About the work
“Battaglia – Die Frauen von Palermo” (Battaglia – The Women of Palermo) is an opera by the Italian composer Lucia Ronchetti. The libretto was written by the Russian author Maria Stepanova and translated into German by Olga Radetzkaja; it is sung in German. Oper Frankfurt commissioned the work with support from the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation and has scheduled the world premiere for 6 June 2027, staged by Claus Guth and conducted by Michael Wendeberg.
Plot
At its centre is the photographer Letizia Battaglia (1935–2022), who from the 1970s recorded the killings and violence of the Mafia in her home city for the Palermo newspaper L’Ora. The opera turns its attention to the Sicilian women who, as mothers, sisters or wives, have lost relatives to organised crime. Battaglia is portrayed by a violist who descends into an underworld where the women confront their memories.
Cultural significance
Ronchetti had already written the Dante opera “Inferno” for Oper Frankfurt, which premiered in concert at the Bockenheimer Depot in 2021. “Battaglia” is one of two world premieres the company is presenting in the 2026/27 season; there is no critical reception yet ahead of the premiere.