Giuseppe Verdi

Libretto by Francesco Maria Piave

Premiere March 1853, La Fenice, Venice/Première, mars 1853, La Fenice, Venise

Verdi’s musical masterpiece is based on Alexandre Dumas’ novel and play, La Dame aux Camélias.  It tells the bittersweet story of the doomed love affair between Violetta Valéry, a famed Parisian courtesan, and Alfredo Germont, the eldest son of a wealthy merchant family.  This touching and romantic tale is filled with some of the most popular and familiar music in the entire operatic repertoire.

2013 is the 200th anniversary of Verdi’s birth.  This beloved opera is presented in concert in honour of this occasion.  The role of Violetta is a tour-de-force for a soprano and the opera is full of familiar tunes and rousing choruses.

STARRING
Violetta                Corinne Winters
Germont               Gregory Dahl
Baron                   Jonathan Estabrooks
Gastone               Niels Aschengreen
Doctor                  Brian Wehrle
Marquis                Benjamin Covey
Flora                    Marion Newman

Conductor             Tyrone Paterson


Chorus Master       Laurence Ewashko

Opera Lyra Ottawa Chorus
National Arts Centre Orchestra