Richard Wagner: Rienzi
Teatro Real, Madrid
Teatro Real Orchestra and Chorus
Alejo Pérez, conductor
CAST: Burkhard Fritz (Carlo Rienzi); Anja Kampe (Irene); Stephen Milling (Stefano Colonna); Claudia Mahnke (Adriano); James Rutherford (Paolo Orsini); Friedmann Röhlig (Orvieto Cardinal); Jason Bridges (Baroncelli); Carsten Wittmoser (Cecco del Vecchio); Marta Matheu (Messenger of Peace)
Rienzi is an early, grand opera by Wagner, written before he launched his revolutionary journey into the world of "music drama" that we now think of as uniquely Wagnerian. The story is a deadly blend of piety and politics, set in 14th-century Rome.