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| Senesino by John Vandenbank. Private Collection, UK. © The Handel House Trust/Christopher Ison. |
It is 300 years since Handel first wrote and presented Rodelinda, the second of three masterpieces that he wrote just after moving into his house in Brook Street. Now, Handel Hendrix House, the museum based at Handel’s Brook Street home, is holding an exhibition to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the composition and first performance of the opera Rodelinda. The exhibition will open on Thursday, February 13 and run until Sunday, July 6, 2025.
The centrepiece of the exhibition will be a portrait of one of the stars of the first performance, the great castrato Senesino who sang the role of Bertarido in the opera, one of some 18 roles that he created for Handel.
The portrait of Senesino from 1725 by John Vandenbank depicts the singer in character as Bertarido. He is shown in costume, described at the time as ‘Hungarian habit’, at the moment in the opera in which he contemplates an urn believed by the other characters to contain his ashes. James Harris in an inscription on the back of the portrait refers to Bertarido’s aria from the scene, ‘Dove sei’ as ‘a most pathetic and capital song’.
In addition to the portrait of Sensino, the exhibition will include an early libretto of the opera, portraits of other cast members and objects illustrating opera-going culture from the 18th century.
Olwen Foulkes, curator of the exhibition at Handel Hendrix House, said, “We are excited to be marking the 300th anniversary of the composition in Brook Street and its first performance with this exhibition in a room in Handel’s house, featuring this wonderful portrait of Senesino. Paintings and descriptions of singers’ costumes from this time are rare, and we hope that this exhibition will help our visitors to immerse themselves in the world of Rodelinda’s first performance.”
Full details from the Handel Hendrix House website.
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