The comic opera L'oca del Cairo, ossia Lo sposo deluso (The Goose of Cairo, or The Deluded Bridegroom), which can also be interpreted as a forerunner of Le nozze di Figaro and Così fan tutte, featuring numerous interesting and rarely heard Mozartian motifs, can be seen for the last time on 20 and 22 February 2026, at the Eiffel Art Studios of the Hungarian State Opera. The principal roles in Attila Toronykőy’s production are performed by István Kovács, Gabriella Balga, Yanis Benabdallah, and Péter Balczó, with the OPERA Orchestra conducted by Pál Németh.
The greedy Don Pippo, instead of giving his ward Celidora in marriage to her beloved Biondello, intends her for an elderly Roman count, the kind-hearted Lionetto, in order to obtain in return the hand and dowry of the count’s ward, Lavina, with whom the marquis’s secretary, Calandrino, is in love. Don Pippo plans a double wedding and, to this end, locks up first Celidora and then Lavina in his tower. The desperate young lovers ultimately attempt to escape their predicament with the help of the servants Auretta and Chichibio…
Following the success of Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Mozart began work on two major Italian-language operas, which he never completed: his attention was first diverted to orchestral works and later to Le nozze di Figaro. The surviving parts of L'oca del Cairo (1783) and Lo sposo deluso, composed a year later, reveal highly distinctive manifestations of Mozart’s genius. These include, among others, the overture of the latter, which turns into a quartet without any transition, or Chichibio’s aria lasting barely a minute is shorter even than the famous Champagne Aria from Don Giovanni. Based on an idea conceived 35 years ago by Dr. Szilveszter Ókovács, the fragments were shaped into a single work by Pál Németh, flutist-conductor, founder and director of the Savaria Baroque Orchestra. The resulting pasticcio premiered in 2019 and was also the first premiere ever held at the Eiffel Workshop House. Attila Toronykőy’s production was streamed online the same year on OperaVision and was also invited to the St. Petersburg Chamber Opera Festival.
In the current season, Gabriella Balga (Celidora), Melinda Heiter (Lavina), Opera Studio member Botond Pál (Biondello), and Eszter Zemlényi (Auretta) join as new cast members the already well-established team of István Kovács (Don Pippo), Péter Balczó (Lionetto), Yanis Benabdallah (Calandrino), and Máté Fülep (Chichibio). The Hungarian State Opera Orchestra and Chorus (chorus director: Gábor Csiki) are once again conducted by Pál Németh.
For those who enjoy Mozart’s famous Italian-language operas such as Le nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni, or Così fan tutte, all of which are featured in the current season of the Hungarian State Opera, this fully realised and entertaining stage production, created from the composer’s rarely heard works, will undoubtedly offer an exciting experience.
Photo by János Kummer
