Opera Southwest debuts lost Spanish zarzuela 'Doña Clementina'

Luigi Boccherini’s “Doña Clementina” is making its American debut this April with Opera Southwest.

A comedy of manners in the form of a zarzuela, or Spanish operetta, “Doña Clementina” premiered in 1786, the same year as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro.” Like “Figaro,” “Clementina” is a marriage-themed work that satirizes the social customs of the 18th century European aristocracy.

“It features a similar cast of characters: flirtatious daughters, earnest suitors, scheming maids, and at least one aristocrat in over his head,” said Tony Zancanella, executive director of OSW. “There’s a deep affinity in the architecture — these works all spin comic intrigue out of tight domestic spaces, driven by characters who know how to use appearances to their advantage. But while Mozart’s operas reach for cosmic stakes, ‘Clementina’ keeps the comedy grounded: a salon world with sharper teeth than it first appears.”

Teresa Castillo, a critically acclaimed soprano, will perform the title role in her official Opera Southwest debut.

Castillo agrees with Zancanella’s Mozart comparison, but draws a more up-to-date parallel, too.

“It’s very telenovela-like,” Castillo said. “We’re really leaning into that in the staging, and it’s so funny!”

With its comic intrigue, romance, mistaken identities and what Castillo calls a “big reveal,” “Clementina” has all the elements of a modern telenovela.

“It’s very family friendly,” Castillo said. “But honestly, it’s just so funny. So, if you’re a fan of telenovelas, or if you like musicals and operas, you’ll enjoy it.”

While its soap operaish plot may feel familiar and relatable, she said other aspects are charmingly antiquated.

Castillo’s family is from Costa Rica, and she grew up speaking both Spanish and English fluently, but the vocabulary of Boccherini’s libretto was not like any Spanish she had ever spoken.

“It’s almost Shakespearean in the way it’s written,” she said. “Even some of the native Spanish speakers in the cast – we have someone from Puerto Rico and somebody from Mexico – and even they’re saying sometimes they don’t know what they’re saying, because the language is so old.”

Fortunately, she said the director, Pat Diamond, has done a lot of Shakespeare productions in the past, so he knows how to get performers to communicate the meanings of difficult texts through gesture.

“He wants us to be very physical when we’re speaking, or have a lot of intention put into each phrase, which will be helpful for the audience,” Castillo said.

She said some audiences will enjoy the archaic language, because it helps transport them back in time.

“If you like ‘Bridgerton’ or ‘Pride and Prejudice’ — the one with Keira Knightley — if you’re a fan of things like that, then you’ll probably really like this show,” she said.

Zancanella also emphasized that “Clementina” has surprisingly strong roles for women, considering the era in which it was written.

“The heart of Clementina isn’t in its patriarch, Don Clemente, or the suitors scrambling for position. It’s in Clementina herself, her sister Narcisa, the quick-witted maid Cristeta, and the shrewd governess Doña Damiana. These women are agents, organizers, instigators,” Zancanella said. “They assess their surroundings, navigate expectations, and steer the plot toward something that looks like resolution — even if they have to play the long game to get there.”

“The men may speak the loudest, but it’s the women who shift the ground beneath them. And Boccherini gives them the best material to do it,” he said.

Boccherini, an Italian-born composer who lived and worked in Spain from the age of 25 on, is best known for his classical compositions with rococo flourishes.

“Vocal theater was not his usual playground. ‘Clementina’ is his only surviving zarzuela, and one of the very few vocal works he ever wrote,” Zancanella said. “That alone makes it a curiosity. But what makes it worth hearing, and reviving, is how fluently it speaks across genres, borders, and centuries.”

OSW is incorporating some of Boccherini’s instrumental pieces, as well.

“There’s incidental music in all of the dialog scenes,” Castillo said. “So, you’ll get to hear other pieces of Boccherini’s that are not from the score that we’re adding in. Those are really great additions.”

A true “lost gem” by an underappreciated composer, Doña Clementina is being brought into the 21st century by a very talented cast, ready to delight new audiences.

Additionally, Opera Southwest will be hosting “Taste of Opera” — a preshow dinner and relaxed conversation with Opera Southwest artistic staff members, on Friday, April 11. “Taste of Opera” is sold separately.

Doña Clementina will be sung in Spanish, with an English translation projected above the stage.

Opera Southwest debuts lost Spanish zarzuela 'Doña Clementina'