Luigi Illica (9 May 1857, Castell'Arquato, near Piacenza, Italy – 16 December 1919, Colombarone) was an Italian librettist who wrote for Giacomo Puccini (usually with Giuseppe Giacosa), Alfredo Catalani, Umberto Giordano and other important Italian composers. His most famous opera librettos are those for La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly and Andrea Chénier.

Illica's personal life sometimes imitated his libretti. The reason he is always photographed with his head slightly turned is because he lost his right ear in a duel over a woman.

When silent films based on Illica's operas were made, his name appeared in large letters on advertisements because distributors could only guarantee that his stories would be used, and not that they would be accompanied by the music of the appropriate composer.

[edit] Librettos

The dates given are those of creations.

• Il vassalo di Szegith^[1] (Smareglia, 1884)
• La Wally (Catalani, 1892)
• Cristoforo Colombo (Franchetti, 1892)
• Manon Lescaut^[2] (Puccini, 1893)
• Cornelius Schütt (Smareglia, 1893)
• Le martire (Samaras, 1894)
• Nozze istriane (Smareglia, 1895)
• La Bohème ^[3] (Puccini, 1896)
• Andrea Chénier (Giordano, 1896)
• Iris (Mascagni, 1898)
• Tosca ^[3] (Puccini, 1900)
• Anton (Galeotti, 1900)
• Medioevo Latino (Panizza, 1900)
• Le maschere (Mascagni, 1901)
• Il cuore della fanciulla (Buongiorno, 1901)
• Lorenza (Mascheroni, 1901)
• Germania (Franchetti, 1902)
• Nadeya (Cesare Rossi, 1903)
• Siberia (Umberto Giordano; 1903)
• Madama Butterfly ^[3] (Puccini, 1904)
• Cassandra (Gnecchi, 1905)
• Tess (Erlanger, 1906)
• Aurora (Panizza, 1908)
• Il principe Zilah (Franco Alfano, 1909)
• Hellera (Italo Montemezzi, 1909)
• La Perugina (Edoardo Mascheroni, 1909)
• Isabeau (Mascagni, 1911)
• Giova a Pompei ^[4] (Alberto Franchetti & Umberto Giordano, 1921)

[edit] Notes

1. ^ with Francesco Pozza
2. ^ with Ruggero Leoncavallo, Marco Praga, Giuseppe Giacosa and Domenico Oliva
3. ^ ^{a b c} with Giuseppe Giacosa
4. ^ with E. Romagnoli

[edit] External links

• Works by Luigi Illica at Project Gutenberg

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