The Villi

Opéra de Marseille, 2 Place Ernest Reyer

Giacomo Puccini's Le Villi tells of the wicked nymphs who take revenge on an unfaithful lover. These figures from Scandinavian mythology already appear in the ballet Giselle. On this fantastical subject, Puccini, freshly out of the Conservatory, writes his first opera. He enters a competition organized by a Milanese publisher. He does not win, but his work catches the attention of Ricordi, who will commission his second opera. With the support of Boito, Verdi's librettist, Le Villi is staged at another Milan theater and achieves success. The crowning achievement will come when Mahler and Tosc…