L'equivoco stravagante (; The Curious Misunderstanding) is an operatic dramma giocoso in two acts by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Gaetano Gasbarri. It was Rossini's first attempt at writing a full two-act opera.
Performance history L'equivoco stravagante was first performed at the Teatro del Corso, Bologna, on 26 October 1811. It was only performed three times before the police closed the production down, possibly because the text touched on the subject of army desertion. The music of the overture was subsequently lost.
The opera was first produced in the United States (in English translation as The Bizarre Deception) by the Bronx Opera in January 2004.Tommasini, January 16, 2004
Roles RoleVoice typePremiere Cast26 October 1811(Conductor: Giuseppe Boschetti )Gamberotto, a rich farmerbassDomenico VaccaniErnestina, literature-loving daughter of GamberottocontraltoMarietta MarcoliniBuralicchio, wealthy young man, promised to ErnestinabassPaolo RosichErmanno, poor young man, in love with ErnestinatenorTommaso BertiRosalia, Ernestina's maidsopranoAngiola ChiesFrontino, Gamberotto's servant and confidant of ErmannotenorGiuseppe Spirito
Synopsis Place: Italy Time: Early 19th Century
Ermanno loves Ernestina, who is attracted to the rich, but foolish, Buralicchio. Ermanno's scheming results in Ernestina being arrested on suspicion of having deserted from the army (and really being a man in disguise), but he rescues her, and all ends happily.
Recordings YearCast:Gamberotto,Ernestina, Buralicchio,ErmannoConductor,Opera House and OrchestraLabel Recordings of L'equivoco stravagante on operadis-opera-discography.org.uk1974Sesto Bruscantini,,Rolando Panerai,Giuseppe BarattiBruno Rigacci,Orchestra of RAI, Napoli(Recording of a performance broadcast on 8 January 1974)Audio CD: Bongiovanni "The Golden Age of Opera" series,Cat: GOA 154-155 2001 Marco di Felice,Petia Petrova, Marco Vinco,Vito Martino Alberto Zedda,Czech Chamber Soloists and ChorusAudio CD: Naxos Opera ClassicsCat: 8.660087-882001Olga Voznessenskaia, Silvia Vajente,
Carlo Morini,
Luciano Miotto,
Vito Martino,
Daniele ManiscalchiCarmine Carrisi; Orchestra del Conservatorio di Musica G.B. Martini di Bologna (Recorded October 2001)KICCO Classic - KC081.22008 Bruno de Simone,Marina Prudenskaja,Marco Vinco,Dmitry Korchak Umbero Benedetti Michelangeli,Orchestra Haydn di Bolzano e Trento(Recorded at the Rossini Opera Festival) DVD: Dynamic (record label)Cat: 33610
References Notes
Sources
Gossett, Philip; Brauner, Patricia (2001), "L'equivoco stravagante" in Holden, Amanda (ed.), The New Penguin Opera Guide, p. 767. New York: Penguin Putnam. Osborne, Charles (1996), The Bel Canto Operas of Rossini, Donizetti, and Bellini, Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press, 1994 Osborne, Richard (1998),"L'equivoco stravagante", in Stanley Sadie (Ed.), The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, Vol. Two, p. 59. London: Macmillan Publishers, Inc. Tommasini, Anthony, "Classical Music and Dance Guide" (Refers to Bronx Opera production), The New York Times, January 16, 2004. Accessed 8 December 2013.
External links Libretto in Italian Retrieved 13 December 2012