The Italian opera genius knew how to masterfully combine riveting personal drama with the wider political and social context in order to respond to the then current state to the world that surrounds him and to which he could not be artistically indifferent. The theme of the struggle for unity in the historically hard-hit Italy became the defining idea of several of his works. In Simon Boccanegra the theme is significantly enriched by the contradictory relationship of power and the price paid for human fate. The musical drama takes place in the wealthy Genoa and impresses with its rich poetic chiaroscuro, which is only momentarily clarified by brighter sound and colours. As in Il Trovatore - which was created based on the dramatic models by the same Spanish author Antonio García Gutiérrez - a sultry tension soaked atmosphere prevails and the plot tension does not allow the central protagonist room to breath right until the very end of this tense drama. The original 1857 form of the work was reworked by Verdi in 1881 in collaboration with composer and librettist Arrigo Boito, this version of the work lives on on today's opera stages.

Running time: 2 hrs 40 mins with one interval