| Francesco Cavalli |
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Operas
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La Calisto is an opera by Francesco Cavalli with a libretto by Giovanni Faustini. The libretto was published in 1651 by Giuliani and Batti. The opera received its first performance on 28 November 1651 at the Teatro San Apollinare, Venice. At the time, the San Apollinare was equipped with complex stage machinery, which the theatre intended to use in the premiere production of La Calisto to impress audiences with stage spectacle. However, the first performances had small audiences, as the run of 11 performances from 28 November to 31 December 1651 attracted only about 1200 patrons to a theatre that housed 400. In addition, Faustini died during the first run, on 19 December.[1]
The opera has been successfully revived in modern times. Raymond Leppard's "realisation" (as he termed his orchestrations) for Glyndebourne was significant for creating new audiences for baroque opera, although far removed from the original work; the recording of this production has been re-released on compact disc (see "Recordings" below).
In 2008, Jennifer Williams Brown's edition of the score (A-R Editions, 2007) won the American Musicological Society's Claude V. Palisca award (recognizing outstanding scholarly editions or translations).[2]
Contents |
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, November 28, 1651 (reconstruction) (Conductor: Francesco Cavalli ) |
|---|---|---|
| La Natura | alto | Tomaso Bovi? |
| L'Eternità | soprano | Margarita da Costa? |
| Il Destino | soprano | Catterina Giani |
| Calisto | soprano | Margarita da Costa |
| Giove | bass | Giulio Cesare Donati |
| Diana | soprano | Catterina Giani |
| Endimione | alto | Cristoforo Caresana? |
| Giunone | soprano | Nina dal Pavon |
| Linfea | soprano | Antonia Padovano? |
| Satirino | soprano | Andrea Caresana |
| Mercurio | tenor | Tenor di Carrara [sic] |
| Pane | alto | Tomaso Bovi? |
| Sylvano | bass | Pellegrino Canner |
The story is based on the myth of Callisto from Ovid's Metamorphoses. Jane Glover has commented on the treatment of the story of Callisto in the opera in the context of contemporary Venetian opera, and how the librettist had to invent complications to formulaic plots to meet audience demands.[3]