About the work
Dramma per musica in three acts by Antonio Vivaldi, first performed on 27 October 1716 at the Teatro Sant'Angelo in Venice, where the composer worked as impresario. The libretto by Domenico Lalli caused a rift: in the printed booklet, Lalli distanced himself from the staged version and signed it only "N. N."
Plot
In the fictional city of Ama in Cilicia, Queen Lisea impersonates her brother Tamese, believed dead, to secure her rule. When the real Tamese returns alive, the romantic and political claims of several couples become entangled until a double wedding resolves the confusion. The role of Nicandro is a trouser role for soprano.
Cultural significance
Scholars see in the nine arias that Vivaldi substituted after the fact traces of censorship or a falling-out between composer and librettist. Successful at its premiere, the opera had no known revival during the eighteenth century and has only been rediscovered since the 2000s.