Così fan tutte
by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte
Premiered: Burgtheater, Vienna, January 1790
Sep 23, 24, 30 Oct 1
Sung in Italian with English supertitles.

INTRODUCTION

Set in Naples in the 18th Century.

This funny and entrancing comedy shows Mozart at his best, with exquisite ensemble and solo vocal writing. As with other fine comedy, the deftly delivered wit in the opera is used as a veil for something more serious. Two young officers, confident of the loyalty of the sisters to whom they are engaged, recklessly wager that their beloveds are beyond temptation. Through a campaign of elaborate ‘foreign’ disguise, charm, and trickery, the men test the women, who finally capitulate – only to realize that the ‘foreigners’ are none other than their beloveds in disguise! All are finally reconciled and walk happily, if gingerly, into their future together.