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$24 General Admission, $21 Member, $15 child age 14 or younger

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Soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek sings Puccini’s gun-slinging heroine in this romantic epic of the Wild West, alongside star tenor Jonas Kaufmann in the role of the outlaw Dick Johnson. Baritone Željko Lučić is the vigilante sheriff Jack Rance, and Marco Armiliato conducts.

World Premiere: Metropolitan Opera, New York, 1910. Puccini’s “American” opera, based on David Belasco’s play The Girl of the Golden West, had its glamorous and highly publicized world premiere at the Metropolitan Opera, with the composer in the audience. The drama is set during the California Gold Rush, and the girl of the title is one of Puccini’s most appealing heroines—a strong, independent woman determined to win the man she loves. Although it fell out of favor with audiences for a few decades following its original success, Fanciulla has rebounded in popularity in recent years and is now counted among Puccini’s best works.

Creators

Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924) was immensely popular in his own lifetime, and his mature works remain staples in the repertory of most of the world’s opera companies. His operas are celebrated for their mastery of detail, sensitivity to everyday subjects, copious melody, and economy of expression. For the libretto of Fanciulla, Puccini’s publisher recommended the services of Carlo Zangarini (1874–1943), whose mother came from Colorado and who was fluent in English. Puccini found much of Zangarini’s work “truly beautiful” but was frustrated by how slowly he worked, so the author and journalist Guelfo Civinini (1873–1954) was brought in to collaborate. The source play, The Girl of the Golden West, was written and produced on Broadway by the American impresario David Belasco (1853–1931), who was also the author and producer of Madame Butterfly, which Puccini set just before Fanciulla.