La traviata

Richard Eyre’s stunning production of Verdi’s best-loved opera returns with star sopranos Ermonela Jaho and Angel Blue as Violetta; the casts also include Plácido Domingo and Charles Castronovo.

Verdi based La traviata on Alexandre Dumas fils’s novel and play La Dame aux camélias, inspired by the life and death of the real Parisian courtesan Marie Duplessis. Verdi offered a more complex and sympathetic portrayal of his heroine than Dumas, highlighting Violetta’s noble nature and her devotion to Alfredo. La traviata had an initially lukewarm reception, but after Verdi revised the work in 1854 it became enormously successful. It is currently the most performed opera in the world, and the role of Violetta a favourite for many star sopranos.