13 days until the Lucia di Lammermoor premiere!

The majestic 17th century Culzean Castle sits high on a cliff’s edge on Scotland’s South Ayrshire coast. The castle and grounds of this historic estate (pronounced ku-LAY-an) have inspired the look of various elements in the Met’s new production of Lucia di Lammermoor. Director Mary Zimmerman and set designer Daniel Ostling traveled to Scotland to look at typical settings as they worked out their conception. On a visit to Culzean Castle both were struck by its visual power. “The strange shade of green of the outsized rooms,” Zimmerman recalls, “the bare branches above our heads, the alleyways… It felt like a place haunted by madness, the setting for a ghostly Victorian tale.”

From 1777 through 1799, a plain fortified tower house that was the home of one of Scotland’s oldest families was transformed into a mansion of sumptuous proportion and elegance. Little expense was spared in the decoration and craftsmanship, with the help of a wealthy American cousin stepping in to help complete the enterprise.

“The grounds are reminiscent of what Walter Scott might have had in mind when he was thinking of Lucia,” Zimmerman says. When she saw the castle’s magnificent central oval staircase, she knew that she had found the setting for the opera’s mad scene. “[Our staircase] is reminiscent of it, but,” she emphasizes, “in no way is it a literal manifestation.”

Culzean Castle is situated on over 600 acres of parkland and is one of the most visited properties in Scotland’s National Trust. For more information visit nts.org.uk.

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