Rossini Il turco in Italia Opernhaus Zurich

When a wealthy Turkish aristocrat arrives in a humble Italian town the married women roll their eyes in delight their rival lovers lose out and the husbands rage with jealousy These may be silly clichés but they are the subject of IL TURCO IN ITALIA and the composer plays with them quite deliberately He knows that he is putting archetypes of Italian comedy on stage with figures such as the exotic ladykiller Selim the young woman Fiorilla who is chained to the stove at home but adventurous and her husband Geronio who is ridiculous because he is much too old and relishes the ironic exaggeration Franz WelserMost conducts the Zurich Opera House Chorus and Orchestra in this performance of Rossinis opera buffa