About the work
Mosè in Egitto is an azione tragico-sacra in three acts by Gioachino Rossini to a libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola. It premiered on 5 March 1818 at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples; in 1827 Rossini substantially reworked it for Paris into the four-act Moïse et Pharaon.
Plot
After the plague of darkness, Pharaoh promises to let Mosè lead the Israelites out of Egypt but repeatedly breaks his word, partly because his son Osiride loves the Israelite Elcia and wants to prevent their departure. In the end Mosè leads his people through the parting Red Sea, while the pursuing Egyptians drown as the waters return.
Cultural significance
The clumsy staging of the sea's parting drew derisive laughter from the premiere audience; for a revival in March 1819 Rossini added the prayer 'Dal tuo stellato soglio' before the miracle, which became one of the opera's most celebrated numbers and silenced the mockery. Unusually for Rossini, the original version opens with no overture, beginning directly in darkness.