| Il ritorno di Don Calandrino | |
|---|---|
| Intermezzo by Domenico Cimarosa | |
 Composer Domenico Cimarosa | |
| Translation | The Return of Don Calandrino |
| Other title | Armidoro e Laurina |
| Librettist | Giuseppe Petrosellini (?) |
| Language | Italian |
| Premiere | 1778 Teatro Valle, Rome |
Il ritorno di Don Calandrino (The Return of Don Calandrino), also known as Armidoro e Laurina, [1] is an intermezzo in two acts by Domenico Cimarosa to an Italian libretto presumably written by Giuseppe Petrosellini. [2]
The premiere took place in 1778 at Teatro Valle in Rome. Performances in Livorno (1783), Prague (1785), Vienna (1787), Barcelona (1788), Florence (1788 and 1793) and Padua (1801) followed. [3] After a long break, the opera was revived in 2007 under the musical direction of Riccardo Muti in a series of performances at the Salzburg Whitsun Festival, [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] Teatro Pérez Galdós in Las Palmas, [10] [11] Teatro Municipale in Piacenza, [12] Teatro Verdi in Pisa, [13] and the Ravenna Festival. [14]
| Role | Voice type |
|---|---|
| Livietta | soprano castrato travesti |
| Don Calandrino | soprano castrato [15] |
| Monsieur Le Blonde | bass |
| Irene | soprano castrato travesti |
| Valerio | tenor |
The libretto gives a humorous account of characters and actions of Don Calandrino, the son of the podestà of Monte Secco (Abruzzo, Italy), [16] who pretends he knows everything, but in fact is incapable of even thinking logically; Livietta, a haughty and rich peasant girl, who tries to act as a lady, but invariably fails both in her language and manners; Monsieur Le Blonde, a French traveler eager to talk about places he has supposedly visited, but of which he knows nothing; Irene, a simple and humble girl; and Valerio, the Mayor of Monte Secco and Irene’s brother. After several turns, the story resolves in pairing Don Calandrino with Livietta, and Le Blonde with Irene. [17]
| Year | Cast (Livietta, Don Calandrino, Monsieur Le Blonde, Irene, Valerio) | Conductor, Orchestra | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Laura Giordano, Juan Francisco Gatell, Marco Vinco, Monica Tarone, Francesco Marsiglia | Riccardo Muti Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini | CD: Gruppo Editoriale L'Espresso |
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