I vespri siciliani is a five-act Italian opera originally written in French for the Paris Opéra by the Italian romantic composer Giuseppe Verdi and translated into Italian shortly after its premiere in June 1855.
Scene from the opera (Lithograph by Roberto Focosi)
Verdi in 1859
Set design for Act V by Filippo Peroni
Les vêpres siciliennes is a grand opera in five acts by the Italian romantic composer Giuseppe Verdi set to a French libretto by Eugène Scribe and Charles Duveyrier from their work Le duc d'Albe of 1838. Les vêpres followed immediately after Verdi's three great mid-career masterpieces, Rigoletto, Il trovatore and La traviata of 1850 to 1853 and was first performed at the Paris Opéra on 13 June 1855.
Scene from the Italian version of the opera (Lithograph by Roberto Focosi)
Verdi in 1859
Eugène Scribe, librettist of the opera
Les vêpres Siciliennes: cover of the score