La Lodoiska

Background and performance history

The libretto for La Lodoiska was based on an episode from Jean-Baptiste Louvet de Couvrai's novel, Les amours du chevalier de Faublas, which had also formed the basis for Cherubini's 1791 opera Lodoïska. The opera had a very successful premiere at La Fenice on 26 January 1796 and had 13 more performances that season. Its music and story were also used for a ballet of the same name choreographed by Lorenzo Panzieri, which premiered at La Fenice in January 1797. and the opera itself was revived at La Fenice in November of that year. On 4 November 1798 it had its first performance at the Teatro Real de São Carlos in Lisbon in celebration of the name day of Carlota Joaquina of Spain.

Mayr then revised the opera to a two-act version which nevertheless had more musical numbers than the original three-act version. The new version premiered at La Scala on 26 December 1799. It was Mayr's first opera to be performed there and its success led to more commissions from La Scala and other Milanese theatres. La Lodoiska in its revised version was then performed in Turin at the Teatro Regio in 1804 and in Naples at the Teatro San Carlo in 1818 when the title role was sung by Isabella Colbran. The opera was very popular in its day but then fell into obscurity.

Synopsis

Princess Lodoïska has been entrusted by her father to the care of Boleslao, lord of the Castle of Ostropoll. Boleslao wants to marry Lodoiska, but she is love with Lovinksi and rejects his advances. Lovinski arrives (under the name "Siveno") to ask for Priness Lodoiska on behalf of her father, but Boleslao refuses to let her go. When Lodoiska's father, Sigeski, arrives and confronts him, the tyrannical Boleslao imprisons both Sigeski and Lovinski and plans the death of the young lovers. All are saved at the end when they are rescued by Giskano, a Tartar warrior-prince, whose life Lovinski had once saved.