| Ottone in villa | |
|---|---|
| Opera by Antonio Vivaldi | |
 Title page of the libretto, 1713, dedication to Henry Herbert, 9th Earl of Pembroke | |
| Librettist | Domenico Lalli |
| Language | Italian |
| Premiere | 17 May 1713 Teatro delle Grazie, Vicenza |
Ottone in villa (Otho at his villa, RV 729) is an opera in three acts by Antonio Vivaldi to an Italian libretto by Domenico Lalli (the pseudonym of Sebastiano Biancardi). It was Vivaldi's first opera and premiered on 17 May 1713 at the Teatro delle Garzerie in Vicenza.[1] Lalli's pastoral drama is set in ancient Rome and was a condensed adaptation of Francesco Maria Piccioli's satirical libretto for Carlo Pallavicino's opera Messalina (1679). However, Lalli changed several of the characters in Piccioli's libretto. Messalina became an invented character, Cleonilla. The Roman Emperor Claudius became another emperor, Otho (Ottone), who had already appeared as a protagonist in Monteverdi's L'incoronazione di Poppea (1642) and in Handel's Agrippina (1709).[2]
| Role | Voice type | Premiere cast, 17 May 1713 |
|---|---|---|
| Cleonilla | soprano | Anna Maria Giusti "La Romanina"[3] |
| Ottone | contralto (en travesti) | Diana Vico |
| Caio Silio | soprano castrato | Bartolomeo Bartoli |
| Decio | tenor | Gaetano Mossi |
| Tullia (in disguise as "Ostilio") | soprano | Margherita Fazzoli |
The Roman Emperor Ottone is in love with Cleonilla, who can't resist flirting with two young Romans, Ostilio and Caio. Ostilio is in reality a woman, Tullia, who disguised herself because she's in love with Caio. She plans to kill Cleonilla out of jealousy, but she first tries to dissuade her from her relation with Caio. Caio sees the meeting and misinterprets it as a romantic encounter. He warns Ottone, who commands him to kill Ostilio. Before he can execute the order, Ostilio reveals himself to be Tullia. Cleonilla claims to have always known it, to conciliate Ottone. He believes her and the opera closes with the marriage of Tullia and Caio.
