Mozart Così fan tutte

Surely, you attended the first and second visit of the Vienna Staatsoper to Monaco! And surely you marvelled as much as we did at the unforgettable beauty of the Vienna Staatsoper Orchestra’s sound and the youthful freshness of the company’s soloists. Now, they return with Così fan tutte, the third and last part of Mozart’s famous da Ponte Trilogy, performed in a semi-staged version at the Grimaldi Forum.

Whereas Le nozze di Figaro is based on Beaumarchais’ comedy, and Don Giovanni on a play attributed to Tirso de Molina, the story of Così fan tutte seems to be Lorenzo da Ponte’s invention. For many years, Emperor Joseph II was thought to have suggested its subject to Mozart, but more recently sketches from the first act have been found which give evidence that da Ponte first provided the libretto to composer Antonio Salieri.

For much of the 19th and 20th centuries, this opera was seen as inferior because its topic was considered immoral – two friends seducing one another’s fiancée in order to test their fidelity. But the philosophical question put before us remains relevant especially in our more permissive time: is eternal love a fantasy, or can it be real? Will Mozart’s sublime music help you come to a conclusion?