An Opera Double Bill: "The Impresario" (Mozart) & "Prima La Musica" (Salieri)

Mozart’s The Impresario and Salieri’s Prima La Musica are affectionate satires of the operatic world that revel in backstage chaos. Packed with quick wit, vocal showmanship, and creative disputes that still feel familiar 240 years later, singers battle for status, composers and poets argue over artistic priorities, and everyone is convinced they are the most indispensable person in the room.

Originally commissioned and presented in direct competition with one another, these works are often linked through Mozart and Salieri’s supposed rivalry. In this double bill, Operantics leans into the humour, theatricality, and joy of live opera making.

Salieri’s Prima La Musica

Is opera driven by beautiful music or brilliant poetry? This backstage comedy has an opinion, and it is loudly contested.

Commissioned to create a new opera at impossible speed, a composer and a poet are forced into collaboration while disagreeing on just about everything. The composer insists the music must come first, while the poet argues that words give meaning to sound. Meanwhile, singers demand arias that show them off, deadlines loom, and compromises are made on the fly.

Salieri’s Prima La Musica is quick, clever, and sharply observed, with elegant music that underlines the ridiculous pressures of artistic creation. The result is a compact comic gem that feels as relevant now as it did in the 18th century.

Mozart’s The Impresario

What happens when artistic egos are bigger than the budget? Chaos, naturally.

In The Impresario, a well-meaning theatre manager sets out to assemble a new opera company, only to discover that the real drama happens offstage. Two rival sopranos battle for supremacy, each convinced she is the true star.

Mozart’s sparkling score skewers the absurdities of the performing arts with wit and affection, pairing virtuosic vocal fireworks with sharp spoken comedy. Short, fast-paced, and delightfully self-aware, The Impresario is a love letter to opera that also gleefully sends it up.

Event Details

Date & Time: Fri, 27 Mar, 7pm – 9pm AEDT
Venue: The Eternity Playhouse
Location: Darlinghurst NSW, Australia

About the Performance