31 Days of Opera Awesomeness

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Gaetano Donizetti’s Daughter of the Regiment 


The first opera of our upcoming season is the Donizetti’s comic opera The Daughter of the Regiment. Written by the Italian composer in Paris, it was first performed at the Paris Opéra-Comique in 1840 in french.  

The Plot
The Daughter of the Regiment tells the story of the young orphan Marie who has been adopted by a regiment of the American army. Young and wild, a true army girl, she travels with the regiment and sees them all as her father. After meeting Tonio, a French peasant, they fall in love with each other. This leads Tonio to enlist in the regiment and everything seems perfect until Sgt. Sulpice meets the Marquise of Birkenfeld who turns out to be Marie’s aunt. Exhilarated about the finding of her long-lost niece, the Marquise decides to take Marie home to the family’s chateau. Comedy ensues as Marie attempts to adapt to her new life, as she discovers that the identity of the Marquise is not what she was led to believe.



Scenes from the production, Photos by Karen Cooper/Washington National Opera 

The Production
This delightful production comes from Italy’s Teatro Comunale di Bologna and sets the Opera in to the waning days of World War II. Costumes and sets were designed by Julio Galan who died in 2006. Since its premiere in 2004 the production has been shown in Geneva, Tokyo, Washington, Houston, Bilbao and Tel Aviv.

Have a look at this video to learn more about the production!



The Cast 
L’ubica Vargicová, described by the New York Times as having “…devilish coloratura with fearless attack” sings Marie with Stephen Costello whose “…polished tenor boasts… command, brightness at the top” (SanDiego.com) singing the nine high Cs. Ewa Podles “…a force of nature…”, (U-T San Diego) is the Marquise of Birkenfeld with Kevin Burdette as Sulpice.


L’ubica Vargicová, Stephen Costello, Ewa Podles and Kevin Burdette.

Toronto-born conductor, Yves Abel and stage director, Emilio Sagi, make their San Diego Opera debuts. 

Here is an extended preview on our Daughter of the Regiment by Nicolas Reveles, our Geisel Director of Education!



You can find even more information and interesting facts at www.sdopera.com !

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What year did we perform The Daughter of the Regiment last?

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