La Bohème - Opera at Comunale Nouveau

‘A momentary error’, ‘Bohème, a failed opera, will not tour’: one can also reflect on the critical blunders of the debut (1896). La bohème toured and continues to tour extensively, but it is also true that it is not an opera like any other and, looking beyond the affectionate habit, it can continue to amaze. Based on a novel by Henri Murger (1851), Puccini pours his direct experience as a student and young artist into it, and it is an opera in which we can all see ourselves reflected. Four young people share an apartment, struggling and scheming to make ends meet, with dreams, jokes and ambitions. Two of them have love affairs, but one of the two girls dies. One could say “that's all there is to it”, except that this “all” is the experience that each of us goes through as we live and mature: Mimì's death is not heroic, it is simply and painfully part of life. Puccini's notes and Illica and Giacosa's verses tell the story with the sensitivity of a thousand details woven into the voices, gestures and orchestra.

Opera Season 2025

LA BOHÈME

Giacomo Puccini

(scenes from La vie de Bohème by Henry Burger)

Opera in four acts by G. Giacosa and L. Illica

Conductor Martijn Dendievel

Director Graham Vick

Production by the Teatro Comunale di Bologna

For more information, characters and performers, read all about it on the official website.