Auditorio de Tenerife Premieres Modern Production of Gounod’s ‘Roméo et Juliette’

The Auditorio de Tenerife premieres its new in-house production of Charles Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette tonight. Following this opening, the opera will be performed in the Symphony Hall on the 15th, 17th, 19th, and 21st of this month. This production offers a modern take on the Shakespearean classic, shifting the focus toward the generational divide and the burden of family history.

Director André Heller-Lopes has reimagined the story, setting the action between the 1960s and 1970s. Working with set designer Renato Theobaldo and lighting designer Gonzalo Córdova, the production uses the metaphor of a 19th-century theater under renovation to represent the younger generation’s struggle to rebuild a world stifled by rigid traditions and old grievances. Students from IES La Orotava-Manuel González Pérez, IES Mencey Acaymo, and CIFP Tony Gallardo also contributed to the creation of the stage elements.

The lead roles are performed by Airam Hernández and Sofía Esparza. They are joined by a talented cast including Simón Orfila, Fernando Campero, Christina Campsall, Belén Elvira, Anton Keremidtchiev, Mario Bahg, Manuel Gómez Ruiz, Guillermo Montecino, Romanas Kudriasovas, and Mikhail Biryukov. The production’s technical elements are further enhanced by choreography from Franklin Dávalos and costumes by Sofia di Nunzio.

Musically, conductor José Luis Gómez leads the Tenerife Symphony Orchestra, aiming to blend Italian lyricism with the French tradition central to Gounod’s work. The orchestra and the Ópera de Tenerife-Intermezzo Resident Choir, directed by Miguel Ángel Arqued, play a central role in the drama, while the Centro Internacional de Danza Tenerife provides additional movement. Ultimately, this production moves beyond traditional romance to highlight the tension between the opulence of the past and the younger generation’s urgent need for change.