"La bohème" by Giacomo Puccini

When Giacomo Puccini turned to Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica, who had collaborated fruitfully with him on the libretto of "Manon Lescaut" shortly before, he struggled with turning into a convincing structure the "Scènes de la vie de bohème", written 45 years earlier by the French literary realist Henry Murger (1822-1861). When the completed opera was finally premiered in Torino in 1896, it even received unfavourable reviews in spite of Toscanini’s conducting.

To us, the four short acts of "La bohème" feel well balanced, their mixture of lightness, exuberance, lyricism, true feeling and heart-rendering sadness perfect. The orchestral writing is colourful but always to the point, the sung parts conversationally natural but interspersed with some of the most memorable tunes in opera history. Today, we are still moved profoundly by the naive youthfulness of Puccini’s characters, who are doomed but blessed with short moments of innocent bliss. These performances of La bohème will be interpreted by a glamorous cast headed by Anna Netrebko as Mimì.

Opera in four scenes
Music by Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
Libretto by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica based on Henry Murger's "Scènes de la vie de bohème" (1849)
Premiere: Turin, Teatro Regio, 1 february 1896

Puccini Centenary Festival

Coproduction with the Royal Opera of Muscat, Oman