About the work
I masnadieri is a four-act opera by Giuseppe Verdi, with a libretto by Andrea Maffei after Friedrich Schiller's play Die Räuber (1781). London impresario Benjamin Lumley commissioned it following the success of Verdi's Ernani; the opera premiered on 22 July 1847 at Her Majesty's Theatre in London, conducted by Verdi himself with Jenny Lind as Amalia.
Plot
The young Carlo Moor leads a band of robbers after his brother Francesco slandered him to their father. Francesco then has their father imprisoned and feigns his death, hoping to seize the inheritance and Carlo's betrothed, Amalia. When Carlo learns the truth he frees his father, but in despair over his life as an outlaw he ultimately kills Amalia himself.
Cultural significance
The premiere drew high society, including Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, though critics found fault with the libretto. The opera disappeared from the stage for about ninety years and has only been performed with any regularity again since the 1970s.