OPENING OF THE 54th MAY OPERA EVENINGS
PREMIERE
GIACOMO PUCCINI
“SUOR ANGELICA” (Sister Angelica)
May 9, 2026, 8:00 PM

Conductor: Gianluca Martinenghi – Italy
Director: Pier Francesco Maestrini – Italy
Set Designer: Guillermo Nova – Spain
Costume Designer: Cristina Aceti – Italy
Asst. Costume Designer: Valentina Volpi – Italy
Lighting Design: [TBA]
Choreographer: [TBA]
Asst. Choreographer: [TBA]
Asst. Conductor: Katerina Stojkovska
Asst. Director: Trajko Jordanovski, Ljupka Jakimovska
Concert Master: [TBA]
Chorus Master: Jasmina Gjorgjeska
Piano accompanists: Elena Siljanoska, Janinka Nevcheva, Andreja Naunov, Anastasija Grgovska
Stage Managers: Dragan Kostadinovikj, Marko Pavlevski, Katerina Boshkovska
Prompter: Nevena Georgieva, Ivana Jordanovska

CAST:
SUOR ANGELICA: Marta Torbidoni – Italy
THE PRINCESS (Her Aunt): Benedetta Mazzetto – Italy
THE ABBESS: Marika Popovikj
THE ALMONER SISTER: Nikolina Janevska
THE MISTRESS OF NOVICES: Sonja Pendovska Madevska
SISTER GENOVIEFFA: Biljana Josifov
SISTER OSMINA: Marija Naumovska
SISTER DOLCINA: Ana Rojdeva
THE NURSING SISTER: Zlata Toshevska Dimovska
ALMS SISTER: Javorka Vitanova
NOVICE: Desanka Gligorijevikj
LAY SISTER I: Aleksandra Lazarevska Vasilevski
LAY SISTER II: Teodora Pejikj Zajkova
CHORUS AND ORCHESTRA OF THE NATIONAL OPERA AND BALLET
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SYNOPSIS
The action takes place in a secluded convent in Italy towards the end of the 17th century.
On a spring afternoon, following the Holy Week prayers, the nuns emerge from the chapel and gather in the cloister. The Abbess allows them a brief moment of recreation before they return to their duties. Despite their ascetic life, which is meant to be free of worldly desires, the sisters admit that they still harbor longings from their past lives. Sister Angelica, who has lived in the convent for seven years, denies having any desires, claiming she wants for nothing. However, her fellow sisters recognize her hidden sorrow. Knowing that Angelica has received no visitors or news from her family in seven years, they whisper of her noble background and the sin for which she was sent to the convent as punishment.
Their conversation is interrupted by the Nursing Sister, who asks Angelica for a herbal remedy to soothe a sister bitten by a wasp, noting Angelica’s vast knowledge of the healing powers of plants. A sister bringing food to the convent then arrives with news: a magnificent carriage is at the gates. Angelica is visibly shaken, desperately asking for details. The sisters realize her agitation stems from a deep longing for news of her family. When the bell announces a visitor, they all pray that the visitor is for Angelica.
The prayer is answered. Angelica is summoned to the parlor where her aunt, the Princess, awaits. Angelica is overwhelmed, but instead of warmth, she is met with a cold, formal report. The Princess informs her that the inheritance left by Angelica’s late parents is to be divided due to the upcoming marriage of her younger sister—a marriage made possible despite the shame Angelica brought upon the family. The Princess demands that Angelica sign away her claims and devote herself to penance. Angelica, defiant, accuses her aunt of cruelty and begs for news of the one thing she cannot renounce: her son, who was taken from her at birth. With icy indifference, the Princess reveals that the boy died of an illness two years ago.
Shattered by this revelation and haunted by the thought of her child dying without a mother’s love, Angelica collapses. In her despair, she hallucinates their meeting in paradise. In an ecstatic frenzy, she prepares a poisonous herbal concoction and takes her own life. However, as the poison takes effect, she realizes she has committed a mortal sin. In her final moments, she prays desperately for mercy. She experiences a miraculous vision of the Virgin Mary, who brings her son toward her—a sign that her penance has been accepted and she is granted ultimate redemption.

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PREMIERE
GIACOMO PUCCINI
“GIANNI SCHICCHI”

Conductor: Gianluca Martinenghi – Italy
Director: Pier Francesco Maestrini – Italy
Set Designer: Guillermo Nova – Spain
Costume Designer: Cristina Aceti – Italy
Asst. Costume Designer: Valentina Volpi – Italy
Lighting Design: [TBA]
Choreographer: [TBA]
Asst. Choreographer: [TBA]
Asst. Conductor: Katerina Stojkovska
Asst. Director: Trajko Jordanovski, Ljupka Jakimovska
Concert Master: [TBA]
Piano accompanists: Elena Siljanoska, Janinka Nevcheva, Andreja Naunov, Anastasija Grgovska
Stage Managers: Dragan Kostadinovikj, Marko Pavlevski, Katerina Boshkovska
Prompter: Nevena Georgieva, Ivana Jordanovska

CAST:
GIANNI SCHICCHI: Roberto de Candia – Italy
LAURETTA (his daughter): Ana Durlovski
ZITA: Nikolina Janevska
RINUCCIO: Guo Zi-Zhao – China
GHERARDO: Nikola Stojcheski / Jane Dunimagloski
NELLA: Biljana Josifov
GHERARDINO: [TBA]
BETO DI SIGNA: Dime Petrov
SIMONE: Igor Durlovski
MARCO: Dragan Ampov
LA CIESCA: Zlata Toshevska Dimovska
MAESTRO SPINELLOCCIO: Neven Siljanovski
NOTARY: Vladimir Sazdovski
PINELLINO: Marko Dimovski
GUCCIO: Tihomir Jankimovski
ORCHESTRA OF THE NATIONAL OPERA AND BALLET
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SYNOPSIS
The story is set in Florence in 1299, during a time of cultural expansion that made the city the wealthiest in Europe. Inspired by an episode from Dante Alighieri’s Inferno, the plot unfolds in the house of the wealthy Buoso Donati, who has just passed away.
His relatives are gathered around his body, offering hypocritical displays of grief while secretly waiting to hear the contents of his will. Rumors circulate that Buoso has left his entire fortune to the monks of Santa Reparata. Terrified at the prospect of being disinherited, the relatives frantically search for the document. Upon finding it, their worst fears are confirmed: Buoso has indeed left everything to the church.
In their despair, they reluctantly listen to the young Rinuccio, who suggests seeking the help of Gianni Schicchi, a clever newcomer to Florence known for his resourcefulness. Rinuccio, who is in love with Schicchi’s daughter Lauretta, calls for him. Despite the family’s disdain for Schicchi’s lower social standing, a brief argument gives way to mutual interest: the Donatis want the money, and Schicchi wants his daughter’s happiness.
Schicchi devises a daring and risky plan. Before the death is made public, he will impersonate Buoso, call a notary, and dictate a new will. The relatives enthusiastically agree and begin dividing the assets. However, they soon start bickering over Buoso’s most valuable possessions—the mule, the mills, and the house in Florence. Unable to agree, they leave the decision to Schicchi’s “sense of justice.”
As Schicchi prepares to climb into Buoso’s bed, each relative secretly offers him a bribe to secure the best properties for themselves. The notary arrives, and Schicchi, in a convincing imitation of the deceased, begins to dictate. To the family’s horror, when he reaches the most valuable items, he bequeaths them to his “good friend Gianni Schicchi.” The relatives are enraged and shocked by the clever deception, but they are powerless to protest; the law in Florence punishes such fraud with the loss of a hand and exile.
Schicchi drives the greedy relatives out of his new house, leaving the young lovers, Rinuccio and Lauretta, to build their future in Florence with Buoso’s fortune.