Un Ballo in Maschera

scene e bozzetti

Bolshoi Theatre, Mosca (RU) 2017/18
2018
Completed
Opera

Un ballo in maschera (A Masked Ball), is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi with text by Antonio Somma. The libretto is loosely based on an 1833 play, Gustave III, by French playwright Eugene Scribe who wrote about the historical assassination of King Gustav III of Sweden. The subject was well known and had been used by other composers, including Daniel Auber, for his 1833 opera, Gustave III, ou Le bal masque and later by Saverio Mercadante for his Il reggente in 1843.

In 1792, the King of Sweden, Gustav III, was killed, the result of a political conspiracy against him. He was shot while attending a masked ball and died 13 days later from his wounds. For the libretto, Scribe retained the names of some of the historical figures involved, the conspiracy, and the killing at the masked ball. The rest of the play – the characterizations, the romance, the fortune-telling, etc. – is Scribe’s invention and the opera is not historically accurate.

Director: Davide Livermore, Alessandra Premoli


Orchestral Director: Giacomo Sagripanti


Set Design: Giò Forma


Costumes: Mariana Fracasso


Lights: Antonio Castro


Video: D-Wok





Neoclassical temple facade set with birds silhouetted on the walls, masked guests lined up on either side – Un Ballo in Maschera at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, Russia, 2018 – opera set design
Stage set with two giant dragon sculptures framing a draped doorway, soldiers and guests at café tables – Un Ballo in Maschera at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, Russia, 2018 – opera set designThree performers around a dark oval table in a study lined with bookshelves, lit by a standard lamp – Un Ballo in Maschera at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, Russia, 2018 – opera set design
Woman in a white gown kneeling beside a fallen man, surrounded by masked guests in evening dress – Un Ballo in Maschera at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, Russia, 2018 – opera set designOfficer in a navy uniform standing beside a seated man in a pale suit at a desk with a globe lamp – Un Ballo in Maschera at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, Russia, 2018 – opera set design
Sketch of the set for Un Ballo in Maschera: café tables between two golden dragons under gilded paintings – Un Ballo in Maschera at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, Russia, 2018 – opera set designSketch of a set with a giant full moon over a rocky mound, framed by wireframe building facades – Un Ballo in Maschera at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, Russia, 2018 – opera set design
Café scene on stage: a man in a navy coat on a platform between dragon sculptures, crowd at the tables – Un Ballo in Maschera at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, Russia, 2018 – opera set designBallroom scene with a grand staircase, crystal chandeliers, guests in evening dress and a vintage white car – Un Ballo in Maschera at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, Russia, 2018 – opera set design
Bolshoi Theatre poster for Un Ballo in Maschera in Russian, with a skull-like mask over a misty lake landscape – Un Ballo in Maschera at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, Russia, 2018 – opera set design