Arena di Verona, Aida in world vision will open the centenary of the Opera Festival in June
Stefano Posa will curate the new version of Aida for the 100th anniversary of the Opera Festival
Verona, 10 January 2023 – Aida has always been the queen opera of the Verona Arena, the most represented, the most loved: it was the choice of the tenor Giovanni Zenatello in 1913 to celebrate the centenary of Verdi’s birth with his title that best combines great music, enthralling intimate drama and spectacular scenes. It all started with that legendary first season: today, on the threshold of Arena festival number 100, also presented in New York, Aida returns with all the power of Verdi’s immortal genius in a completely new show. To design direction, scenes and costumes is Stephen Podamultifaceted artist who has been making well-kept productions in theaters all over the world for over twenty years, also documented by various video recordings.
Aida: “A world at war”
Poda makes his debut at theArena of Verona with the opening title of 100th Opera Festival 2023, which sees a double premiere in the evenings of Friday 16 and Saturday 17 June: “The story of Aida is that of a world at war – declares Poda, who conceived a universal interdisciplinary show, which wants to speak to everyone – a war that divides two brotherly and neighboring peoples into mortal enemies. But the work itself ends in a whisper of peace: a Dantesque journey, from an infernal beginning to a celestial vision finale”. As announced in recent months, the inauguration will reserve other surprises of absolute interest, starting with the protagonists: Aida will be soprano Anna Netrebko and Radamès tenor Yusif Eyvazov, ‘golden couple’ of the Opera on stage and in life, internationally renowned artists and friends of the Arena di Verona, constant presence of the Festival even in the difficult two-year period 2020-2021 , reference interpretations in their respective Verdi roles.
world division
Thanks to the collaboration between Arena di Verona srl and Rai Cultura and the important work carried out in recent years by Gianmarco Mazzi, the opening night of 16 June will be broadcast live on Rai worldwide. “This is the culmination of a long work – concludes Cecilia Gasdia, superintendent and artistic director of the Arena Foundation – after the recovery efforts and the two-year pandemic. Even in the most difficult moments, the Arena di Verona has remained a point of reference for Iart of Italian opera singingNow candidate for inclusion in the UNESCO list of intangible heritage of humanity, source of inspiration, entertainment, engine of the economy and tourism. A possible success thanks to all the workers of the Foundation, to the Steering Committee, to the institutions and to the joint forces of the patrons of the 67 Columns for the Arena di Verona, a project now in its third edition, of partners and sponsors. All our gratitude goes to them.”
The Arena di Verona will also host the final ceremony of the 2026 Olympic Games Milan – Cortina.