[1] The opera – more formally, the dramma per musica – alternates arias with recitative, and is set on an island at an unspecified time.

In a delightful garden in which two springs are seen, Medoro escapes from a shipwreck into the arms of his beloved Angelica.

In a grove with green secluded spots, Astolfo reflects how he loves Alcina, but is tormented by her unfaithfulness.

Meanwhile, in a mountainous alpine region with a high, precipitous cliff, Angelica and Medoro swear their love and part ways.

To rid herself of Orlando, Angelica sends him to fight a monster who guards —she claims— a vase containing an elixir of youth: the potion by which Medea revived the dying Aeson.

The secret of Alcina's power lies in an urn with Merlin's ashes, which is locked in the temple of Hecate.

Orlando, still raving mad about the marriage of Angelica and Medoro, fights with the temple statues, inadvertently destroying Alcina's power.