Giulio Cesare in Egitto

One of Handel’s finest operas, Giulio Cesare charts the love affair between two of the most famous figures of antiquity. It was first performed in 1724 with perhaps the greatest cast Handel ever assembled: Cleopatra was played by the soprano Francesca Cuzzoni, and Caesar himself was sung by the leading castrato Senesino. The most lavishly scored of his operas, it features exceptional orchestral colouring, culminating in Cleopatra’s seduction of Caesar with the help of an onstage ensemble, including harp, theorbo and viola da gamba. Typically for Handel, it is Cleopatra who dominates the opera. Her eight arias illuminate every corner of her multifaceted personality: a tease in Act I, turning from seduction to despair in Act II, and returning to triumph in Act III. Her finest moment comes when, imprisoned by her treacherous brother Ptolemy, she contemplates death in the recitative and aria “Piangerò la mia sorte”—one of Handel’s most deeply-felt laments. Caesar’s role includes a remarkable reflection on the fragility of human life, “Alma del gran Pompeo”, and the hunting aria “Va tacito”, whose solo horn part suggests that having seen through Ptolemy’s deceit he will stealthily hunt him down. Overall, this is one of Handel’s most dramatically compelling operas, frequently revived (and revised) in its own time, and one of a small core of Baroque operas regularly performed today.