Il trovatore had all the elements to be the opera with which the digital platform of the Gran Teatre, the Liceu LIVE, would kick off. It is a production by the theater's resident artist, Àlex Ollé, who has excellent voices and also comes to the theater at a time when the orchestra is taking off in terms of quality and flexibility at the hands of Josep Pons, as the director points out musical of this production, the Italian Riccardo Frizza.
It is within the framework of the 175th anniversary that the Gran Teatre launches its new digital season, an initiative that will make it possible to have five titles from this 2022-23 academic year with quality viewing (4K cameras and sound compatible with Dolby 5.1 are used) , either live, as is the case on November 5, or in the special edited Premium version.
Il trovatore, Il trittico, Tosca, Macbeth and Manon will be those five titles with which the proposal starts. They will have subtitles in Catalan, Spanish, English and the original language of the opera, and masters of ceremonies who will complement with comments and share impressions and doubts in the live chat that the theater makes available. Il trovatore will feature Ramon Gener as presenter and Javier Blánquez as chat master.
The digital platform currently has 12,000 registered people and close to 2,000 subscribers, that is to say, practically full capacity in the theater, according to the general director of the theater, Valentí Oviedo. "These are people who have believed in the project and have signed up before the season even started," he explained.
"70% are from Barcelona and with an average age of 64 years, a profile that could be that of a public user of the theater. 40% of this 70% are in fact theater subscribers but the other 30% are not, for what I think the platforms can end up being a complement to what is happening with the live arts. And a way of experiencing the show from the sofa at home but with the expectation of coming to the theater".
Regarding the 30% of subscribers from outside Barcelona, 20% from the rest of Spain and 5% from abroad, especially from the United States -there are those who are inhabitants of the California coast-, France and Andorra, plus four Australians . "They are people who know the Liceu brand and word of mouth will do the rest".
As indicated by the lyrical coliseum of the Rambla, a few days after the direct, Liceu LIVE will make available the Premium edition, available for two seasons, to be viewed as many times as you want. So from the second season there will be ten titles available.
This version incorporates new tools, such as multi-camera filming/viewing, tracking of the score in parallel with the performance with artistic commentary from the musical or stage directors, as well as the option to view the opera by acts.
The project seeks to make opera accessible. That the price of the tickets or the physical distance is not a problem. It is also a window to the internationalization of the Liceu's programming and a complement to the operatic experience.
