''La leggenda di Sakùntala'' is a three-act

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

by Franco Alfano, who wrote his own

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) 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 th ...

based on Kālidāsa's 5th-century-CE drama ''

Shakuntala Shakuntala () is a heroine in ancient Indian literature, best known for her portrayal in the ancient Sanskrit play '' Abhijnanashakuntalam'' (The Recognition of Shakuntala), written by the classical poet Kalidasa in the 4th or 5th century AD ...

''. It was completed in 1920. When the score was believed lost in wartime bombing, Alfano reconstructed it, in 1945, now titling it simply ''Sakùntala'', but in 2006 a copy of the original was found.

Premiere, loss and rediscovery

''La leggenda di Sakùntala'' was first performed on 10 December 1921 at the

Teatro Comunale di Bologna The Teatro Comunale di Bologna is an opera house in Bologna, Italy. Typically, it presents eight operas with six performances during its November to April season. While there had been various theatres presenting opera in Bologna since the early ...

. The full score and orchestral materials were believed destroyed when an Allied bomb hit the archives of Alfano's publisher,

Ricordi Ricordi may refer to: People * Giovanni Ricordi (1785–1853), Italian violinist and publishing company founder *Giulio Ricordi (1840–1912), Italian publisher and musician Music *Casa Ricordi, an Italian music publishing company established i ...

, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, so Alfano reconstructed the opera in 1945, shortening its name, and a second "premiere" followed at the Teatro dell'Opera in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

on 5 January 1952. Decades later, during preparations for a revival in Rome in 2006, the original 1920 score was found in the Ricordi archives, and so the opera was performed once again in its original form and with its original title.

Recent performances and filming

Critically regarded as Alfano's best work, ''La leggenda di Sakùntala'' was performed seven times for Italian radio between its premiere and 1979. These broadcasts featured such sopranos as

Magda Olivero Magda Olivero (née Maria Maddalena Olivero) (25 March 1910 – 8 September 2014), was an Italian operatic soprano. Her career started in 1932 when she was 22, and spanned five decades, establishing her "as an important link between the era of the ...

, Anna de Cavalieri and Celestina Casapietra. The opera was revived at the Wexford Opera Festival in 1982 and in concert on November 19, 2013, by Teatro Grattacielo in New York. In 2016 it was staged and filmed at the

Teatro Massimo The Teatro Massimo Vittorio Emanuele is an opera house and opera company located on the Piazza Verdi in Palermo, Sicily. It was dedicated to King Victor Emanuel II. It is the biggest in Italy, and one of the largest of Europe (at the time of its ...

Catania Catania (, , , Sicilian and ) is the second-largest municipality on Sicily, after Palermo, both by area and by population. Despite being the second city of the island, Catania is the center of the most densely populated Sicilian conurbation, wh ...

with soprano Silvia dalla Benetta and Nikša Bareza conducting, a production released on DVD on the Bongiovanni label.

Roles

Synopsis

Act 1

The King encounters Sakùntala while hunting with his men near the remote woodland monastery where she lives. The King woos her, and overcoming her initial fear, promises that he will return, giving her a ring by which to remember him.

Act 2

Daydreaming about the King, Sakùntala fails to hear the hermit Durvasas's entreaties to open the monastery's gate to admit him. Angered, he curses Sakùntala, proclaiming that the King would not remember her. Sakùntala begs a cloud to carry a message to the King. Harita returns to the monastery, and tells Sakùntala that she is with child.

Act 3

The King is restless, and not entertained by the dancing girls who perform for him. Sakùntala arrives with her entourage, but when she attempts to present her ring of remembrance to the King, she realizes that she has lost it. The curse is fulfilled, and Sakùntala rushes out of the palace to drown herself in a lake. However, belatedly, a fisherman arrives, having found the ring, and presents it to the King, who suddenly remembers Sakùntala. Servants enter, bearing Sakùntala's infant child, and the King cries out in anguish. But Sakùntala's voice descends from heaven (having been taken up into the heavens by a cloud of fire), and tells the King not to despair, for their child will become the hero of the future age. All the people kneel and worship the infant.

References

Notes Sources * * * Jürgen Maehder (1992), ''Sakùntala'' in ''

The New Grove Dictionary of Opera ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'' is an encyclopedia of opera. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volumes. The dictionary was first published in 1992 by Macmillan Reference, L ...

'', ed.

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

(London)

Recordings

*''Sakuntala''. Anna de Cavalieri, Antonio Annaloro, Plinio Clabassi cond. Arturo Basile 1955 *DVD Silvia dalla Benetta (Sakuntala) Enrique Ferrer (Il Re) stage dir. Massimo Gasparon cond. Nikša Bareza, live recording from the

Teatro Massimo Bellini The Teatro Massimo Bellini is an opera house located on Piazza Vincenzo Bellini in Catania, Sicily, southern Italy. Named after the local-born composer Vincenzo Bellini, it was inaugurated on 31 May 1890 with a performance of the composer's mas ...

, Italy November 2016

External links

Synopsis

Libretto in Italian and English
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sakuntala Operas by Franco Alfano Italian-language operas Verismo operas Operas 1921 operas 1952 operas Operas set in India Operas set in antiquity Operas based on plays Works based on Shakuntala (play)