XIII Century Teruel: Youthful commoner Juan de Marcilla, hoping to become worthy enough of marrying his childhood love, the noble Isabel de Segura, leaves Teruel to build his fortune. Five years later, he returns home sickly and wounded, only to find that Isabel has married Don Pedro de Azagra. Devastated, he receives a visit in his dreams by magic healers Saint Cosme and Saint Damian, who help lift his curse and encourage him to reunite with Isabel against all social sanctions. And yet, things go in unexpected ways…
Produced by the Fundación Amantes de Teruel, the Los Amantes opera was performed in 2017 and 2018 in the gothic Church of San Pedro, enveloped in the setting’s unique artistic treasures and passionately displaying the best of local talent. Soloists, male and children choirs, three instrumental ensembles, two giant bass drums custom built for the production, church bells, make-up and lighting artists, choreographers, sculptors and painters all worked together in the creative journey that delved deeper into the myth and emotion of the Lovers.
The tradition behind the Lovers of Teruel has been passed on through generations for eight hundred years as the epitome of courtly love. Adapted by poets, playwrights and composers across five centuries, and crucially rooted in popular imagination and storytelling, the legend of the lovers lives between the Middle Ages and Romanticism. While love, death, adventure and homecoming drive the original story, Navarrete’s version also explores themes of violence between classes, spiritual healing and the meaning of dreams.