Theatro Municipal (São Paulo) tickets 6 March 2026 - The Love for Three Oranges | GoComGo.com

The Love for Three Oranges

Theatro Municipal (São Paulo), Sao Paulo, Brazil
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8 PM
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US$ 101

E-tickets: Print at home or at the box office of the event if so specified. You will find more information in your booking confirmation email.

You can only select the category, and not the exact seats.
If you order 2 or 3 tickets: your seats will be next to each other.
If you order 4 or more tickets: your seats will be next to each other, or, if this is not possible, we will provide a combination of groups of seats (at least in pairs, for example 2+2 or 2+3).

Important Info
Type: Opera
City: Sao Paulo, Brazil
Starts at: 20:00
Acts: 4

E-tickets: Print at home or at the box office of the event if so specified. You will find more information in your booking confirmation email.

You can only select the category, and not the exact seats.
If you order 2 or 3 tickets: your seats will be next to each other.
If you order 4 or more tickets: your seats will be next to each other, or, if this is not possible, we will provide a combination of groups of seats (at least in pairs, for example 2+2 or 2+3).

Cast
Performers
Conductor: Roberto Minczuk
Soprano: Gabriella Pace (Fata Morgana)
Choir: Municipal Lyrical Choir
Orchestra: Municipal Symphony Orchestra
Creators
Composer: Sergei Prokofiev
Director: Ronaldo Zero
Librettist: Sergei Prokofiev
Overview

A resounding success at the São Paulo Municipal Theater in 2022 and one of the most requested operas by audiences, The Love for Three Oranges returns to the Theater's stage, opening the 2026 season.

This delightful opera by Prokofiev has a comical plot and complex origins: a 17th-century fairy tale written by Giambattista Basile, adapted for the stage by Carlo Gozzi in the following century, translated by Meyerhold into Russian, and adapted into a French libretto by the composer himself. It also features Brazilian authorship – Vera Janacópulos, a prominent soprano in her time for promoting names like Villa-Lobos in Europe, teams up with Prokofiev to produce the libretto.

The plot, which flirts with fantastic surrealism in an attempt to modernize the commedia dell'arte tradition from which it also originates, tells the story of a king's quest to cure his son's melancholy. To this end, he summons a series of entertainments, not without the antagonism of typical fairytale characters. The musicality, witty and inventive, moves between the limits of Russian music and the Romantic tradition (how could we forget the famous march?). This combination of elements makes this opera a unique spectacle.

Also unique is the collaboration with the guest actor and stage director who created the concept: Luiz Carlos Vasconcelos, who will also be responsible for the conception of this opera in 2022. A notable figure on Brazilian stages and screens, Luiz Carlos has roots in the circus, masks, and magic, and is the creator of the Piolin Circus-Theater. Together with the talented art director Simone Mina, who designed the costumes and set design, these expressions are essential for our "three oranges" to once again enchant everyone, curing any melancholy.

History
Premiere of this production: 30 December 1921, Auditorium Theatre, Chicago

The Love for Three Oranges also known by its French language title L'amour des trois oranges (Lyubov' k tryom apel'sinam), is a satirical opera by Sergei Prokofiev. Its French libretto was based on the Italian play L'amore delle tre melarance by Carlo Gozzi. The opera premiered at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago, Illinois, on 30 December 1921.

Synopsis

Prologue
Advocates of Tragedy, Comedy, Lyric Drama and Farce argue for their favourite form before the curtain goes up for a play. The Ridicules (Cranks) round them up and tell them they are to witness "The Love for Three Oranges".

Act 1
The King of Clubs and his adviser Pantalone lament the sickness of the Prince, brought on by an indulgence in tragic poetry. Doctors inform the King that his son's hypochondria can only be cured with laughter, so Pantalone summons the jester Truffaldino to arrange a grand entertainment, together with the (secretly inimical) prime minister, Leandro.

The magician Tchelio, who supports the King, and the witch Fata Morgana, who supports Leandro and Clarice (niece of the King, lover of Leandro), play cards to see who will be successful. Tchelio loses three times in succession to Fata Morgana, who brandishes the King of Spades, alias of Leandro.

Leandro and Clarice plot to kill the Prince so that Clarice can succeed to the throne. The supporters of Tragedy are delighted at this turn of events. The servant Smeraldina reveals that she is also in the service of Fata Morgana, who will support Leandro.

Act 2
All efforts to make the Prince laugh fail, despite the urgings of the supporters of Comedy, until Fata Morgana is knocked over by Truffaldino and falls down, revealing her underclothes—the Prince laughs, as do all the others except for Leandro and Clarice. Fata Morgana curses him: henceforth, he will be obsessed by a "love for three oranges". At once, the Prince and Truffaldino march off to seek them.

Act 3
Tchelio tells the Prince and Truffaldino where the three oranges are, but warns them that they must have water available when the oranges are opened. He also gives Truffaldino a magic ribbon with which to seduce the giant (female) Cook (a bass voice) who guards the oranges in the palace of the witch Creonte.

They are blown to the palace with the aid of winds created by the demon Farfarello, who has been summoned by Tchelio. Using the ribbon to distract the Cook, they grab the oranges and carry them into the surrounding desert.

While the Prince sleeps, Truffaldino opens two of the oranges. Fairy princesses emerge but quickly die of thirst. The Ridicules give the Prince water to save the third princess, Ninette. The Prince and Ninette fall in love. Several soldiers conveniently appear, and the Prince orders them to bury the two dead princesses. He leaves to seek clothing for Ninette so he can take her home to marry her, but, while he is gone, Fata Morgana transforms Ninette into a giant rat and substitutes Smeraldina in disguise.

Act 4
Everyone returns to the King's palace, where the Prince is now forced to prepare to marry Smeraldina. Tchelio and Fata Morgana meet, each accusing the other of cheating, but the Ridicules intervene and spirit the witch away, leaving the field clear for Tchelio. While Leandro and the Master of Ceremonies see that the palace is prepared for the wedding, Tchelio restores Ninette to her natural form. The plotters are sentenced to die but Fata Morgana helps them escape through a trapdoor, and the opera ends with everyone praising the Prince and his bride.

Venue Info

Theatro Municipal (São Paulo) - Sao Paulo
Location   Praça Ramos de Azevedo, s/n

Welcome to one of Brazil's greatest opera houses. Theatro Municipal de São Paulo doors open to the city and the world, a stage prepared to create and deliver memorable and accessible experiences, welcoming classical and contemporary artistic expressions.

The luxurious building, visibly influenced by European opera houses, was built as an aspirational symbol of São Paulo's high society, which, with the abundance of the coffee cycle, desired a performance venue worthy of its European wealth and ambitions to host the great artists of lyrical music and theater.

The project, designed by the Ramos de Azevedo firm—in collaboration with Italians Cláudio Rossi and Domiziano Rossi—began in 1903 and was handed over to the city eight years later. In September 1911, the Municipal Theater opened to distinguished guests before a crowd of 20,000 people, dazzled by the pomp and spectacular lighting for the time—the building was the first to be fully powered by electricity.

The Municipal's stage featured the most important companies of the first half of the 20th century, featuring names such as Enrico Caruso, Maria Callas, Bidu Sayão, Arturo Toscanini, Camargo Guarnieri, Villa-Lobos, Francisco Mignone, Ana Pawlova, Arthur Rubinstein, Claudio Arrau, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Isadora Duncan, Nijinsky, and Baryshnikov, among many others. Always extending beyond the classical scene, it crowned its cosmopolitan vocation by hosting one of the most important events in the history of the arts in Brazil, the SEMANA DE 22 (WEEK OF '22), featuring Mário and Oswald de Andrade, Anita Malfatti, and many other celebrated young artists who launched the Brazilian modernist movement.

In its over 100-year history, three major renovations have preserved, renovated, and expanded the Theater, which now boasts a restored building. In 2012, the Praça das Artes facility was created to house artistic groups, the municipal music and dance schools, and the multiple activities of the Municipal Theater Complex.

Important Info
Type: Opera
City: Sao Paulo, Brazil
Starts at: 20:00
Acts: 4
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