Donna Bianca is an opera in a prologue and four acts composed by Alfredo Keil to an Italian-language libretto by César Féréal. The libretto is based the narrative poem Dona Branca by Almeida Garrett. The opera premiered on 10 March 1888 at the Teatro São Carlos in Lisbon and had 30 performances between 1888 and 1899. The opera was revived at the Teatro São Carlos in September 2010 in a series of four concert performances sung in the original Italian.[1] [2]
Set in Portugal during the reconquest of the Kingdom of the Algarve from the Moors in the second half of the 13th century, the opera recounts the tragic love story between Afonso III's daughter Dona Branca and the Moor ruler Aben-Afan.
| Role | Voice type | Premiere cast, 10 March 1888[3] (Conductor: Marino Mancinelli) |
|---|---|---|
| Aben-Afan | tenor | António D'Andrade |
| Donna Bianca | soprano | Elena Theodorini |
| Adaour | baritone | Francisco D'Andrade |
| Old Moorish woman | contralto | Giulia Prandi |
| Don Payo Peres | bass | Meroles |
| Don Nuno | tenor | Durini |
| Soldier | baritone | Pietro Ghidotti |
| Fada | mezzo-soprano | G. Figuet |
| Alda | soprano | Olavarri |
| Popular | tenor | Foresti |