Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria (SV 325, The Return of Ulysses to his Homeland) is an opera in a prologue and five acts (later revised to three), set by Claudio Monteverdi to a libretto by Giacomo Badoaro.
Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria | Ulisse Dini | Patria Vieja | Ulisse Aldrovandi | Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori | Pro Patria Finlandia | Patria of Constantinople | Il ritorno d'Ulisse in Patria | Héroes de Otra Patria | Asturias, patria querida |
Opera productions include productions of Gloriana and Peter Grimes directed by Phyllida Lloyd for Opera North, and Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria directed by Adrian Noble for the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence.
During the last years of his life, when he was often ill, he composed his two last masterpieces: Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria (The Return of Ulysses, 1641), and the historic opera L'incoronazione di Poppea (The Coronation of Poppea, 1642), based on the life of the Roman emperor Nero.
A two-act version prepared by the German composer Hans Werner Henze was performed under Jeffrey Tate at the 1985 Salzburg Festival and issued on videotape.
As well as establishing himself in the standard Italian repertory, he took part in many revivals of ancient works such as Galuppi's Il filosofo di campagna, Monteverdi's Il ritorno d'Ulisse in Patria, and Piccinni's La buona figliuola.