Conductor

Maurizio Benini

Norma

Biography

This is Maurizio Benini’s first  appearance with Irish National  Opera. After completing studies  in conducting and composition, he joined the Teatro Comunale di Bologna, where he made his debut as a conductor with Rossini’s Il signor Bruschino. In 1992 he debuted at Teatro alla Scala Milan with Rossini’s La donna del lago and Verdi’s Don Carlo, and at the Rossini Opera Festival with Rossini’s La scala di seta, launching a distinguished international career. He has led the Orchestra Filarmonica of Teatro Comunale di Bologna, and also served as Principal Conductor at Wexford Festival Opera (1995-1997), Principal Guest Conductor at Teatro Municipal in Santiago de Chile until 2006, and Principal Guest Conductor at Teatro San Carlo in Naples. He is regularly invited to the world’s leading opera houses, including the Opéra national de Paris, Wiener Staatsoper, Dutch National Opera & Ballet, Opernhaus Zürich, London’s Royal Ballet & Opera, Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, Teatro Real in Madrid, Metropolitan Opera in New York, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Opéra de Monte-Carlo, Théâtre du Capitole in Toulouse, and Teatro La Fenice in Venice, as well as festivals including Glyndebourne, The Edinburgh Festival, and Rossini Opera Festival. He collaborates actively with record label Opera Rara. Notable among his recordings is Rossini's La Cenerentola recorded for Deutsche Grammophon with the Metropolitan Opera. Highlights of the 2025-26 season include Bellini’s I Puritani and a symphonic concert at the Teatro Colón Buenos Aires; Donizetti’s Lucrezia Borgia at the Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville; and Verdi’s Rigoletto at Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich.

May 2026