LA VERBENA DE LA PALOMA
Tomás Bretón 1850-1923
Sainete lírico in one act
Libretto by Ricardo de la Vega
Including the comic prologue Adiós, Apolo
The Teatro de la Zarzuela's successful production of La verbena de
la Paloma was created by Nuria Castejón as a tribute to the now
defunct Teatro de Apolo in Madrid, where the famous sainete was
first performed. Her concept involves the insertion of a prologue -
Adiós, Apolo - before Bretón's own work, in which a company of
artists rehearse La verbena to perform it at the Apolo, giving rise
to the inclusion of musical fragments and famous scenes from other
zarzuelas that pay tribute to this Spanish lyrical genre. It is
also a tribute to historic zarzuela performers, given life by
artists of our time, such as Borja Quiza and Carmen Romeu, in the
roles of Julián and Susana. The production is conducted by the
experienced baton of José Miguel Pérez Sierra.