"THE LOVE ELIXIR" – Comic Opera premiered on the stage of the Palace Hall

February 21, 2027, 7:00 PM

The most famous romantic comic opera ever written – THE LOVE ELIXIR by Gaetano Donizetti – will be presented to the public for the first time on the stage of the Palace Hall on February 21, 2027, as part of the Musical Extravaganza season, artistically coordinated by tenor Ştefan von Korch. The production brings to the audience the essence and musicality of bel canto and the unmistakable charm and humor of opera buffa, a genre specific to the 19th century that retains its freshness to this day.

The work brings together four characters, each more amusing than the last: Adina, Nemorino, Belcore and Dulcamara are the heroes who, through musical passages of great virtuosity and through situational comedy, tell a story of and about love, hope, illusion and ultimately fulfillment, in a cheerful, sentimental and humorous register.

Tenor Ștefan von Korch, who will give life to the eternal romantic - Nemorino - says: "Between the two great celebrations of love - Valentine's Day and Dragobete, we invite you to fill your soul with love, discovering or rediscovering this jewel of bel canto and also the most sung comic opera of all time and the most famous work of Donizetti."

The opera, of which the famous aria "Una furtiva lagrima" is an integral part, brings to the stage a rare combination in the lyrical horizon: music of great agility combines with situational comedy and the charm of the characters in an amalgam as charming as it is captivating, from which results what else but ..THE ELIXIR OF LOVE!

"Una furtiva lagrima" is one of the most beloved and representative sequences in the tenor repertoire and one of the very rare lyrical sequences that captures a luminous moment - the one in which Nemorino sees a fleeting tear in Adina's eye, an indication that makes him understand that she cares about him.

With the participation of the Pitești Philharmonic Orchestra.

About THE LOVE ELIXIR:
"The Love Elixir" (original Italian title L'elisir d'amore) is a comic opera in two acts composed by Gaetano Donizetti to a libretto by Felice Romani. It premiered on May 12, 1832 at the Teatro della Canobbiana in Milan.

It is one of the most beloved operas in the bel canto repertoire – the Italian genre characterized by very expressive melodic lines and vocal virtuosity.

Synopsis: In an idyllic Italian village, the young and timid Nemorino secretly loves Adina, an intelligent and independent girl who doesn't seem to reciprocate his feelings. Dulcamara, a traveling doctor who sells all sorts of "miraculous cures," appears in the village. Nemorino buys a fake "love elixir" from him, which he believes will help him win Adina over. After many comical situations and misunderstandings, Adina realizes her feelings, and the ending is a happy one, with true love triumphing over the false Elixir.

About  ** Ştefan von Korch – Tenor, host soloist  **

 Tenor Ştefan von Korch is appreciated monthly by the public as a host soloist and artistic coordinator of the Musical Extravaganza season, a pioneering cultural project carried out in the capital, with extensions on the stages of Braşov, Piteşti, Sibiu, Craiova and Târgu Mureş. 

 With a dynamic presence in the national cultural life and beyond, Ştefan von Korch has already been present since the beginning of the year on the stage of the National Theatre in Bucharest, at the Brașov Philharmonic and on the stage of the Iași National Opera in "The Merry Widow 2.0," directed by Andrei Şerban.

In 2025 he was the only Romanian soloist in the "Los Tres Tenores" concerts of great tradition in Central America, alongside soloists from Spain and Honduras, he debuted at the Romanian Athenaeum in "Concert at the Imperial Court," opened the Arad Philharmonic season with "Carmina Burana", his "signature" work, in which he also began the year on the stage of the Transylvania State Philharmonic.

He is the unmistakable voice for the tenor line from Carmina Burana – a passage at the limit of the male voice's capabilities, through whose interpretation he navigates with overflowing ease. Thanks to the manner of interpreting this work, he was invited to over 40 Carmina Burana performances, in the Philharmonics and Cultural Institutions in the country, but also abroad, in 2024 he was honored to open the Palermo Classica Festival in this work, with an acclaimed appearance in the press from the peninsula and from Romania alike.

 His name is also linked to over 15 performances at the Bucharest National Opera, where he was invited over time in "The Barber of Seville," "The Elixir of Love" and "Falstaff," but also to the national premiere of the opera "I Puritani," by Vicenzo Belinni, one of the highest scores written for a male voice.

 The year 2024 ended with notable appearances at the Ion Dacian National Operetta and Musical Theatre, at the Sala Palatului and at the Philharmonic Orchestras of Târgu-Mureș and Timișoara. 

 In 2023, he was the only Romanian soloist in the China Tour 2023, alongside the Reino de Aragon Orchestra from Spain.

 He delighted the audience with his voice in 3 national premieres: "I Puritani" and "La Sonnambula," both by Vicenzo Bellini, the vocal-symphonic work "Messa di Gloria" by Rossini, but also in the European premiere "Traiano in Dacia."

 Over time, he has interpreted the roles specific to his voice from the very well-known operas: "Rigoletto", "The Barber of Seville", "The Elixir of Love", "Don Pasquale", on the stages of the Operas in Bucharest, Cluj and Iași and is a constant presence on the stages of national philharmonics, "Requiem" by Mozart, "Christmas Oratorio" by Bach and "Longesangt" by Mendelssohn.

Internationally, he has performed at the Metropolitan Concert Hall Tokyo, Zhuhai Opera House, Nanjing Poly Grand Theatre and Chongqing Grand Theatre, Opera Kaiserslautern Germany, the Auditorium in Zaragoza, the Steri Palace in Palermo, Teatro Verdi Padua Italy, the concert hall of the Zurich Music Academy, the National Theatre Bratislava.

About the season Musical Extravaganza

The concerts aim to offer the public the joy of meeting representative names of the lyrical scene, in a more intimate setting, which offers a different perspective on the artistic act compared to that of the imposing opera stage, but also to bring the classical genre closer to audiences of all ages.  Spectators are invited to admire their favorite soloists in a select atmosphere, complemented by a chamber accompaniment, which highlights the performers in a warm and personal light.

The first Musical Extravaganza season, conducted under the artistic guidance of tenor Ştefan von Korch, included over 20 successful concerts, in which they delighted the audience, together with the host soloist: soprano Cristina Maria Oltean, soprano Daniela Bucşan, tenor Alin Stoica, baritones Adrian Mărcan, Lucian Petrean and Fang Shuang, pianist Alexandru Burcă, accordionist Emy Drăgoi, pianist Bogdana Cocîrlea, Pitești Philharmonic Orchestra and Ion Dacian National Operetta and Musical Theatre Orchestra – in salon format.