Medea in Corinto

Medea in Corinto (Medea in Corinth) is an 1813 opera in Italian by the composer Simon Mayr. It takes the form of a melodramma tragico in two acts. The libretto, by Felice Romani, is based on the Greek myth of Medea and the plays on the theme by Euripides and Pierre Corneille. The same subject had formed the basis for Luigi Cherubini's famous opera Médée (1797) which may have had an influence on Mayr's work. Medea in Corinto was first performed at the Teatro San Carlo, Naples on 28 November 1813 and was Mayr's greatest theatrical success.

Roles

Giuditta Pasta in Mayr's Medea in Corinth

Role	Voice type	Premiere Cast Conductor: Nicola Festa
Medea	soprano	Isabella Colbran
Giasone	tenor	Andrea Nozzari
Creonte	bass	Michele Benedetti
Creusa	soprano	Teresa Luigia Pontiggia
Ismene	soprano	Joaquína García
Egeo	tenor	Manuel García
Evandro	tenor	Raffaele Ferrari
Tideo	tenor	Gaetano Chizzola
Medea's son	mime	Maria Malibran (?)

Synopsis

Act One

Jason (Giasone) has rejected his former wife, Medea, in favour of Creusa, daughter of King Creon (Creonte) of Corinth. Creon banishes Medea from the city and she swears revenge. Meanwhile, King Aegeus (Egeo) of Athens arrives in Corinth. He had been promised Creusa as his bride. Finding he has been rejected, he makes a pact with Medea. As Jason and Creusa are being married in the temple, Medea bursts in with Aegeus's soldiers and a fight breaks out as they attempt to carry off the bride and bridegroom.

Act Two

Creon's men have defeated and captured Medea and Aegeus. In prison, Medea uses her magic powers to summon up demons from the underworld. She kills Creusa with a poisoned robe then stabs her own - and Jason's - children to death, before making her escape in a chariot pulled by flying dragons. In despair, Jason attempts suicide in vain.

Recordings

• Marisa Galvany, Joan Patenaude, Molly Stark, Allen Cathcart, Robert White, Thomas Palmer, Clarion Concerts, conducted by Newell Jenkins (Vanguard, 1969)
• Leyla Gencer, William Johns, Gianfranco Casarini, Gianfranco Pastine, Cecilia Fusco, Luigi Paolillo, Ivana Cavallini, Ermanno Lorenzi, Teatro San Carlo Orchestra and Chorus, conducted by Maurizio Arena (Myto Records, 1977)
• Jane Eaglen, Yvonne Kenny, Bruce Ford, Raúl Giménez, Alistair Miles, Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by David Parry (Opera Rara, 1997)
• Elżbieta Szmytka, Evelyn Pollock, Mark Milhofer, Lawrence Brownlee, Wojtek Gierlach, Sinfonieorchester & Chorus Theater St Gallen, conducted by David Stern (oehms classics, 2010)
• Nadja Michael, Ramón Vargas, Alastair Miles, Alek Shrader, Elena Tsallagova, Bayerische Staatsoper, conducted by Ivor Bolton, stage directed by Hans Neuenfels (Arthaus DVD, 2010)

Sources

• The Viking Opera Guide ed. Holden (Viking, 1993)
• Del Teatro (in Italian)
• Amadeus Online