Verdi: Il Trovatore

In medieval Spain, the gypsy Azucena abducted the son of the Count of Luna to avenge her mother, whom the old count had sent to the stake. She raised him as her own son, under the name of Manrico. In the service of Urgel and banished by the King of Aragon, Manrico nevertheless falls in love with Leonora, the Queen’s lady-in-waiting. ‘Il trovatore’ is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi, with a libretto by Salvatore Cammarano and Leone Emanuele Bardare, based on the Spanish drama ‘El Trovador’ (1836) by Antonio García Gutiérrez. It premiered on 19 January 1853 at the Teatro Apollo in Rome, and was subsequently performed in Paris, at the Théâtre-Italien, in its original version, on 23 December 1854. From the box set “Tutto Verdi”, featuring 27 of Verdi’s operas. Recorded live at the Teatro Regio in Parma on 5 and 9 October 2010.

Directed by Lorenzo Mariani, Tiziano Mancini, Verdi: Il Trovatore leans on a strong ensemble — Marcelo Álvarez, Teresa Romano, Claudio Sgura — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about music titles of 2010.