Regieoper to be the most radically shocking to date. The inspiration for Mozart's opera was the overwhelming fascination of Europeans by all things Turkish. Orientalist elements abound in this story of a hero trying to rescue two girls from the clutches of an evil Pasha who has installed them in his harem, Seraglio. Instead of a genteel harem, Bieto has set this Abduction in a modern, garish bordello where men and women engage in extreme acts of sex and brutality. The sets consist mainly of whorehouse accoutrements, the lighting is colored and garish, and the costumes for the most part are
Marcella Sembrich Gye at Covent Garden and signed a contract there for five seasons. In June 1880 she created a sensation in her debut at Covent Garden as Lucia in Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor". She became a great favorite in the characters of Zerlina, "Don Giovanni"; Susanna, "The Marriage of Figaro"; Konstanze, "The Abduction from the Seraglio"; Lady Harriet/Martha, "Martha"; and, of course, Lucia. In 1883, Marcella Sembrich went to the United States to sing in the newly founded Metropolitan Opera company. She made her Met debut as Lucia in the company premiere of "Lucia di Lammermoor" on October 24, 1883. She