Veremonda

Veremonda, l'amazzone di Aragona (Veremonda, the Amazon of Aragon; also known as Il Delio) is an opera in three acts and a prologue by the Italian composer Francesco Cavalli. The libretto is by Giulio Cicognini with revisions by Giulio Strozzi. The date of the Venetian performance is uncertain.

Performance History The Venetian libretto indicates 28 January 1652 but this could refer also to 1653 if the Venetian calendar applied (where the new year began on March 1). The opera was also performed at the Nuovo Teatro del Palazzo Reale in Naples on 21 December 1652, to celebrate the Spanish capture of Barcelona, which put an end to the revolt of Catalonia (Naples was also a Spanish possession).

Roles in the Venetian libretto.

Note: the Neapolitan libretto presents divergencies from the Venetian libretto including a different prologue (La Musica, La Poesia and L'Architettura) and an alternative name for Vespina (Callidia).

The First Revival. The first performance since the mid-17th century was on 23 May, 2015 for the Spoleto Festival in Charleston, USA. The conductor and musicologist Aaron Carpenè prepared the score from the manuscript conserved in the Marciana Library in Venice. The staging was by the Italian director Stefano Vizioli and the sets and costumes by the Italian contemporary artist Ugo Nespolo.