The Teatro Municipal de Lima will present a new production of the opera Atahualpa, composed by the Italian composer Carlo Enrico Pasta with a libretto by the Italian Antonio Ghislanzoni on July 3 to 8, 2026.

Set in Cajamarca in 1532-1533, in the north of Peru, the opera tells the encounter between the Spanish and the capture of Atahualpa, known as the last of the Inca rulers.

The cast is lead by the Italian baritone Francesco Samuele Venuti in the title role, the Spanish soprano Sabrina Gárdez as Cora, a noble Inca princess, the Italian tenor Matteo Roma as Hernando de Soto, the Italian baritone Giuseppe De Luca as Francisco Pizarro, the Italian bass-baritone Gianluca Margheri as the friar Vicente de Valverde and the Peruvian baritone Xavier Fernández as the Spanish captain Fernando Pizarro. They will sing under the baton of the Italian director Andrea Foti with the National Choir of Peru and the theater’s symphony orchestra.

The production is directed by the Argentinian director Alejandro Chacón, the set design was created by the Spanish Sergio Loro, and the costumes by the Colombian Sandra Díaz.

“The Teatro Municipal de Lima has taken on the challenge of bringing a fundamental work back to the stage and rescuing a nearly forgotten chapter of our city’s cultural history. Carlo Enrico Pasta incorporated Peruvian melodies such as yaravíes and parts of the National Anthem of Peru, something that will surely delight and move Peruvians. This Italian-Peruvian opera will allow to experience a moment of supreme art,” stated Miguel Molinari, cultural manager of the Municipality of Lima.

The opera was originally premiered on November 23, 1875, at the Teatro Paganini in Genoa, then was premiered in Lima two years later at the Teatro Principal Manuel Ascencio Segura on January 11, 1877 with the Italian Opera Company. The Festival Granda  presented the opera in concert form with the Greek baritone Aris Argiris in the title role with the Italians Arianna Ballotta and Ivan Magrì as Cora and Soto, on March 23 and 25, 2013, the opera was recorded in CD by Universal Music.

The opera season in the Municipality of Lima’s theaters began with “Il Trovatore” and an encore of “Di quella pira” by Ivan Magrì, the 19th annual conference of OLA – Ópera Latinoamérica, Tomás de Torrejón y Velasco’s “La púrpura de la rosa,” and Rossini’s “Tancredi.”

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