La Boheme

Giacomo Puccini | Opera in four acts
Sung in Italian | Approximate running time: 165 minutes including two intermissions
From the Royal Opera House, London

Teeming with period detail, John Copley’s definitive production of La Bohème is traditional opera at its
best. From a shabby garret to the bustling Café Momus to a snowy courtyard at dawn, this minutely
observed panorama of 1830s Parisian life, beautifully designed by Julia Trevelyan Oman, conjures
emotions and atmosphere ranging from joy to tragedy, in large-scale crowd scenes and intimate tableaux.
Opera star Rolando Villazón, alongside Maija Kovalevska, Stefania Dovhan, and Audun Iversen, bring
top-tier vocal artistry to this production from the Royal Opera House in London.

CAST
Rodolfo: Rolando Villazón
Mimì: Maija Kovalevska
Musetta: Stefania Dovhan
Marcello: Audun Iversen
Royal Opera Chorus
Orchestra of the Royal Opera House
CREATIVE
Music: Giacomo Puccini
Conductor: Mark Elder
Director: John Copley
Designs: Julia Trevelyan Oman
Lighting design: John Charlton
NOTE
Puccini no doubt drew on his own student escapades – which anticipated his later reputation as a
legendary bon viveur – for the robust humor of the comic scenes. And in his depiction of the tender and
ultimately tragic love between Mimì (Maija Kovalevska) and Rodolfo (Rolando Villazón) Puccini achieved
an immediacy, warmth and humanity that have rarely been equaled.