Il trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno

Handel’s first oratorio, with its virtuosic arias, brilliant concertos, and powerful ensemble work, was first performed in Rome in 1707. Based on allegorical concepts, Il trionfo was never intended to be fully staged. Yet for this interpretation, stage director Krzysztof Warlikowski adapts the work to a contemporary setting with a nuclear family at its center. With Emmanuelle Haïm conducting her ensemble Le Concert d’Astrée, a standout cast features soprano Sabine Devieilhe as the vulnerable yet bold Beauty; Franco Fagioli as her ne’er-do-well brother, Pleasure; and Sara Mingardo and Michael Spyres as benevolent parental figures, Truth and Time.