In his absence, Violetta receives an unexpected visit from Alfredo’s father. When Alfredo learns from her servant Annina that Violetta has sold her possessions to support the life they lead, he returns to the city to raise the necessary funds. Violetta and Alfredo are now living together in the idyllic countryside. Scene 1 A house in the country, three months later Instead, she resolves to plunge herself headlong into the vortex of hollow pleasures that make up her existence. As dawn breaks, the gentlemen must all go home, and Violetta is left alone to contemplate the idea of having a true love for herself. While left alone with Violetta, Alfredo protests his love, which she discourages at first, but then accepts in a sudden reversal. As the guests retire to other rooms, Violetta suddenly grows ill. Alfredo is pressured to make a toast in which Violetta joins him, urging everyone to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of life. Amidst the champagne, she is introduced to a middle-class gentleman, Alfredo Germont, who has been in love with her for over a year – since, we learn, her illness began.

Violetta, a courtesan of renown desire, is hosting a lavish party with the upper-class gentlemen of Paris and her fellow courtesans, all funded by her admiring patron, Baron Douphol.

La opera 2017