Il Palazzo incantato (The Enchanted Palace) or Il Palagio d’Atlante, overo La Guerriera Amante (The Palace of Atlantes, or The Warrior Woman in Love), or also Lealtà con valore (Loyalty with Bravery) is an opera in a prologue and three acts by the Italian composer Luigi Rossi. The libretto, by Giulio Rospigliosi, the future Pope Clement IX, is based on Ariosto's Orlando furioso. It was first performed in Rome in a lavish production at the Teatro delle Quattro Fontane (Palazzo Barberini) on 22 February 1642. Rossi was criticised for giving too much music to his friend, the castrato Marc'Antonio Pasqualini, who played Bradamante, at the expense of the other roles. Some of the highly complicated stage machinery failed to work during the performance. Revived by Opera Dijon in a January 2021 online production.
Roles
| Role | Voice type[2] | Premiere cast, 22 February 1642[3] |
|---|---|---|
| Pittura/Marfisa | soprano castrato (en travesti) | Pietro Paolo Visconti |
| Poesia/Fioralba[4] (a woman) | soprano castrato (en travesti) | Michele Angelo Soldi |
| Musica/Olimpia | soprano castrato (en travesti) | Santi Casata |
| Magia/Prasildo | soprano castrato | Angelo Ferrotti |
| Atlante | alto (countertenor[5]) | Lorenzo Sances |
| Orlando | tenor | Odoardo Ceccarelli |
| Angelica | soprano castrato (en travesti) | Loreto Vittori |
| Giant/Mandricardo | bass | Bartolomeo Nicolini |
| Bradamante | soprano castrato (en travesti) | Marc'Antonio Pasqualini |
| Ferraù | tenor | Giacomo Brilli |
| Sacripante | bass | Antonio Sarci |
| Ruggiero | tenor | Francesco Bianchi |
| Astolfo/Iroldo | tenor | Francesco Stilli |
| Alceste | alto (countertenor[6]) | Mario Savioni |
| Gradasso | bass | Geronimo Navarra |
| Huntsman/False Ruggiero | tenor | Francesco Acquisti |
| Doralice | soprano castrato (en travesti)[4] | Giovanni Paolo Selli |
| Fiordiligi | soprano castrato (en travesti)[4] | Ludovico Camelano |
| Echo | soprano castrato[4] | |
| Finardo (a dwarf) | soprano castrato[4] | Zuradio |
Synopsis
The magician Atlante captures Christian and pagan knights and ladies in his enchanted palace of illusions. Orlando, Ferraù and Sacripante enter the palace in search of Angelica. Bradamante seeks Ruggiero and, finding him with Angelica, vows to kill him in a fit of jealous rage. But Atlante calms things by reminding Angelica of her love for Medoro. Atlante feels threatened when Astolfo arrives as the knight is immune to his magic. Atlante convinces his captives that Astolfo is the enemy. Meanwhile, Ruggiero has broken the spell. Atlante responds by disguising himself as Ruggiero but when he is faced with a duel with the real Ruggiero he is forced to admit defeat. The magic palace vanishes and the knights and ladies are freed.
Notes
Sources
- Marina Vaccarini, "Palazzo incantato, Il, (Il Palagio d'Atlante, o vero La guerriera amante)", in Gelli, Piero & Poletti Filippo eds. (2007). Dizionario dell'Opera 2008, Milan: Baldini Castoldi Dalai, pp. 972–973. ISBN 978-88-6073-184-5 – via operamanager.com
Further reading
- The Viking Opera Guide, ed. Amanda Holden (Viking, 1993)
- Murata, Margaret, "Operas for the Papal Court, 1631–1668)", UMI Research Press, Ann Arbor, Michigan 1981, p. 47 (ISBN 0835711226, 9780835711227)
- Roger Freitas, Orlando at play: the games of Il palazzo incantato (1642), Early Music, Volume 50, Issue 3, August 2022, Pages 339–356, https://doi.org/10.1093/em/caac025
- For a fuller synopsis, a few extracts and more information:- Operavision. Unfortunately the complete performance of the opera is no longer available.
External links
- Libretto, librettidopera.it
- Il Palazzo incantato di Atlante, ovvero La Guerriera amante, Le magazine de l'opéra baroque by Jean-Claude Brenac]
