Adapted from what is generally considered the first Opera ever, Monteverdi’s Il Favola di Orfeo, Orfea and the Golden Harp, follows the exploits of Orfea, a young woman recently bereft of her Grandfather. Employing a mythological motif that predates even ancient Greek culture, our Heroine with the aid of her Golden Harp, journeys to the land after life in order to bring her Grandfather back to the land of the living. On her journey she meets with infamous denizens of the underworld, Dr. Faust and Don Giovanni as well as with Charon the fabled boatman who ferries souls across the river Styx, and the Greek God Dionysus. Throw in an “Opera Idol” contest for good measure and not only do we meet some of the most famous character’s in Western literature and mythology but we also hear excerpts spanning close to four hundred years of the art form known as Opera.
