Opera Italia

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Antonio Pappano

Dominic Best

Peter Maniura

Opera Italia: Episode 3: The Triumph of Puccini

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The Triumph of Puccini

Episode 3

Episode 3: The Triumph of Puccini

BBC Four - Opera Italia, The Triumph of Puccini

Antonio Pappano looks the work of Puccini, the worthy successor to Verdi.

To conclude his series, Antonio Pappano looks at five of Puccini's operas - La bohème, Tosca, Madame Butterfly, Gianni Schicchi and Turandot.

Three-part series tracing the history of Italian opera presented by Antonio Pappano, conductor and music director at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. The series features sumptuous music, stunning Italian locations and some of the biggest names in opera as contributors.

The final episode is devoted to Puccini, the worthy successor to Verdi. Puccini's operas are cinematic in their scale with ravishing, passionate and clever music, as he took Italian opera into the 20th century. 

Pappano looks at five of Puccini's most popular operas - La bohème, Tosca, Madame Butterfly, Gianni Schicchi and Turandot. He travels to Rome to meet stage director Franco Zeffirelli and talk about Puccini and Zeffirelli's famous production of Turandot. 

Pappano also talks to one of the great Puccini interpreters, the soprano Renata Scotto, about the composer, Madame Butterfly and the role of Mimi in La bohème. Also featured are soprano Angela Gheorghiu, tenors Jonas Kaufmann and Roberto Alagna and baritone Sir Thomas Allen.

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Series tracing the history of Italian opera presented by conductor Antonio Pappano

Series tracing the history of Italian opera presented by Antonio Pappano, conductor and music director at the Royal Opera House

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