Italian operas to experience South African makeover
Cape Town - The annual Italian Opera Evening featuring world famous Italian operas will this year be held in two cities in South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal province, the Italian Cultural Institute in Pretoria announced on Tuesday. The concert, now in its fourth year, is organised by the Dante Alighieri Society in Durban and the Dante Alighieri Society in Pietermaritzburg in collaboration with the Institute and the Consulate General of Italy in Johannesburg.
The opera extravaganza will take place at the Old Prison Hall in Pietermaritzburg and the Playhouse Drama Theatre in Durban on December 1 and 2 respectively. "The concert is a celebration of Italian music with arias among the most famous of the Italian opera repertoire. Internationally renowned South African opera singers will interpret famous Italian arias such as the Ouverture of Il Barbiere di Siviglia by Rossini, Libiamo ne’ lieti calici from La Traviata by Verdi and Nessun Dorma from Turandot by Puccini," the Institute said.
The South African opera singers who will perform on the two days are tenor Lukhanyo Moyake, a permanent member of the Cape Town Opera Company who participated in many international compititons such as the 2017 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition; soprano Siphamandla Yakupa, a soloist at the Cape Town Opera Company who made it to the final round of the Hans Gabor Belvedere international singing competition; and mezzo-soprano Violina Anguelov who performed in several roles internationally.
The singers will be accompanied by piano virtuoso Eugene Joubert and the European String Quartet based in Durban.