L’elisir d’amore

A guest performance by Klaipeda State Music Theatre on December 2rd, 2025 in the Vanemuine Theatre small building

A chamber version of the comic opera in two acts

The exceptionally prolific 19th-century Italian opera composer Gaetano Donizetti (1797–1848), who wrote nearly 70 operas, gained fame with his comic opera L’elisir d’amore (The Elixir of Love, 1832). The story follows a poor and naïve young man, Nemorino, who is hopelessly in love with the beautiful Adina, a wealthy heiress who enjoys the attention of her ever-changing suitors. The shy Nemorino decides to follow in Tristan’s footsteps and give his Isolde a famous magical love potion. Naturally, the comic plot of the opera would be incomplete without a classic love triangle.

The concept for the chamber version of The Elixir of Love by Klaipėda Opera was created by the young-generation opera director Karina Novikova. In this production, the setting is more closely tied to the present day than to the reality of 17th-century Basque Country. According to the director, the opera composed in 1832 sounds as if it were taken from a modern psychotherapist’s notes or a Netflix series. “While creating the performance, I was intrigued by what happens when two perspectives on love collide – the hedonistic and the romantic. The first is represented by Adina, for whom love is simple entertainment: the abundance of admirers makes her life more beautiful and intoxicating with its richness of experiences. The second, which Nemorino sincerely believes in, sees love as the strongest, life-changing, ever-growing feeling that encompasses the whole human being. Their love story speaks of toxic relationships, manipulation, insecurity, exhaustion, and desperation. The opera ends happily, but we would hardly want to see a sequel, as everything in their relationship is so fragile.”

Language: Italian
Surtitles: Estonian