Opera Comică pentru Copii announces the premiere of one of the most beloved operas from the universal lyric repertoire: “Gianni Schicchi” by Giacomo Puccini, directed by Cristian Mihăilescu.
The performances will take place between April 24 and May 10, 2026, on the stage of the Great Hall. The show is recommended for children over 7 years old. Tickets for the 9 performances in the premiere series are available on operacomica.ro.
The only comic opera that Giacomo Puccini ever wrote, “Gianni Schicchi” is part of the “Il Trittico” trilogy, which had its world premiere on December 14, 1918 at the Metropolitan Opera in New York – an immediate triumph, with more than 40 calls to the ramp and Lauretta’s aria repeated at the audience’s request, despite the institution’s express rule forbidding encores.
Directed by Cristian Mihăilescu, set by Adrian Damian and Mihnea Damian, costumes by Iolanda Mutu, lighting design by Mircea Mitroi, video design by Alexandru Petroșanu, choreography and stage movement by Ionuț Picincu. At the conductor’s desk are Alexandru Ilie, Gheorghe Iliuță and Andrei Stănculescu. The musical training of the soloists is provided by Bogdan Cocîrlea and Monica Gemene.
“‘Gianni Schicchi’ is totally different from the other two works in the triptych – it is very close to the modern language, in musical and scenic treatment. In our staging, there is a plot from the beginning between Buoso Donati, Gianni Schicchi and Rinuccio. The four-poster bed, framed by a curtain of the same color as the hall, is a clear sign: everything is theater. Gianni Schicchi becomes a kind of trickster, a character who does magic tricks – I give him baguette, they take him out of the strictly realistic zone. From that moment, the show takes on a different energy and becomes a bridge to Puccini in itself: on the ground floor, seven large windows open the perspective to Florence, and through the movement of the Ponte Vecchio at different times of the day.”, declares Cristian Mihăilescu, the show’s director.
The story begins with a single line from Dante’s “Inferno”: Gianni Schicchi, a 13th-century Florentine, convicted of forging a will. The librettist Giovacchino Forzano and the composer Giacomo Puccini saw in this doomed figure the potential for brilliant social satire and turned the perspective upside down: from punished impostor, Schicchi becomes a sympathetic hero – a medieval Trickster who uses his wits to punish greed and defend love. The greedy relatives of the late Buoso Donati get exactly what they deserve, and the two lovers – Lauretta and Rinuccio – are finally free to be together. All in just one hour, with music that is not easily forgotten, culminating in the famous aria “O mio babbino caro” – one of the most famous and beloved in the history of opera.
The titular role of Gianni Schicchi is played by Vicentiu Țăranu, Andrei Cocîrlea and Radu Ion. Lauretta, by Oana Șerban, Iulia Miulescu and Luana Prodea, and Rinuccio by Andrei Mihalcea, Darius Dragoș and Cosmin Manole. The full cast also includes the characters Zita – Andreea Iftimescu, Alexandra Horpas, Theona Iurcovschi; Gherardo – Gjergji Mani, Ioan Cristian Grigorescu; Nella – Daniela Cârstea, Cristina Fieraru; Marco – Bogdan Podlovski, Fang Shuang; La Ciesca – Raluca Oprea, Virginia Stamate; Betto di Signa – Valentino Tiron, Teodor Vădana; Simone – Horia Radu, Daniel Pascariu; Maestro Spinelloccio – Florin Bucharest, Liviu Zăhărăchescu; Buoso Donati/Notary – Valentin Racoveanu; Pinellino – Liviu Zăhărăchescu; Guccio – Ionuț Picincu and Gherardino – Teodora Voicescu.
“‘Gianni Schicchi’ is in many ways the unlikely work of a composer who seemed destined exclusively for tragedy. And yet in 1918, after years of searching, Puccini proved that laughter can be as deep as tears. What convinces me that this work belongs on our stage is not just its brilliant humor, but its moral stake. Gianni Schicchi does a wrong thing for a good reason. Then he takes all the responsibility himself and makes sure that his daughter to remain innocent in this whole story.”says Felicia Filip, manager of the Children’s Comic Opera.
Opera Comică pentru Copii is a public cultural institution subordinated to the Capital City Hall and the General Council of the Municipality of Bucharest, led since 2014 by the soprano Felicia Filip. Unique in the world due to the audience segment it addresses, Opera Comică pentru Copii brings children closer to art and culture, both through quality shows – opera, ballet, musical, concert-lesson, operetta, musical theater – and through various related innovative projects such as summer and winter festivals, “Little Artist” Workshops, “OCC Store”, “Behind the Curtain” Tours, “Birthday Parties”, “Aventura Park” or “Volunteering”. More information on operacomica.ro.
