Margherita D’Anjou was Giacomo Meyerbeer’s fourth opera in Italian and his first true success. After an absence from the stage of one and a half...

Margherita D’Anjou was Giacomo Meyerbeer’s fourth opera in Italian and his first true success. After an absence from the stage of one and a half centuries, it returned at the 43rd Valle d’Itria Festival in an exemplary production: the ironical setting of the director Talevi- the War of the Roses takes place at the London Fashion Week- is perfectly matched by the elegant direction of Luisi, at the head of the Orchestra Internazionale d’Italia. The opera, which belongs to the semi-serious genre, moves from the warlike tones of Act One to the idyllic ones of Act Two, where both female protagonist appear: the queen, a soprano, and the wife, a contralto; both seeking the love of a heroic tenor equally daring in battle and in music.