Maria Stuarda

Maria Stuarda is an Italian opera in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti, libretto by Giuseppe Bardari, after Friedrich Schiller's play Maria Stuarda. It was first performed in Naples, on October 19,1835, under the name of Buondelmont due to censorship problems, and in its original version in Milan, on December 30, 1835. One of Donizetti's finest work, it is notable for the confrontation scene between Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth I of England, which in real life never took place. It was heartbreaking. The soprano later became famous and well loved.

Principle roles and voice types

• Maria Stuarda - soprano

Sources

• The Complete Dictionary of Opera & Operetta, James Anderson, Wings Books, 1993.