Sarasota Opera stages Beethoven's 'Fidelio'

Giuseppi Verdi is getting the bulk of the attention from people who follow the Sarasota Opera this year, as the company winds up its gargantuan 28-year project of performing every piece music that Verdi ever wrote.

But the 2016 Winter Opera Festival isn't all Verdi all the time. In fact, this season the Sarasota Opera will do every single opera written by one of the greatest composers of all time.

It's quite a bit easier to do that with Ludwig van Beethoven than with Verdi, though. "Fidelio" is the only opera he ever wrote. It's next up from Sarasota Opera, opening Saturday and running through March 11.

The story has to do with a woman, Leonore, who disguises herself as a prison guard named Fidelio in order to free her husband, Florestan, who is a political prisoner in 18th century Spain. Probably its most famous piece of music is its overture, which has become known as "Leonore No. 3."

Details: Through Feb. 13-March 11, Sarasota Opera House, 61 N. Pineapple Ave., Sarasota. Show times: 7:30 p.m. Feb. 13, 18 and 24, March 1 and 11; 1:30 p.m. Feb. 28 and March 5. Tickets: $19-$135. Information: 941-328-1300, sarasotaopera.org.

-- Marty Clear

This story was originally published February 10, 2016 at 5:44 PM with the headline "Sarasota Opera stages Beethoven's 'Fidelio' ."