Il ritorno di Don Calandrino
# Il ritorno di Don Calandrino

Il ritorno di Don Calandrino (The Return of Don Calandrino), also known as Armidoro e Laurina, is an intermezzo in two acts by Domenico Cimarosa to an Italian libretto presumably written by Giuseppe Petrosellini.

## Performance history

The premiere took place in 1778 at Teatro Valle in Rome. Performances in Livorno (1783), Prague (1785), Vienna (1787), Barcelona (1788), Florence (1788 and 1793) and Padua (1801) followed. After a long break, the opera was revived in 2007 under the musical direction of Riccardo Muti in a series of performances at the Salzburg Festival, Teatro Pérez Galdós [es] in Las Palmas, Teatro Municipale in Piacenza, Teatro Verdi [it] in Pisa, and the Ravenna Festival.

## Roles

| Role | Voice type |
| - | - |
| Livietta | soprano castrato travesti |
| Don Calandrino | soprano castrato |
| Monsieur Le Blonde | bass |
| Irene | soprano castrato travesti |
| Valerio | tenor |

## Synopsis

The libretto gives a humorous account of characters and actions of Don Calandrino, the son of the podestà of Monte Secco (Abruzzo, Italy), who pretends he knows everything, but in fact is incapable of even thinking logically; Livietta, a haughty and rich peasant girl, who tries to act as a lady, but invariably fails both in her language and manners; Monsieur Le Blonde, a French traveler eager to talk about places he has supposedly visited, but of which he knows nothing; Irene, a simple and humble girl; and Valerio, the Mayor of Monte Secco and Irene’s brother. After several turns, the story resolves in pairing Don Calandrino with Livietta, and Le Blonde with Irene.

## Recordings

| Year | Cast (Livietta, Don Calandrino, Monsieur Le Blonde, Irene, Valerio) | Conductor, Orchestra | Label |
| - | - | - | - |
| 2009 | Laura Giordano, Juan Francisco Gatell, Marco Vinco, Monica Tarone, Francesco Marsiglia | Riccardo Muti Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini | CD: Gruppo Editoriale L'Espresso |
