Donizetti’s Anna Bolena premiered at Milano’s Teatro Carcano on December 26, 1830, and is considered the composer’s first major success in serious opera, which brought him to the attention of all Europe. In terms of production, in Italy he was an anomaly, in that he remained actively involved in the evolution of his works and the performances of them, and went on making modifications to those works.

Written expressly for the interpretative and vocal talents of great singers like Giuditta Past...