From our archives

25 September 2023
Siege_C2A9479

On 9 October 1826, Le siège de Corinthe was performed at the Opéra de Paris.

Le siège de Corinthe, a tragédie lyrique in three acts to a libretto by Luigi Balocchi and Alexandre Soumet, was first performed on 9 October 1826 at the Théâtre de l'Académie Royale de Musique in Paris. The cast of the first performance was Henri-Etienne Dérivis (Mahomet II), Louis Nourrit (Cléomène), Laura Cinti-Damoreau (Pamyra), Adolphe Nourrit (Néocles), Alex Prévost (Hiéros), Bonnel (Adraste), Ferdinand Prévost (Omar), M.lle Frémont (Ismène).

The ROF has performed the opera twice, in 2000 and 2017. In 2000, Maurizio Benini conducted the Orchestre de l'Opéra National de Lyon and the Prague Chamber Choir. The production was designed by Massimo Castri, with sets and costumes by Maurizio Balò, choreography by Mauro Bigonzetti and lighting by Gigi Saccomandi. The cast included Michele Pertusi (Mahomet), Stephen Mark Brown (Cléoméne), Ruth Ann Swenson (Pamyra), Giuseppe Filianoti (Néoclès), Carlo Lepore (Hiéros), Alessandro Guerzoni (Adraste), Simone Alberghini (Omar) and Iwona Hossa (Ismène).
In 2017, the production was entrusted to Fura dels Baus, with direction and sets by Carlus Padrissa, scenery, costumes and video by Lita Cabellut and lighting by Fabio Rossi. Roberto Abbado conducted the RAI National Symphony Orchestra and the Ventidio Basso Theatre Choir. The cast included Luca Pisaroni (Mahomet), John Irvin (Cléoméne), Nino Machaidze (Pamyra), Sergey Romanovsky (Néoclès), Carlo Cigni (Hiéros), Xabier Anduaga (Adraste), Iurii Samoilov (Omar) and Cecilia Molinari (Ismène).