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Giuseppe Verdi’s Il Trovatore has a raft of over-the-top characters populating a story so complex and unlikely, it could be fairly described either as incomprehensible or implausible, if not both. That hardlyt seems like a recipe for success. But the perplexingly beautiful drama also boats so many of Verdi's finest tunes that it's hard to keep track of them all.

This week Verdi’s Il Trovatore comes from Opera Carolina in Charlotte. The stars are soprano Lisa Daltirus and tenor Antonello Palombi as the lovers Manrico and Leonora, with mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves, in one of her signature roles, as Azucena.

Cast:

Conductor: James Meena

Leonora: Lisa Daltirus (soprano)

Manrico: Antonello Palombi (tenor)

Azucena: Denyce Graves (mezzo-soprano)

Count di Luna: Michael Corvino (baritone)

Ferrando: Kristopher Irmiter (bass-baritone)

Inez: Jesse Wright-Martin (soprano)

Rulz: Brian Arreola (tenor)

Charlotte Symphony Orchestra

Opera Carolina Chorus