Lyric Opera 2019-2020 Issue 6 The Three Queens

Lyric Opera of Chicago | 32 Would you like to continue exploring Donizetti and “ The Three Queens ” ? Here are some topics that can inspire lively conversations among you and your operagoing friends: It’s always wonderful to extend the experience of an opera performance by talking about it afterwards! ▪ Which of the finales do you think is most challenging for the singer? ▪ The finales are divided into very distinct parts. Which portion did you find the most beautiful? The most moving? The most exciting? ▪ How do the finales differ from one another, both musically and dramatically? What similarities carry through? ▪ Obviously, the queens are the main characters, but how do the chorus and the supporting singers help tell the story? ▪ By showing only the finales of the operas, how does it affect your response to the pieces, since you don’t see the beginning and middle of the story onstage? ▪ Why do you think Donizetti veered away from actual historical accuracy? Do you think it actually served the drama, or do you think the history has a sufficiently dramatic story to tell that it can be told accurately onstage? ▪ What other historical figure from one or more centuries ago do you think had a life story that could easily adapt itself to opera? MORE, PLEASE Craving more about Donizetti and “The Three Queens”? Lyric has lots of suggestions and resources to help you explore more about this production and its stories. Visit lyricopera.org/AfterCurtain for suggestions on further reading and listening. Join the conversation on social media with #LyricThreeQueens and share your experience on: From Lyric’s archives Lyric’s first Anna Bolena, Dame Joan Sutherland (1985). Tony Romano After the curtain falls