On Saturday the Teatro Leal will present the opera by the Brazilian composer João Guilherme Ripper, who will be offering an encounter on Thursday.
Ópera en minúscula makes its debut at Teatro Leal de La Laguna with Domitila on Saturday, September 13, at 7.30 p.m. and tickets are priced at 10 euros. This epistolary opera features soprano Maria Sole Gallevi. Furthermore, on Thursday, September 11, at 7 p.m., a conversation with the Brazilian composer João Guilherme Ripper will take place at the same venue, with free admission available until the venue reaches full capacity.
Domitila is a chamber opera with music and libretto by Guilherme Ripper. It is based on correspondence between King Pedro I of Brazil and IV of Portugal, and Domitila de Castro do Canto e Melo, Marchioness of Santos. Premiered in Río de Janeiro in 2000, the libretto is based on a true story that took place in the 1820s: the doomed relationship between King Pedro I of Brazil and Marchioness Domitila de Castro.
Under the guise of a monologue, Domitila recounts her frustrated romance as she reads their correspondence, giving rise to a series of characters in the process. The yoke they bear is represented as being bound by ropes, as if they were a single character with different appearances, struggling with themselves to find balance amidst the bonds that condition their existence. It is a production by the Juan March Foundation, the Teatro de la Zarzuela, and Bogotá’s Teatro Mayor Julio Mario Santo Domingo.
Italian soprano Maria Sole Gallevi, based in São Paulo, Brazil, has gained recognition in several competitions across South America. She won the Opera – La Bohème Award at the Maria Callas Singing Contest. In 2021, she took part in the Neapolitan song project A caminho do interior (On the journey to the interior), backed by the Italian Consulate in São Paulo, and appeared at the Auditorio Ibirapuera in the concert Uma viagem entre Itália e Brasil (A journey between Italy and Brazil), performing with the Heliópolis Symphony Orchestra of the Baccarelli Institute.
Gallevi will perform alongside clarinettist Irene Martínez and cellist Esteban Jiménez. Borja Mariño is responsible for the musical direction and piano, while Nicola Beller Carbone will direct the stage. The set design is by Carmen Castañón, costumes by Pier Paolo Álvaro and Roger Portal, and lighting by Pedro Chamizo.
On September 17, Ópera en minúscula continues its programming at the outside area of Espacio La Granja with La Plaza, returning for a second edition of open-air chamber opera, featuring the performance Juicio a una señora en llamas (Trial of a Lady in Flames). This process of operatic creation has been constructed from the ground up through an artist residency. The event serves as a platform to promote contemporary chamber opera in Spanish, breaking down the barriers imposed by traditional concepts of performative areas and providing the public with a close-up, raw, and exciting experience.
The Ópera de Tenerife is an initiative organised by the Island Council through the Auditorio de Tenerife with the collaboration of the ICDC (Regional Institute of Cultural Development) and the INAEM (National Institute of Performing Arts and Music). In addition, the second edition of Ópera en minúscula benefits from the partnership of the City Council of La Laguna.