Art Scenes

While it was raining outside, it was bright and warm inside the Metropolitan Opera, where people were eagerly waiting to see Giuseppe Verdi’s Rigoletto. The auditorium was filled with the murmurs of the audience, which promptly turned into applause as the lights dimmed and Paolo Arrivabeni stood in the spotlight and raised his hands to lead the orchestra into a beautiful score.

The music of the overture changed from tragic to happy as the curtains parted to reveal a party scene. Throughout the performance, the orchestra perfectly signaled and enhanced changes in the mood of Rigoletto, sometimes more than the singers themselves. Arrivabeni skillfully led the orchestra through the score, with dramatic changes in volume and tempo. The result was a dynamic musical experience, which captured the listener on its own and complemented the singers. One of the highlights of the performance was the simulation of the storm that occurs in the final scene of the opera. The orchestra created the eerie sound of wind blowing perfectly. The music combined with the painted night sky and the recreated lighting, were as close to a real storm as one can create inside on a stage.

Props go to Zack Brown and Gil Wechsler (the set and costume, and lighting designers, respectively), whose realistic sets, detailed backdrops and creative lighting immediately set the scene for each part of Rigoletto. Most impressive was the sky toward the end, when a storm was raging. The lighting looked real, and the sky was painted with purples and greens, not just blacks and grays.  The sets looked like real houses from that time period, as did the costumes. The story of Rigoletto brings Shakespeare’s work to mind, and the costumes and sets reinforce the similarities.

The experience of any opera is not complete without the singing, of course. There was something left to be desired in the singing of Christine Schäfer, who played Gilda. She started off weak, and her voice did not project well. At times during her performance, especially during her aria “Caro nome,” you could see Schäfer struggling to reach the notes. She sounded more confident towards the end, in the quartet “Bella figlia dell’amore,” but the emotions of Gilda did not come across well. Gilda sounded sad all the time, even when she was singing about being in love. Francesco Meli, who played the Duke, we later found out that he had a cold but would finish the performance anyway. His voice actually got stronger as the performance continued, and overall he had a good night. While the rest of the cast did well, Nino Surguladze’s, who played Maddalena, was the best. Her voice was strong and melodious, and she portrayed Maddalena’s happiness and distress without looking or sounding strained.

The Metropolitan Opera’s production of Rigoletto was a highly enjoyable event. The singing and music did not stand alone, but were augmented by the scenery and lighting to create a very visual experience. For a couple of hours, you go back in time and are caught up in the drama and emotion presented to you.

On the evening of October 14, 2010 The Metropolitan Opera featured a legendary masterpiece by Giuseppe Verdi—the famous Rigoletto. That evening the opera house was packed with well-dressed individuals waiting to be amazed. It turned out to be a quite decent performance, which touched upon the all-time popular themes of social status, love, fear, betrayal, revenge, and sacrifice, to name a few. I remained enthusiastic throughout the entire three hour performance.

As the lights dimmed, the gorgeous chandelier floated upwards and the curtains opened. We were presented with a well-staged scene created by the set and costume designer Zack Brown. It was a scene of a party in the Duke’s palace, with most of the characters dancing or otherwise enjoying themselves. A man dressed in a robe walks down the stairs of the mansion and begins mingling with the women who are dancing on the first floor. This is the Duke, played by Francesco Meli. At this point in the opera, the Duke seems to blend in with the other characters and is not very noticeable. He approaches various women, talking and flirting with them. The music, conducted by Paolo Arrivabeni, is lively and cheerful. This all changes, however, when Count Monterone begins bellowing in anger at the Duke for seducing his daughter. Meanwhile, the court jester Rigoletto, a chubby hunchback played by George Gagnidze, stands by and mocks the enraged count. This escalates the conflict, and Monterone sends upon Rigoletto the curse of a father. The scene of the conflict is marked by sudden and energetic bursts of sound coming from the orchestra, much like rolls of thunder. After Rigoletto is cursed, the curtains close, leaving Rigoletto standing alone in the darkness. This moment makes it clear that Rigoletto is very disturbed by what he heard from Count Monterone.

Act One is highlighted by a passionate duet (“Figlia…Mio padre!”) between Rigoletto and his daughter Gilda, who is played by Christine Schafer. Gilda’s simple dress, lack of makeup, and soprano pitch portrays her as a humble and family-oriented daughter. The scene is characterized by intense emotion— lots of crying and repeating of the phrase “I love you.” It drags on a bit too long, making me feel slightly bored. But the repetitiveness emphasizes the strong bond between Rigoletto and his daughter, which explains Rigoletto’s excessive concern for Gilda’s safety. In addition, the tearfulness and fearfulness of the singers in the scene foreshadows that something tragic is likely to happen between Rigoletto and his daughter.

Another highlight of the Act has the Duke appearing at Rigoletto’s house. He begins exclaiming how much he loves Gilda and how much he values Love. He is full of energy and enthusiasm as he and Gilda sing the duet “El il sol dell’anima.” He goes on and on shouting that love is divine and that his feelings towards Gilda are innocent and pure. The Duke’s singing is quite bombastic, because he does not know Gilda well enough to be so sure that she is “the one.” At this moment, it becomes quite apparent that his emotions are superficial. He seems to be concerned primarily about his own feelings rather than those of Gilda. This portrays him as a flirt and a show off. Gilda, on the other hand, keeps her cool and gently tells the Duke that it’s time for him to leave, even though she admitted to Giovanna earlier that she is infatuated with him. Her aria “Caro nome,” before going to sleep, tells us that she truly loves the Duke. Christine Schafer sings in a very peaceful and gentle tone while lying in bed, as if though pleasantly daydreaming about the Duke. Unlike Francesco Meli, Schafer does not use bombastic language and her tone is not overly passionate, which conveys genuine feeling.

The third and final Act is full of highlights. Playful cheerfulness takes place alongside bitter sorrow and anguish in that Act. The Duke flirts with Maddalena, singing the very famous “La donna e mobile.” The Duke sings the song very melodically and playfully. By this point it is clear that the Duke is extremely unfaithful, and his singing of the line “Women are so fickle” is very ironic in the context of the situation. The fun scene runs parallel to the scene of Gilda observing them from the outside, her heart full of shock and despair. Outside the rain is pouring, symbolizing Gilda’s grief as well as foreshadowing the tragedy that is yet to come. The Duke and Maddalena then proceed to sing the quartet “Bella figlia dell’amore.” The Duke keeps courting Maddalena while Maddalena keeps backing away in a playful manner, as if to tease him and intensify his attraction towards her. By the end of the quartet the Duke is on top of Maddalena, and they are practically making love. As a result Maddalena develops affection for the unfaithful Duke and convinces Sparafucile not to kill him. They decide to kill whoever knocks on their door before midnight. Gilda decides to sacrifice herself for the treacherous Duke. She enteres Sparafucile’s house and is fatally stabbed by him. The murder scene is marked by a dramatic flash of lightning and roll of thunder in the background. When Rigoletto returns, he is given her body inside a sack, and for a moment he feels proud of his successful revenge on the Duke. In a scene of dramatic irony, the Duke (who was soundly sleeping when the murder took place) wakes up and begins singing “La donna e mobile” once again, while Rigoletto stands outside staring at the sack with the body in utter bewilderment. This was one of the final highlights of the evening. The opera ends with Gilda dying in the jester’s arms after an emotional plead for forgiveness.

The performance ended and the singers were thanked by a long, standing ovation. It was a performance that for the most part kept me glued to my seat due to its dramatic scenes. While some parts of the opera seemed superficial and redundant, the singers nevertheless succeeded at conveying the emotions that they felt.  Especially convincing was Francesco Meli, whose playful and flirtatious attitude was well represented by his cheerful tone of voice and free-spirited gestures.