La Scala's AIDA

One of Giuseppe Verdi’s blockbuster operas, Aida, designed and directed by Zeffirelli, costumes of Maurizio Mellenotti, stars Roberto Alagna as Radames, Ildiko Komlosi as Amneris and Violeta Urmana in the title role. The production was conducted by Riccardo Chailly and the 310-person stage extravaganza was rewarded with a 12-minute ovation at the conclusion of the opera.
The Story

Set in ancient Egypt during the reign of the Pharaohs, AIDA conforms to the notion that in the game of love and war, all is fair. Perhaps. Political intrigue, love, betrayal, passion, and vengeance conspire in a tragic love triangle that pits three people conflicted by their love for country, family, and each other. One of opera’s most revered classics, AIDA delivers an intense, compelling drama highlighted by spectacular theatrical pageantry.

Synopsis

ACT 1. – Garden of the Royal Palace at Memphis. The high priest, Ramfis, announces to Radames, Captain of the Royal Guard, that the Ethiopians are revolting; the sacred Isis has proclaimed the warrior who is to squash the rebellion. Radames hopes that he is the chosen warrior so that he may take Aida, the favorite slave of Princess Amneris, the king’s daughter, as his reward. Aida, however, is distraught as the Ethiopian rebels are her kinsmen and their King, Amonasro, her father. Furthermore, Amneris herself is in love with Radames. When Radames’s hope is realized, as Isis chooses him to squash the revolt, Amneris and her unknowing rival, Aida, rush to the temple to bless his journey.

ACT 2. – Room in the palace of Amneris. Aida proclaims her love for Radames, invoking a violent spell of jealousy from the princess. They are interrupted by the return of Radames, triumphant after his victory over the Ethipians; Aida’s father is among the precession of prisoners. At the conclusion of the Act, the King unexpectedly gives his daughter Amneris to Radames, much to the dismay of the warrior, who still pines for Aida.

INTERMISSION

ACT 3. – Amonasro pleads with his daughter to steal, from Radames, the secret of his military plans against the Ethiopians, who have rebelled yet again. Aida agrees, hoping to flee to her homeland with both her father and her lover. She obtains the information from Radames; Amneris, bearing witness to his betrayal, admonishes him and he is taken prisoner by the imperial guards.

ACT 4. – Amneris, to make a last trial of Radames’s affection, orders the guards to bring him forward. She then promises to secure his pardon by the King if he will renounce Aida and accept her love. He refuses, however, uninterested in a life without Aida. He is then sentenced to be buried alive in a vault underneath the temple. Aida joins him voluntarily and the curtain falls as the lovers bemoan their tragic fates and hope to be reunited in a better world.