Shakespeare's cursed king meets Verdi's thunderous score—Abbado conducts your doom at La Scala.
Piero Cappuccilli and Shirley Verrett lead Verdi’s sombre masterpiece, drawn from one of Shakespeare’s most celebrated tragedies. Filmed for television at Teatro alla Scala in 1979, Claudio Abbado conductes a night to remember.
Acting
Verrett's Lady Macbeth: volcanic, terrifying, technically flawless.
Direction
Battistoni's camera worships Verdi's mounting dread.
Score
Abbado's witch choruses still raise hackles.
Director
Carlo Battistoni
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Abbado recorded this same cast for Deutsche Grammophon just weeks later—this performance has the live electricity the studio version chased.
1979 La Scala audiences endured actual heatwave temperatures; Cappuccilli's sweat is documentary, not performance.
IT
