The project of the opera troupeArs Minervaand its tireless founding director Céline Ricci is both specific and far-reaching: to unearth and champion some of the lost treasures of the Baroque era.
Thousands upon thousands of these pieces were created during the 17th and 18th centuries, after all, and only a minuscule fraction of them get performed today.
This year’s disinterred treasure is “Olimpia Vendicata,” a variant of the Ariadne myth composed in 1681 by Domenico Freschi. It features soprano Leslie Katter in the title role, as a princess abandoned on a desert isle, as well as such luminaries as Aura Veruni and Sara Couden. Matthew Dirst conducts, with Ricci directing.