Credits:

Alberto Zanardi

Description:

The world premiere of Zoraida of Granada, a successful opera that marked a turning point in the career of the young Donizetti!The setting is 15th century Spain during the Reconquista. Granada, the last stronghold of the Moors, is under siege by the Spanish army. King Almuzir kills the previous king and usurps the throne, and then asks Zoraida, the daughter of the previous king, to marry him, but she refuses. Zoraida, on the other hand, is in love with the brave Moorish soldier Abenamet. Jealous of this, Almuzir appoints Abenamet as commander of the defeated Moorish army and sends him into battle. ……Donizetti’s historical opera “Zoraida in Granada,” premiered in Rome in 1822, was a great success and a turning point in his career as a composer. This is the world premiere film of the world premiere of the second draft of the opera (1824), which the composer added to and refined for the “Do