Festival Opera in collaboration with The San Francisco Early Music Society
presents ALCINA by G.F. Handel.
She rules by seduction—until truth breaks the spell...
On a magical island, the sorceress Alcina lures men with beauty and desire, using them for pleasure before discarding them—transforming former lovers into the stones, animals, trees, and other objects that populate her enchanted world. Her allure, like her palace, is sustained by powerful spells that conceal the truth: both Alcina and her island are in ruins. When her latest conquest is given a magical ring that reveals this reality, the illusion begins to collapse. As Alcina’s powers fade, she loses her hold—and ultimately her conquest—to the force of true love.
Brought to life by a stellar cast and an orchestra of period instruments, this production unleashes the opera’s raw emotional intensity and virtuosic fire. At its center is Nikola Printz, whose magnetic performance reveals both Alcina’s intoxicating power and vulnerability beneath the spell. Dark, seductive, and musically electric—Alcina is baroque opera at its best.