About the work
Il prigionier superbo is a three-act opera seria by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, probably to a libretto by Gennaro Antonio Federico based on Francesco Silvani's La fede tradita e vendicata. Written for the birthday of Empress Elisabeth Christine, it premiered on 5 September 1733 at the newly reopened Teatro San Bartolomeo in Naples, which had been closed after an earthquake in November 1732.
Plot
The deposed Norwegian king Sostrate and his daughter Rosmene fall into the power of the Gothic king Metalce, who desires Rosmene even though he has promised her to the Danish prince Viridate. Torn between saving her father and her love, Rosmene's dilemma drives the plot to a rebellion that restores Sostrate to power and reunites the lovers.
Cultural significance
While the intermezzo performed between its acts, La serva padrona, soon became famous across Europe, the opera itself was quickly forgotten and did not return to the stage until revivals beginning in 1997. Musicologist Claudio Toscani published a critical edition in 2017, based on a copy preserved at the Naples Conservatorio San Pietro a Majella.