Christian and Alberto Relaunching Baroque Opera

Serse, by Georg Friedrich Handel, on stage 28 and 29 May, was the first step of an ambitious project that was inspired by the past but looks towards the future. Christian Frattima and Alberto Luchetti met while they were attending the Master in Management of Performing Arts (MASP) at SDA Bocconi and, after internships at several important cultural institutions, they decided to create the Coin du Roi-Société d'Opéra Association in late 2014. The association aims to valorize pre-Romantic opera heritage and high quality but small theaters: "We are a private organization that is supported by memberships and selling tickets," explains Christian Frattima, who has a degree in violin performance from Verona and a degree in conducting from Saint Petersburg and Vilnius, and is musical director of Coin du Roi. "We aim to offer a unique and intimate experience to a niche audience that is able to appreciate it." With a permanent orchestra of 30 members and companies set up by recruiting artists in Italy and from abroad "without the bureaucratic restrictions that must be observed to receive public funds," says Alberto Luchetti, general director. During Coin du Roi's first season, three shows will be staged at Teatro Litta: "After Serse, Mozart's Il Re Pastore will be on 17-18 October and Pergolesi's La serva padrona and Livietta e Tracollo on 12-13 December." Opera is a very expensive art form as lots of people are involved and the scenery is lavish, but this is generally not a problem because theaters putting on operas receive public funding. Christian and Alberto are pursuing a different path. "An alternative form is possible, based on young people, private entrepreneurship and a sort of patronage like what originally occurred, in the 1600s and 1700s," explain Frattima and Lucchini. "This is why we chose the form of an association." At most 40% of total proceeds are from tickets, the rest must be obtained from members who pay fixed fees. "It will be like the box-holders from the 1700s, we offer a high quality show that excites their interests, a complete experience during which aesthetic beauty and appearance plays a big role, just like during the Baroque period."

Baroque opera, which by nature is smaller and therefore requires fewer resources, lends itself very well to this project. But Christian Frattima and Alberto Luchetti would like to be very clear that quality will not be spared: "The fact that we don't have restrictions allows us to talent scout, find the best and most motivated young people. Stars are often spoiled and do not necessarily guarantee that the show will be high quality. As a result, we travel often to see people and meet them," they explain. A Baroque opera on average costs 80,000-100,000 euros, but Chistian and Alberto, who both hold degrees in Economics, aren't worried about making accounting mistakes: "In the end, people often say music and mathematics have a lot in common," says Christian Frattima. "Just think of Bach..."