Mozart & Salieri / Zanetto - an opera double-bill

An opera double-bill with new, contemporary stagings of two rarely performed masterpieces. Sung in English and accompanied by piano and viola/violin.

Mozart & Salieri // Villainy and genius can never be compatible?“, asks Salieri, after bidding Mozart farewell. The opera follows the apocryphal legend that Antonio Salieri poisoned his rival and fellow composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart out of jealousy over his talent. Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908) used the short story Mozart and Salieri by Alexander Pushkin as libretto, which also inspired Peter Shaffer’s famous stage play and film Amadeus. Rimsky-Korsakov’s rarely performed two-hander is a character study, it is a close-up of Salieri’s tormented mind. He is portrayed as a generous man who is torn between admiration for his fellow composer and his own jealousy.

Zanetto // Pietro Mascagni's one-act opera Zanetto tells of the encounter between wandering poet Zanetto and rich, beautiful Silvia, who lives on her own and has forsworn love entirely. Convinced that her love is fatal and can only bring misfortune, when young Zanetto awakens long-forgotten feelings, she struggles to take her chance at finding happiness.
The gentle tale of a failed love will be performed in a contemporary setting and with a new English translation. Looking at Silvia and Zanetto as two women who live in London, director Pamela Schermann explores their unlikely friendship. Although the lives of Zanetto and Silvia could not be more different, they develop a deep sympathy for each other. But what they have in common is what will tear them apart – their inability to drop their guard and give in to love.

Praise for Time Zone Theatre’s production of ’Mozart & Salieri’

Finalist: Off West End – Award ’Best Opera Production 2016’
“engaging singers and clever staging“ – Fringe Opera
“a magnificent piece of entertainment“ – London Theatre One
“One of Grimeborn's most striking rediscoveries...very well worth seeing!“- The Spectator
“Crime-thriller tension...strong, believable performances“ – A Younger Theatre