The premiere of the operas ‘Le Villi. Gianni Schicchi’ on May 8. Musical Director and Conductor Modests Pitrens, Conductor Jānis Liepiņš, Stage Director Reinis Dzudzilo (Le Villi), Costume Designer – Krista Dzudzilo (Le Villi), Scenographer and Costume Designer - Ieva Jurjāne (Gianni Schicchi). Cast of the Le Villi production includes Inga Kalna or Evija Martinsone, Eric Fennell or Raimonds Bramanis and others. Cast of the Gianni Schicchi production includes Kosma Ranuer or Armands Siliņš, Inga Šļubovska or Laura Perešivana, Andžella Goba and others.

Opera’s ‘Le Villi’ premier was held in Milan’s Teatro Dal Verme. The May 31, 1884 premier received a standing ovation, after which Giulio Ricordi was quick to have the score published by his family’s music publishing house. Ricordi urged the composer to continue his work; Puccini took his advice and produced several versions of Le Villi, until the final version was completed in 1889, the staging of which was conducted by Gustav Mahler in Hamburg in 1892.

Audiences were first introduced to Gianni Schicchi at the premier of Il trittico at the New York Metropolitan Opera, on December 14, 1918. The great success of the one-act overshadowed the other two parts of Il trittico – Il tabarro and Suor Angelica – not only in New York, but also in Rome and London. Opera houses began taking an interest in the possibility of staging Gianni Schicchi individually, and although Puccini initially maintained that all three parts of Il trittico had to be performed together, in 1920 he begrudgingly gave in. Gianni Schicchi became the most-performed of the three Il trittico one-acts.

The Latvian National Opera has also performed Gianni Schicchi, along with Ruggero Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci in the Opera’s 1932-33 season. It was not until 2010 that the full Il trittico saw its premier in Riga, directed by Viestur Kairish and with set design by Ieva Jurjāne. This is the first time Le Villi will be present at the Latvian National Opera.

Further performances on May 9th, June 11th and 18th.