Power and riches. Love and lust. Friendship and betrayal.

Riccardo doesn’t want to die. He is powerful, he is rich, he is the life of the party. He is in love with his best friend’s wife. But death is coming for Riccardo.

Treachery, desire, rumour and risk abound in this opera, based on a real-life assassination. Verdi was the master of political drama, and this rarely heard opera is a thrilling example of his craft: powerful, pacey and packing an emotional punch.

This new staging comes from the Verdi Festival in Parma, where Daniele Menghini created a world of sinister beauty with costumes offering a nod to Renaissance Europe.

Homegrown superstar Nicole Car needs no introduction, bringing her celebrated Amelia to Australian audiences for the first time. Diego Torre, renowned for his Verdi tenor roles, sings Riccardo with a burnished, brilliant tone and plenty of heart. Following his recent Covent Garden debut, Daniel Luis de Vicente makes his Australian debut as Renato, the spurned husband bent on revenge.

A Masked Ball is a treat for Verdi lovers, with its lush orchestration, powerful arias and a fast-moving plot that races towards tragedy. This sensational cast, under awardwinning conductor Alevtina Ioffe, makes it unmissable.