Turandot

Turandot is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini (which was left unfinished by Puccini at his death, and completed by Franco Alfano) to an Italian libretto by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni, based on the play by Carlo Gozzi. First performance: Teatro alla Scala, Milan, 1926.

History

Puccini first began working on Turandot in March 1920 after meeting with librettists Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni. He began composition in January of 1921. By March of 1924, he had completed the opera up to the final duet. However, he was unsatisfied with the text of the final duet, and did not continue until October 8, when he chose Adami's fourth version of the duet text. On October 10 he was diagnosed with throat cancer, and he died a few weeks later on November 29. He left behind thirty-six pages of sketches for the end of Turandot, together with instructions that Riccardo Zandonai should finish the opera. Puccini's son Tonio objected, and eventually Franco Alfano was chosen to flesh out the sketches. He followed Puccini's sketches very closely, to the point where he did not set some of Adami's text to music because Puccini had not indicated how he wanted it to sound.

Related Topics:
March - 1920 - 1921 - 1924 - October 8 - October 10 - November 29 - Riccardo Zandonai

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The first performance of Turandot was at La Scala, Milan, on April 25, 1926. It was conducted by Arturo Toscanini, and the cast was:

Related Topics:
La Scala - Milan - April 25 - 1926 - Arturo Toscanini

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• Turandot - Rosa Raisa
• The Prince - Miguel Fleta
• Liù - Maria Zamboni
• Timur - Carlo Walter
• Ping - Giacomo Rimini

In the middle of act three, two measures after the words, "Liù, poesia!" the orchestra rested. Toscanini stopped and laid down his baton. He turned to the audience and announced, "Qui il Maestro finí" -- "Here the Maestro finished." 1. The curtain was lowered slowly. Later performances included Alfano's ending.

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For many years, the People's Republic of China forbade performance of Turandot because they said it portrayed China and the Chinese unfavorably. In the late 1990s they relented, and in September 1998, the opera was performed for eight nights at the Forbidden City in the People's Republic of China, complete with opulent sets and PLA soldiers as extras. It was an international collaboration, with director Zhang Yimou as choreographer and Zubin Mehta as conductor. The singing roles saw Giovanna Casolla as Princess Turandot, Sergej Larin as Calaf, and Barbara Frittoli as Liù.

Related Topics:
People's Republic of China - 1990s - 1998 - Forbidden City - PLA - Zhang Yimou - Choreographer - Zubin Mehta - Giovanna Casolla - Sergej Larin - Barbara Frittoli

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In 2002, Luciano Berio composed a new ending to Turandot which has received a mixed reception.

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