Composition History
The opera was the result of a commission during Prokofiev's successful first visit to the USA in 1918. After successful concerts in Chicago (including his First Symphony), he was approached by the director of the Chicago Opera Association, Cleofonte Campanini, to write an opera. Conveniently, Prokofiev had already drafted a libretto on the journey over based on Gozzi's play in the Commedia dell'Arte tradition, (which was itself based on Giambattista Basile's fairy tale "The Love for Three Oranges"). The eventual libretto was adapted by Prokofiev from Vsevolod Meyerhold's translation of Gozzi's play. The adaptation modernized some of the Commedia dell'Arte influences and also introduced a dose of Surrealism. Due to Prokofiev's own scanty knowledge of English, and as Russian would have been unacceptable to American audiences, the initial version was set in French, with the possible assistance of the soprano Vera Janacopoulos, as L'Amour des trois oranges.
The opera was given its premiere performance on December 30, 1921, at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago, with the composer himself conducting. It received its first Russian production in Petrograd (now St. Petersburg) in 1926 and has since entered the standard repertoire of many opera companies.
Probably the best-known piece in the opera is the "March", which was used by CBS in the series The FBI in Peace and War that was broadcast 1944-58. Prokofiev also quotes the march in act 2 of his ballet Cinderella (Op. 87).
Read more about this topic: The Love For Three Oranges
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