FALSTAFF

16 June - 22 July 2018

The lecherous Falstaff, with his infamous roving eye, has finally met his match. His underhand plans to solve money troubles have the three merry wives of Windsor conspiring to teach him a lesson. They are not the only ones with a grudge to bear and he is soon tormented at every turn until he admits defeat and concludes that all the world is a joke.

Bursting with wit and beautiful melodies, this supreme example of Italian 19th century comic opera is Verdi’s last, set to a sparkling libretto by Arrigo Boito who declared “…to finish with a mighty burst of laughter – that is to astonish the world!”

In this new production, we welcome Henry Waddington (Priest, The Cunning Little Vixen, 2014) in the title role with Mary Dunleavy (Christine, Intermezzo, 2015) as Alice Ford. The Philharmonia Orchestra will be conducted by Richard Farnes, RPS Conductor of the Year 2017, making his Garsington Opera debut. Both Bruno Ravella (director) and Giles Cadle (designer) return having had such a success with Intermezzo in 2015.

Sung in Italian with English supertitles