Bartolomeo Merelli

Bartolomeo Merelli (19 May 1794 – 10 April 1879) was an Italian impresario and librettist, best known as the manager of the La Scala Milan opera house between 1829 and 1850, and for his support for the young Giuseppe Verdi.

Merelli was born in Bergamo and studied composition there with Simon Mayr. (Gaetano Donizetti was in the same class as Merelli.) He moved to Milan around 1812 and worked there as a theatrical agent, at the same time writing a number of librettos for Mayr, Donizetti, Nicola Vaccai and other composers. He set up his own agency in 1826 and managed seasons in Varese, Como and Cremona between 1830 and 1835, and was joint lessee (with Carlo Balochino) of the Theater am Kärntnertor in Vienna from 1836 to 1848.

From 1829 to 1850, Merelli managed La Scala, initially in partnership with others, who included Domenico Barbaia, and then by himself from 1835. During this period, he was responsible in 1831 for the staging of Vincenzo Bellini's Norma and later for a number of works by Donizetti (e.g. Ugo, conte di Parigi, Lucrezia Borgia, Maria Stuarda and Gemma di Vergy) as well as Saverio Mercadante's Il giuramento and Il bravo.

...
Wikipedia