Achilles in Sciro - Achille in Sciro

Achilles in Sciro has its source in a libretto by Metastasius: the augurs having predicted Achilles' death under the walls of Troy, his mother Thetis sends him to hide on the island of Scyros with King Lycomedes. To ensure his anonymity, Achilles hides under female clothes and takes the name Pyrrha. However, he soon falls in love with the king's daughter, Princess Deidamia, who has already been promised by her father to Teagene, king of Chalcis.

 

Informed of Achilles' cunning and requesting the hero for their expedition against the Trojan city, the Greeks send Odysseus to Scyros. Thanks to a skilful stratagem, Odysseus reveals Achilles' deception (Odysseus offers female gifts to the women of the court, but Achilles, in the guise of Pyrra, chooses a shield and a sword), and in view of the love that already unites the young hero with Deidamia, Teagene renounces his intention to marry the king's daughter. The two young men then celebrate their engagement, which is consummated after Achilles' return, with the blessing of Love (Achilles and Deidamia marry), Glory (Achilles follows Odysseus to take part in the Trojan War) and Time (the story enters History).

A libretto for several operas

Metastasio's libretto was to be the subject of numerous operatic adaptations, notably to celebrate high-profile weddings. These include Antonio Caldara's dramma per musica created in Vienna in 1736 for the wedding of the future Maria Theresa with the Duke of Lorraine François-Etienne, Domenico Sarro's opera seria created in 1737 for the inauguration of the Teatro di San Carlo by King Charles VII of Naples, and Johann Adolf Hasse's Achille in Sciro in 1759.

The composer Francesco Corselli (or Francisco Courcelle) also used Metastasio's libretto to compose his own Achilles in Sciro, which was premiered at the Real Coliseo del Buen Retiro in Madrid on 8 December 1744 to celebrate the forthcoming marriage of the Infanta of Spain, Maria Teresa Rafaela, to the Dauphin Louis of France (son of Louis XV). A major figure in 18th century Spanish opera, Francesco Corselli was the Kapellmeister of Capilla Real in Madrid and one of the leading opera composers at the Spanish Court.