Casa Italiana NYU is set to a live recording of “Enrico IV,” a new opera in two acts with music by Roberto Scarcella Perino and libretto by Federica Anichini, based on Luigi Pirandello’s 1922 play.

The recording, open to the public, is set to take place on Feb. 19 at 6:30 p.m.

The opera tells the story of a modern nobleman who, after a fall from a horse 20 years earlier, believes himself to be 11th-century Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV. Living in a castle in Umbria provided by his wealthy sister, he is served by “courtiers” in period costume who maintain his illusion. When a psychiatrist attempts to restore his sanity by arranging visits from his former beloved Donna Matilde, her daughter, and Henry’s rival in love, the truth emerges: the nobleman is actually sane and simply prefers the trappings of the Middle Ages to the modern world. He ultimately commits a crime that forces him to spend the rest of his life feigning madness.

Italian baritone Gianluca Margheri stars in the title role, leading a cast that includes mezzo-soprano Anna Maria Vacca as Matilde and soprano Tessa McQueen as Frida. Tenor Ben Reisinger appears as Carlo, with baritone Joseph Parrish as Belcredi and bass Dasol Lee as Dottore. The ensemble also features soprano Shelén Hughes Camacho as Bertoldo, mezzo-soprano Lauren Randolph as Landolfo, tenor Jonghyun Park as Ordulfo, and bass-baritone Giuseppe Annunziato as Arialdo. Mariam Bombrun serves as pianist.

The composer will present the work himself.

Pirandello won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1934 and revolutionized modern drama with his “theater within the theater” invention. “Henry IV” (1922) remains one of his two greatest plays alongside “Six Characters in Search of an Author” (1921).

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