Since 2009, accomplished composer and conductor Anthony Barrese has served as artistic director of Opera Southwest in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In early 2017, Anthony Barrese will oversee the company as it presents Pagliacci under the direction of conductor Zoe Zeniodi.

1. Opera Southwest to Present
Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci
Anthony Barrese

2. Introduction
• Since 2009, accomplished composer and conductor
Anthony Barrese has served as artistic director of Opera
Southwest in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In early 2017,
Anthony Barrese will oversee the company as it presents
Pagliacci under the direction of conductor Zoe Zeniodi.
Featuring libretto and music by Italian composer
Ruggiero Leoncavallo, Pagliacci is a short and gritty two-
act opera that has been an audience favorite since it first
premiered at Milan’s Teatro dal Verme in 1892. The
opera, which Leoncavallo based on actual events, follows
the story of a traveling troupe of actors led by the main
character, a clown named Canio, a cuckolded husband
whose jealousy drives him to kill his wife onstage.

3. Opera Southwest
• In addition to a compelling storyline, Pagliacci features
the powerful aria Vesti la giubba, or Put on a Costume,
which Canio sings painfully as he prepares to go on stage
for the murderous performance. Vesti la giubba is
considered by many to be one of the greatest tenor arias
of all time, and it remains the highlight of Pagliacci.
Opera Southwest will present performances of Pagliacci
in March and April 2017. The company will open with a
matinee on Sunday, March 26, and close with another
matinee on Sunday, April 2. The other two performances
will take place on the evenings of March 29 and March
31. For ticketing information and other details, visit
www.operasouthwest.org.