel canto. La Fille du Régiment is the third produced by the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) after Donizetti’s L’elisir d’Amore and Don Pasquale.

La Fille du Régiment (The Daughter of the Regiment) is an opera in two acts. The first tells the life of the female protagonist Marie in the army, and the second, her life in a castle. The opera premiered on February 11th, 1840 at the Paris Opera, but its first performance in Italy on October 3rd, 1840 received harsh reviews and wasn’t taken seriously. Not until 1928 did the opera receive its due accolades with the Italian soprano, Toti Dal Monte, in the role of Marie. The storyline is light-hearted, humorous in tone, and accessible to popular audiences. The music is richly-expressive, the male and female lead vocal elements each having their own unique styles. The aria “Ah! Mes amis, quel jour de fête!” dubbed “dangerous ground” for tenors, demands a full nine successive high Cs within two minutes, leaving many tenors daunted by the task. It was in fact Pavarotti’s role in this very opera that had earned him the title, “King of the High C.”

For more information or to buy tickets to the performance, visit: http://en.chncpa.org/whatson/zdyc/201712/t20171206_180149.shtml