Introducing Bass-barihunk Carlo Checchi; Belcore at Festspiele Immling

Carlo Checchi

Italian bass-barihunk Carlo Checchi is new to our site and was brought to our attention by a reader, Checchi is performing Belcore in Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore through August 13th at the Festspiele Immling in Germany. The cast also includes Sergio Foresti (who we should also feature) as Dulcamara, Elisa Cenni as Adina, Chuanliang Wang as Nemorino and Anastasia Churakova as Gianetta. Tickets and additional information is available online.

Cecchi, who also has a degree in computer engineering, studied voice at l'Istituto Musicale Pareggiato "Vittadini" di Pavia. He was the winner of the VI Concorso ArteInCanto Competition.

Carlo Checchi

He made his debut at the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa as Apollo in Mozart's Apollo and Hyacinth. His past roles include Figaro in Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia at the Teatro Valle in Rome, as well as in opera houses in Lucca, Pisa and Livorno; Papageno in Mozart's Die Zauberflote at the Royal Opera House in Muscat, Oman; and, Count Almaviva in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro at the National Theatre of Opera and Ballet in Tirana.

Sexy Elixir of Love in Brussels

Armando Noguera and Aris Agiris alternate as Belcore

La Monnaie in Brussels has adapted Damiano Michieletto's sexy version of Donizetti's The elixir of love that was produced at the Palau de les Arts Reina and Teatro Real to a setting at Cirque Royal in Belgian capital. The production, which we've covered extensively, also has set designs by Paolo Fantin and costumes by Silvia Aymonino (which are often limited to bathing suits).

Armando Noguera and Aris Agiris are alternating the role of Belcore, who has to change out of his pants and into swim trunks on stage (all done discreetly behind a beach towel).  Olga Peretyatko and Anne-Catherine Gille rotate as Adina, Dmitry Korchak and Antonio Poli alternate as Nemorino and Riccardo Novaro and Simon Orfila switch nights as Dr. Dulcamara.

The "villagers" in La Monnaie's Elixir of Love

In this production, Adina is a sexy landlady of a Mediterranean beach bar, the lovelorn Nemorino is  a deckchair attendant, Belcore is a coastguard captain, Dulcamara sells baggies and wonder drinks from a jeep and the villagers are now half-dressed sun-worshippers partying on the beach.

Performances run through September 18th and tickets are available online.

Sexy "Elixir of Love" in Graz

Andrè Schuen  (Foto © Werner Kmetitsch/Oper Graz)

Two years ago we received an email from Germany alerting us to the emerging young Tyrolean talent Andrè Schuen. Remarkably, we lost track of him until we were alerted a second time. This time it was for his sexy and shirtless performance of Belcore in Donizetti's "The Elixir of Love" ("Der Liebestrank" in German) at the Graz Opera in Austria.

Schuen is another in a long list of barihunks who have been winning vocal competitions, having taken first place in both the Walter-und-Charlotte-Hamel-Stiftung competition and the Mozarteum Internationale Sommerakademie competition. In Salzburg, he made a name for himself by conquering everything from Luigi Nono to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Andrè Schuen sings "Hai gia vinta la causa! from Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro:

Graz's Elixir was co-produced with Valencia and Madrid and the sets look like a beach party on a Mediterranean beach resort, with giant cans of beer, bars, beach balls, lifeguards, cheerleaders,  shirtless boys, women in bikinis and a foam party. We still believe that opera can succeed in attracting younger audiences with old warhouses and this production is a prime example. From all accounts, the production has been enthusiastically received.

Margareta Klobucar as Adina with her sexy ensemble boys

Schuen will next appear in Graz as Ford in Verdi's Falstaff opening in January 2013 and Gasparone in Karl Millöcker's Der Fremde opening a month later. 

Next summer, Schuen will graduate to the title character in Mozart's Don Giovanni from the role of Masetto, which he has performed in Graz. His Don Giovanni will premiere in Montpellier on June 6-16, 2013 and Versailles on June 23, 25 & 27, 2013.

Wilfried Zelinka as Dulcamara

Oberwölz native Wilfried Zelinka also cut a sexy figure as Dulcamara. A member of the ensemble at Graz, he's sung Bartolo in Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro," Masetto in Mozart's "Don Giovanni," Talbot in Donizetti's "Maria Stuarda," Raimondo in Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor," and Escamillo in Bizet's "Carmen." He will portray Pistola opposite Schuen in next year's "Falstaff."

Andrè Schuen

There are a number of performance of Elixir left in Graz, including an alternate cast, so check their website for dates and casts.

If you want to see 14 more singers as sexy as Andrè Schuen, buy our 2013 Barihunks Charity Calendar and enjoy them all year: