Performance History
This opera was first seen in New York its US premiere on 11 February 1861 and in the UK on 15 June of that year. In the 20th century, especially after a 1935 production in Copenhagen, many modern stagings have restored the original Swedish setting and characters´ names. On 7 January 1955, Marian Anderson, singing the role of Ulrica, broke the "color barrier" at the Metropolitan Opera, becoming the first African-American artist ever to appear with that company.
A "hypothetical reconstruction" of Gustavo III, based on the unorchestrated original and much of Una vendetta "grafted" onto Un ballo's score, occurred in a production by the Gothenburg Opera in Gothenburg, Sweden in 2002.
The opera has become a staple of the repertoire and is now performed frequently.
Read more about this topic: Un Ballo In Maschera
Famous quotes containing the words performance and/or history:
“So long as the source of our identity is external—vested in how others judge our performance at work, or how others judge our children’s performance, or how much money we make—we will find ourselves hopelessly flawed, forever short of the ideal.”
—Melinda M. Marshall (20th century)
“Gossip is charming! History is merely gossip. But scandal is gossip made tedious by morality.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)