Alzira
opera · tragedia lirica, divisa in un prologo e due atti
Composer Giuseppe Verdi
Librettist Salvadore Cammarano
Synopsis
The Inca chief Zamoro, believed dead after torture at the hands of the Spaniards, returns to his people to find that his beloved Alzira and her father Ataliba are the Spaniards' prisoners. In Lima the old governor Alvaro hands power to his son Gusmano, who wants peace with the Incas and Alzira as his wife.
Key facts
- Premiere
- 12 August 1845, Teatro di San Carlo, Naples
- Acts
- 2
- Language
- Italian (it)
- Setting
- Lima and other parts of Peru, about the middle of the sixteenth century.
Dramatis personae
| Role | Voice | Created by |
|---|---|---|
| Alvaro Gusmano's father. | bass | Marco Arati |
| Gusmano Governor of Peru. | baritone | Filippo Coletti |
| Ovando A Spanish captain. | tenor | Ceci |
| Zamoro Head of a Peruvian tribe. | tenor | Gaetano Fraschini |
| Ataliba Head of a Peruvian tribe. | bass | Michele Benedetti |
| Alzira Ataliba's daughter. | soprano | Eugenia Tadolini |
| Zuma Alzira's sister. | mezzo-soprano | Maria Salvetti |
| Otumbo A South American warrior. | tenor | Francesco Rossi |
Source
- Alzire, ou les Américains by Voltaire (1736)
Written from
- Budden, J. (1978) The operas of Verdi. Volume 1: From Oberto to Rigoletto. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 225-242.
- Wikipedia (2026) Alzira (opera). (Accessed: 28 September 2026). The English article.
- Cammarano, S. (1845) Alzira: tragedia lirica, divisa in un prologo e due atti. Naples. (Accessed: 28 September 2026).
- Wikipedia (2026) Alzira (Verdi). (Accessed: 28 September 2026). The Italian article.