Festival Verdi 2016 Opens with Schiller Focus and New Venue

The 2016 Festival Verdi in Parma launched on October 1 with a new production of Don Carlo at the Teatro Regio, directed by Cesare Lievi and conducted by Daniel Oren. The festival's central theme is the relationship between Giuseppe Verdi and Friedrich Schiller, whose works inspired four Verdi operas: Giovanna d'Arco, I Masnadieri, Luisa Miller, and Don Carlo. For the first time, the festival includes the historic Teatro Farnese, restored for theatrical use via an agreement with the Polo Museale dell'Emilia-Romagna. There, Saskia Boddeke and Peter Greenaway staged Giovanna d'Arco with extensive video mapping. Other productions include Il trovatore at the Teatro Regio (directed by Elisabetta Courir) and I Masnadieri at the Teatro Giuseppe Verdi in Busseto (directed by Leo Muscato). The festival has secured co-production agreements with the Teatro Nacional de São Carlos in Lisbon, the Ópera de Tenerife, and the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa. Private sponsors contributed approximately one million euros through the Art bonus scheme. Notable performers include Michele Pertusi as Filippo II and Vladimir Stoyanov as the Marchese di Posa in Don Carlo. The festival runs through October with concerts, conferences, and study days.