Pinchgut Opera’s Giustino

Pinchgut Opera’s May presentation is the glittering opera Giustino by Giovanni Legrenzi, a fast-paced fairy-tale full of wonderful music, fantastic beasts and old-fashioned wonder.

This is a rare and glittering gem of the Italian Baroque, a fanciful tale alive with sea monsters, ghosts, and Venetian charm. A classic “rags to riches” adventure directed by Dean Bryant (Hubris and Humiliation STC, 2023) in his first production for Pinchgut.

Giustino tells the story of a shepherd who, through a series of quests and magical interventions, ultimately becomes the Emperor of Rome. Pinchgut continues to build on its international reputation for excellence in Baroque opera, and particularly its contemporary and inventive interpretations of 17th century works. After the successes of The Loves of Apollo and Dafne by Cavalli in 2021 and Orontea by Cesti in 2022, Pinchgut now turns to the brilliant composer and grandfather of the da capo aria, Giovanni Legrenzi, who was considered the Puccini of the late 17th century. With over 70 short arias, Giustino showcases Legrenzi’s flair for spinning an unending melodic thread, and conveying the nuance, moods and shifts in his characters.

A showcase for countertenors, Giustino features three of these sepcialised voices types. They are American countertenor Nicholas Tamagna takes the title role in his Australian debut; Englishman Owen Willetts who sang in The Coronation of Poppea in 2017 and Australian Russell Harcourt, who sang in Artaserse in 2018. Soprano Lauren Lodge Campbell seenn in The Return of Ulysses in 2019 and Membra Jesu Nostri earlier this year and tenor Jacob Lawrence, also seen in The Return of Ulysses, bothmreturn to Pinchgut as graduates of Le Jardin des Voix, the young artist program run by Les Arts Florissant.

Joining these exceptional artists is New Zealand born soprano Madeleine Pierard, who recently won acclaim for Simone Young’s performances of Fidelio with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. A world-class ensemble of expert players from the Orchestra of the Antipodes, led by Erin Helyard, will complete this extraordinary line-up.

Set designer Jeremy Allen and costume designer Melanie Liertz have artfully crafted a fairy-tale seting

Thurs25 May7pm, Sat27 May2pm, Sun28 May5pm, Tues30 May7pm, Wed31 May7pm

Tickets from $62.

Bookings: pinchgutopera.com.au