The story continues…

Set during the First Crusade, the drama in Mercadante’s Il campo de’ crociati centres on Lea who, much like Shakespeare’s Juliet, is caught between two worlds. Driven by passionate love but trapped by forces beyond her control, she navigates danger and faith in a war-torn land shaped by violence, the ruthless pursuit of power and the certainty of righteousness on all sides. Mercadante’s music gives Lea a singularly powerful voice, framing her journey as a profoundly human struggle for dignity, agency and compassion, one that ends with her paying the highest price. It is a story whose universal values can speak directly to today’s audiences.

Why does Mercadante’s opera not enjoy regular performances today? Mercadante had established himself in the late 1830s as a leading advocate of operatic “reform”, drawing inspiration from French grand opéra and seeking to move beyond the conventions of composers such as Donizetti and Pacini. By the mid-1840s, however, his influence had waned as Verdi emerged as the dominant force in Italian opera. This Il campo de’ crociati – whose premiere took place in Verdi’s principal theatre, La Scala – can be seen as Mercadante’s attempt to reassert himself on Verdi’s own ground, using a grand historical subject and a librettist, Francesco Maria Piave, closely associated with Verdi’s greatest successes.

The opera’s progress was severely disrupted by the revolutionary events of 1848. Political unrest in Milan led to declining theatre audiences, financial instability at La Scala and repeated delays. Although the score was completed, the outbreak of popular revolution in March 1848 (the city’s famous cinque giornate) forced the closure of the theatre before Il campo could be staged. Mercadante returned to Naples, leaving his opera to an uncertain future. When the work was finally premiered after Austrian rule had been restored, it was extensively censored, and the cast assigned to perform it was not of the talent and skill level he desired. Further attempts to mount the production under better conditions were also unsuccessful. These factors, as well as the overwhelming popularity of Verdi, meant that Il campo de’ crociati was soon forgotten.

Il campo de’ crociati therefore not only presents an exciting opportunity to give Mercadante’s the long-awaited performance it deserves, in the version the composer had imagined, it also offers valuable insights into Mercadante’s artistic ambitions and the intricate connections between opera, politics and cultural identity in mid-19^th-century Italy.