Three extraordinary women will reign at the festival concert: Dydona, Cleopatra and Anna Prohaska. Dido, thanks to her courage and cunning, founded Carthage and was the first to rule it. Cleopatra, today associated with stunning beauty and the custom of bathing in goat's milk, was in fact one of the greatest strategists and diplomats of her time. Anna Prohaska conquers the hearts of audiences around the world.
Prohaska comes from an excellent musical dynasty. Her great-grandfather Carl was a famous composer, grandfather Felix a respected conductor, mother and brother are singers, and father an opera director. Prohaska delights with a warm and strong voice, confidently and powerfully singing in the highest registers. She performs at the Berlin Philharmonic, Deutsche Staatsoper, at the Salzburger Festspiele, and the prestigious Deutsche Grammophon label has signed an exclusive contract with the soprano.
“She was beautiful and radiant with the charm of youth,” a contemporary chronicler wrote about Cleopatra, “she had a charming voice, it was a delight to look at her and listen to her words. No wonder she easily subdued anyone." It is no wonder that it has ignited the imagination of creators for centuries. The love affairs of the queen of Egypt with the Roman generals - Julius Caesar and Mark Antony - were described by Antonio Sartorio and Daniele da Castrovillari in operas that have only recently been rediscovered and staged for the first time in over three hundred years. Though Handel's most popular opera is called Julius Caesar in Egypt , it is Cleopatra who is the work's main character. The sensual music shows a Roman who cannot resist the erotic charm of an Egyptian beauty. Cleopatra deliberately plays with her charms.
Among the operas describing the love of Dido and Aeneas - who abandons his beloved because the gods have given him the task of founding Rome - the most famous is Henry Purcell's work with its famous final aria-lament, used in countless films, series and commercials. Unlike other artists, Francesco Cavalli does not kill the Queen of Carthage at the end, moreover, he directs her into the arms of an admirer other than the unfaithful Aeneas.
Baroque opera music, Anna Prohaska and Il Giardino Armonico are a musical feast worthy of the court of ancient monarchs. Let's celebrate the jubilee of Wratislavia Cantans royally!
