Cecilia Bartoli in Rimini with the tormented love of the great composers
Sunday 28 September sees the return of Cecilia Bartoli to the Teatro Galli in Rimini for the Sagra Musicale Malatestiana.
The history of Rimini’s Teatro Galli is inextricably linked to Bartoli, who, seven years ago on 28 October 2018, reopened the theatre after 75 years.
Luigi Poletti’s 1857 theatre was heavily bombed in December 1943 and suffered from looting immediately afterwards, and parts were demolished, leaving only its façade and part of the foyer intact. Reconstruction work began in 2014 and was completed in October 2018. During the restoration, the remains of an early Christian basilica emerged, which are now included in the archaeological museum built underneath the theatre.
The reopening featured Bartoli in a concert performance of Rossini‘s Cenerentola, with Les Musiciens du Princes conducted by Gianluca Capuano. Since she has returned to the theatre twice, which is highly unusual as the mezzosoprano rarely performs in her homeland. But there is a reason. Her father was from Vergiano, an inland town a quarter of an hour away from Rimini, and many summer holidays were spent with her aunt and cousin on Rimini’s beach. Bartoli’s father told her about the bombing of Teatro Galli, the remnants of which she saw as a child. In 2018, she said, “I hope that this is the beginning of a long collaboration,” and indeed it has been. Bartoli also used the theatre to record soprano Varduhi Abrahamyan’s Rhapsody album, part of the ‘Mentored by Bartoli’ series for Decca.
On Sunday 28 September, she returns once again with a programme called Si dolce è ‘l tormento – Canzoni d’amore (Love Songs), accompanied once again her orchestra, the Musiciens du Prince and Gianluca Capuano. The title is from a madrigal by Monteverdi, “Si dolce ‘l tormento”, preceded by the Toccata from Monteverdi’s Orpheus, which is the starting point for a programme with works by Steffani, Handel, Vivaldi, Mozart, and Rossini.
Last tickets available: online at www.vivaticket.com and at the Galli Theatre box office, open on the evening of the concert at 7.30pm.
Info: www.sagramusicalemalatestiana.it
Graham Spicer, aka ‘Gramilano’, is a writer, director and photographer based in Milan. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy. His articles have appeared in various publications from Woman’s Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the Danza in Italia column for Dancing Times magazine. Graham was the historical advisor on Codice Carla, the 2023 documentary on Italian ballerina Carla Fracci.
Graham also works as a dance photographer, and his photos have appeared in many books, theatre programmes, and magazines, including Dancing Times, Dance Spirit and Ballet2000, as well as all the major Italian newspapers.
He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.
I love you, Cecilia!