Caramoor Presents I CAPULETI ED I MONTECCHI, 7/21

This summer, Caramoor's Director of Opera Will Crutchfield will mark the 16th season of the Bel Canto at Caramoor series.

On July 21, soprano Eglise Gutiérrez and mezzo-soprano Kate Aldrich will take the stage for a performance of Bellini's I Capuleti ed i Montecchi. The performance also features tenor Leonardo Capalbo, bass Jeffrey Beruan, and bass-baritone Benjamin Harris. The opera will be semi-staged and sung in Italian with English supertitles. Orchestra of St. Luke's will be led by Maestro Crutchfield.

I Capuleti ed i Montecchi tells the story of Romeo and Juliet – based on the same ancient Italian sources that Shakespeare used – in the gorgeous language of Italian bel canto. The libretto by Felice Romani was a reworking of the story of Romeo and Juliet for an opera by Nicola Vaccai called Giulietta e Romeo, a work based on Italian sources. Bellini was persuaded to write the opera for the 1830 Carnival season at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, with only a month and a half available for composition. Later, Richard Wagner told how its yearning, passionate melodies inspired him to create Tristan und Isolde.