Opera in the park broadcast worldwide

Opera and lyrical music isn’t just for prestigious, gilded opera houses—it’s the perfect way to enjoy a breezy summer night outdoors. Now, you can enjoy this beautiful music as if you were spending the evening in a beautiful Catalan park yourself, through the broadcast of the upcoming ‘Liceu a la Fresca’ event on June 16.

‘Breaking cultural barriers’ is the goal

Catalan, Spanish, and Portuguese public broadcasting companies will, with the Liceu opera house in Barcelona, bring Giacomo Puccini’s ‘Manon Lescaut’ production to over 100,000 viewers. The intention of the event is “to break cultural barriers,” expressed Liceu director Valentí Oviedo during the presentation of the fourth edition of this event.

During ‘Liceu a la fresca,’ translated as ‘Open air Liceu,’ more than 300 locations will be screening Puccini’s famed opera, showing an increase of 81% compared to the event in 2017. It will be shown in Catalonia, in Catalan-speaking France, the Sardinian town of Alghero in Italy, and the Portuguese cities of Lisbon and Porto.

An international cast

The production of ‘Manon Lescaut’ is an opera from the late 19^th century, penned by Italian composer Giacomo Puccini (also behind such works as ‘La Bomème,’ ‘Tosca,’ and ‘Madama Butterfly’). The cast of this 2018 rendition of ‘Manon Lescaut’ will be headed by Ukranian soprano Liudmyla Monastyrska and American tenor Gregory Kunde. Kunde will also be sharing the role of Renato des Grieux with Spanish and Puerto Rican artists Jorge de Léon and Rafael Davila.

President of the Liceu opera house Salvador Alemany defined the project as “pioneer,” adding that “there are few examples” of events like these. Alemany added that through this “ambitious” project, the entity made a “pivot” towards its social activity, now based in the “sharing of culture to all society.”  

If you’re in Catalonia, the event will take place by the Arc de Triomf landmark near the Ciutadella Park, and will be broadcast on channel 33, hosted by journalists Carolina Rosich and Toni Puntí.