About this book
Il sogno di Scipione by Pietro Metastasio opens a luminous portal to liberty, duty and the moral choices that define a hero's legacy. This celebrated 18th-century azione teatrale—set to music at its 1735 premiere by Predieri—reimagines Cicero’s Somnium Scipionis as a baroque musical drama where fate and virtue contend.
Metastasio’s libretto stages an allegorical dream in the palace of Massinissa: the young Scipio encounters La Costanza (Constancy) and La Fortuna (Fortune), while echoes of his adoptive grandfather Publio and father Emilio shape a meditation on fame, duty to Rome, and the transience of worldly reward. Written in elegant Italian verse, the piece blends classical philosophy with the emotional immediacy of opera seria, enriched by choral passages and dramatic duets that highlight the era’s musical aesthetics without revealing the story’s resolutions.
Ideal for listeners who love baroque music, classical literature, and historical musical theater, this audiobook offers a compact, thought-provoking experience. Tune in for Metastasio’s masterful poetry, the ethical drama of an ancient model of leadership, and a vivid example of 18th-century operatic artistry.
