Il viaggio a Reims

On the eve of the coronation of Charles X in Reims, a bunch of European aristos stop for the night at an inn which becomes the stage of their amorous antics. The Comtesse de Folleville is distraught by the loss of her entire wardrobe whilst her lover Cavalier Belfiore is chatting up the poetess Corinna, herself the secret flame of Lord Sydney and in the background Don Alvaro and Count von Libenskof are at odds over the attentions of the pretty marquise Melibea. But an unexpected event disrupts their plans and the Coronation partygoers have to celebrate France’s new king right where they are.

As soon as he had made Paris his home, Rossini felt inspired by a Madame de Staël novel and composed an opera buffa for the coronation festivities of Charles X in 1825. It was a one-off, showcasing some of the greatest solo voices of the time. And then Il viaggio a Reims was taken off the stage, Rossini recycling some of its materials in Le Comte Ory. The score was pieced back together in the 1980s, revealing a brilliant work that plays with all the operatic codes, directed by the playful hand of Laurent Pelly and conducted by Jader Bignamini.