About the work
Adriano in Siria is an opera seria in three acts by Josef Mysliveček, setting Pietro Metastasio's libretto that had premiered at the Viennese court in 1732 and drew on Cassius Dio's Roman History and the Historia Augusta. Mysliveček wrote his version for Florence, where it opened at the Teatro del Cocomero (today's Teatro Niccolini) on 8 September 1776.
Plot
In Antioch in the year 117 AD, Emperor Hadrian is betrothed to Sabina but falls in love with the captive Parthian princess Emirena. After extensive intrigue, virtue prevails: Hadrian renounces Emirena, frees all the prisoners and reunites her with her fiancé Farnaspe.
Cultural significance
The opera was a success; tenor Giovanni Ansani's aria 'Leon piagato a morte' circulated widely in manuscript across Europe during the 18th century. It was Mysliveček's last stage work for Florence and was revived, with substitute arias, in Pavia and Perugia.