Les Arts premieres Monteverdi's 'L'Orfeo' with Leonardo García Alarcón and Cappella Mediterranea

Les Arts és Òpera

• The Argentinian director and his company return after their success with the Les Arts production of 'L'incoronazione di Poppea' in 2023
• Valerio Contaldo, one of the best interpreters of Orpheus today, and soprano Mariana Flores (Eurydice and Musica), head the cast

Valencia (19.02.25). The Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía premieres 'L'Orfeo', by Claudio Monteverdi, performed by Leonardo García Alarcón and his early music ensemble, Cappella Mediterranea, in a semi-staged version this Sunday, February 23, in the Main Hall, at 6:00 p.m.

Following the success of the Argentine director and his 'ensemble' with the new Les Arts production of 'L'incoronazione di Poppea' in 2023, García Alarcón returns to Valencia with one of the essential titles in the programming of leading opera houses, 'L'Orfeo', considered the first great opera in history that has survived to this day, and which can be heard for the first time at Les Arts.

Together with his exceptional orchestra Cappella Mediterranea and the Chœur de Chambre de Namur, García Alarcón leads an exceptional cast, with the Italian tenor Valerio Contaldo, one of the best interpreters of Orpheus today, and the Argentine soprano Mariana Flores, a leading voice in the baroque repertoire, embodying the roles of Music and Eurydice.

Giuseppina Bridelli (La Messagiera), Anna Reinhold (Proserpina and La Speranza), Andreas Wolf (Plutone), Salvo Vitale (Charonte), Alessandro Giangrande (Pastore / Apollo), Leandro Marziotte (Pastore), Nicholas Scott (Pastore / Spirito / Eco), Matteo Bellotto (Pastore), Estelle Lefort (Ninfa) and Philippe Favette (Spirito 2) complete the cast that will play Monteverdi's work in Les Arts.

García Alarcón stands out as one of the most influential figures in the recovery, interpretation, and dissemination of Baroque and Classical music. Named 'Artist of the Year' at the 2025 International Classical Music Awards, he is also the founder of Cappella Mediterranea (2005), an ensemble dedicated to performing Baroque works on period instruments, with which he has revived and recorded pieces by Monteverdi, Cavalli, and Falvetti.

Les Arts reminds everyone that tickets for 'L'Orfeo' can be purchased through its various sales channels: box offices, the sales line 96 197 59 00 and its website .

L'Orfeo

Claudio Monteverdi's 'L'Orfeo' is one of the first operas in history. Composed in 1607 and inspired by Alessandro Striggio's libretto, it tells the Greek myth of Orpheus's descent into Hades to try to bring his beloved Eurydice back to the world of the living.

Monteverdi created this musical fable, composed of a prologue and five acts, distinguished by its lively orchestration and dramatic power, marking the end of Renaissance music and the beginning of Baroque art. Beyond being a magnificent ode to love, 'L'Orfeo' is also a poetic and theatrical fable about the power of music.