d'après l'opéra-seria d'Antonio Vivaldi
L’OLYMPIADE DES OLYMPIADES

New Nice Côte d'Azur Opera production. In partnership with the National Museum of Sport and the Côte d'Azur University. Show in Italian with surtitles in French and English.

Baroque pasticcio in two acts inspired by the libretto L'Olimpiade by Pietro Metastasio and Antonio Vivaldi. Music by Antonio Vivaldi, Giuseppe Sarti, Giavanni Battista Pergolesi, Johan Adolf Hasse and more.

From Caldara (for whom it was written) to Vivaldi (certainly the most well-known today), Metastasio's libretto L'Olimpiade has inspired some fifty composers throughout the centuries! Reinterpreting this original libretto in their own way,  Jean-Christophe Spinosi, Nathalie Spinosi and Eric Oberdorff offer us a new opera with a remarkable modernity.

L’Olimpiade is a libretto with an infinite humanity: in this piece, Metastasio presented values such as fidelity, sacrifice, love and surpassing oneself, as well as their inevitable opposites – fraud, forced marriages, the patriarchy and the commodification of women.

Together, Jean-Christophe Spinosi, Nathalie Spinosi and Eric Oberdorff had the fantastic idea of creating a new opera by re-adapting this libretto to better reflect our modern world. Removing recitatives in favour of a narrator and mixing the songs of different operas composed based on Metastasio's original libretto, they have created a work of an incredible modernity. Sport and opera, reunited at last !

This opera blends singing, music, dance, theatre, video and digital creation on stage, with a vitality and resonance that will appeal to audiences of all ages, from the most experienced to the most novice. 

It's the only one of its kind in the world, devised by set designer Fabien Teigné, who has turned the architectural space of an Italian-style opera house on its head, revolutionising the codes and the relationship between the stage and the audience. This work takes place both within the opera house and throughout the city, thanks to the route taken by the Olympic flame, enabling the people of Nice to take part in the event - a unique process for an opera house in Europe. 

This new work celebrates the Olympic Games with an event that takes place throughout the city, while being completely linked to the drama unfolding on stage.

Legend : Floor plan.                                                                   Legend : Scenography © Fabien Teigné                                    Legend : Scenography © Fabien Teigné

   New : "Come with your parents" for 5 to 10 year olds: While your parents are watching the show, you can discover the Opera by taking part in an original cultural activity for just €5. Sitting for "L'Olympiade des Olympiades": Saturday 4 May at 3pm, go to the box office for bookings, subject to availability.