''Alina, regina di Golconda'' (''Alina, Queen of Golconda'') is an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

in two acts by

Gaetano Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the '' bel canto'' opera style dur ...

. The Italian

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

was written by

Felice Romani Giuseppe Felice Romani (31 January 178828 January 1865) was an Italian poet and scholar of literature and mythology who wrote many librettos for the opera composers Donizetti and Bellini. Romani was considered the finest Italian librettist betwe ...

after

Michel-Jean Sedaine Michel-Jean Sedaine (2 June 1719 – 17 May 1797) was a French dramatist and librettist, especially noted for his librettos for '' opéras comiques'', in which he took an important and influential role in the advancement of the genre from th ...

's French libretto for

Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny ( – ) was a French composer and a member of the French Académie des Beaux-Arts (1813). He is considered alongside André Grétry and François-André Danican Philidor to have been the founder of a new musical genre ...

's ballet-heroique ''

Aline, reine de Golconde ''Aline, reine de Golconde'' (‘Aline, Queen of Golconda’) is an opera (ballet-héroïque) in three acts by Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny to a libretto by Michel-Jean Sedaine based on a story by Stanislas-Jean de Boufflers. It was first performe ...

'' (

Paris Opera The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be ...

, 1766), in its turn based on the novel by Stanislas de Boufflers. The opera was commissioned for the opening festivities of the

Teatro Carlo Felice The Teatro Carlo Felice is the principal opera house of Genoa, Italy, used for performances of opera, ballet, orchestral music, and recitals. It is located on the side of Piazza De Ferrari. The hall is named for King Carlo Felice, and dates fr ...

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

, where it premiered with success on 12 May 1828. Soon after, a revised version debuted at the

Teatro Valle Teatro may refer to: * Theatre * Teatro (band) Teatro, Italian for "theatre", is a vocal group signed to the Sony BMG music label. The members of Teatro are Jeremiah James, Andrew Alexander, Simon Bailey and Stephen Rahman-Hughes. Band members ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

on 10 October 1829.

Roles

Synopsis

:Time: "The mythical past"Osborne 1994, p. 177 :Place: India

Act 1

Alina, a humble country girl, has been captured by pirates and taken to the kingdom of Golconda, where the elderly king falls in love with her, marries her, and shortly dies, leaving Alina a widow and queen. Her subjects urge her to choose another husband, and the noble and handsome Seide emerges as leading candidate. Alina, however, cannot forget a previous lover, Ernesto Volmar, a French army officer; despite this, she is just about to declare her choice when three cannon shots sound and a ship from France arrives. The ambassador is Volmar, who is haunted by the memory of the girl snatched away from him. Alina is rapturous with joy and excitement. Her feelings are little understood, except by her friend Fiorina, another French girl also kidnapped by pirates. Fiorina left behind her a husband, named Belfiore, who she incessantly argued with, and does not know whether or not she longs to meet him again or fears such an encounter. By a curious chance, Volmar's aide-de-camp is this same Belfiore. Alina decides to test Volmar's love: of course, he does not know that she is the queen. Firstly, she lets Volmar hear her voice while she herself is hidden among her slaves. He is stunned and enchanted, but Alina and Fiorina explain that it is quite common for travellers in a strange land to hear voices resembling those of their fatherland. Belfiore has also heard Fiorina's voice, but his reaction is horror. After this, she nominates Volmar as king, but, just as she hoped, he refuses, staying faithful to the memory of the girl he loved. Meanwhile, Seide has easily discovered Alina's love for Volmar and, driven by jealousy, incites his followers to rebel.

Act 2

For her final test, Alina reconstructs the garden in Provence in which she and Volmar first met, explaining to him that everything which has happened since has been a dream. At first he is incredulous, but then abandons himself to love. Fiorina decides to put Belfiore through the same test, and tells him that he dreamt of Golconda and all that happened there after a session of heavy drinking. Belfiore recounts his "dream", adding in numerous details of conquests of love. In the meantime, Seide's revolt has broken out. The two girls are forced to ask the two men for their help, and explain the game that they have played with them. Seide bursts in and confronts Alina. He pleads for her love, but when she refuses hurls her into prison. However, Volmar (who now knows who Alina really is) returns with his Frenchmen to defeat Seide's forces, and restores Alina to the throne. Alina is moved by the love of the people for her, but the opera ends with her singing a passionate love-song to Volmar, (Alina: ''Eri di notte il sogno, eri il pensier del di'').

Recordings

References

Notes Sources *Allitt, John Stewart (1991), ''Donizetti: in the light of Romanticism and the teaching of Johann Simon Mayr'', Shaftesbury: Element Books, Ltd (UK); Rockport, MA: Element, Inc.(USA) * Ashbrook, William (1982), ''Donizetti and His Operas'', Cambridge University Press. . *Ashbrook, William (1998), "Donizetti, Gaetano" in

Stanley Sadie Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was an influential and prolific British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was publ ...

(Ed.), ''

The New Grove Dictionary of Opera ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'' is an encyclopedia of opera, considered to be one of the best general reference sources on the subject. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volu ...

'', Vol. One. London: Macmillan Publishers, Inc. . *Ashbrook, William and Sarah Hibberd (2001), in Holden, Amanda (Ed.), ''The New Penguin Opera Guide'', New York: Penguin Putnam. . pp. 224 – 247. *Loewenberg, Alfred (1970). ''Annals of Opera, 1597-1940'', 2nd edition. Rowman and Littlefield * Osborne, Charles, (1994), ''The Bel Canto Operas of Rossini, Donizetti, and Bellini'', Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press. *

Sadie, Stanley Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was an influential and prolific British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was publ ...

, (Ed.); John Tyrell (Exec. Ed.) (2004), ''

The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and theo ...

''. 2nd edition. London: Macmillan. (hardcover). (eBook). * Weinstock, Herbert (1963), ''Donizetti and the World of Opera in Italy, Paris, and Vienna in the First Half of the Nineteenth Century'', New York: Pantheon Books.

External links

Donizetti Society (London) website

(Italian) {{authority control Italian-language operas Operas by Gaetano Donizetti Operas 1828 operas Operas based on novels Libretti by Felice Romani