Verdi's Don Carlo

Don Carlos, a grand opera à la française, was composed by Verdi to a French-language libretto based on a tragedy by the great Schiller, and saw its premiere in French at the Paris Opera in 1867. But it went through more revisions and versions than any other Verdi work, and it is the Italian version, Don Carlo, that is most commonly performed today, as in this opening night blockbuster at La Scala from 2008! Stéphane Braunschweig—who has also garnered renown for his Ring cycle in Aix-en-Provence, as well as his Jenůfa in Paris—brings ample dramatic flair to the boldly lit and sumptuously costumed stage production, while bass Ferruccio Furlanetto commands the stage as Philip and tenor Stuart Neill brings regal bearing to the title role.

In 1559, France and Spain are negotiating a hard-fought peace; according to the terms of the treaty, the king's heir Carlos is set to marry Elisabeth of Valois, daughter of Henri II. The opera's intrigue deviates from the historical account: Carlos, in love with his stepmother, is desired by his father's mistress...