CRISTOFORO COLOMBO

Speranza

1935

GERSHWIN, PORGY E BESS: melodramma in tre atti, su libretto di Dubose Hayward e Ira Gershwin, tratto da Hayward, musicato da George Gershwin.  Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires. Prima: Dec. 6 2016. Other performances: 7, 10, 11 and 13. Production of Cape Town Opera. Desde su estreno en Buenos Aires por iniciativa de Sergio Renán, este melodrama no se veía en un escenario argentino. La obra más ambiciosa de Gershwin, con todas las marcas y cruces de la cultura afro-americana y el melodismo irresistible de la "Rhapsody in Blue", el melodrama sobrevuela una trama urbana en la que la pobreza y el amor juegan sus fichas, en un marco auténticamente popular. Musical director: Tim Murray. Stage director: Christine Crouse Scenography and costume design: Michael Mitchell. Lights: Kobus Rossouw. Choreography: Sibonakaliso Ndaba. Choral director: Marvin Kernelle. Chorus of Cape Town Opera. PERSONAGGI: PORGY: Xolela Sixaba/Lindile Kenneth Kula BESS: Nonhlanhla Yende/Philisa Sibeko CROWN: Mandisinde Mbuyazwe/Mandla Mndebele SPORTING LIFE: Lukhanyo Moyake/Makudupanyane Senaoana. CLARA: Siphamandla Yakupa/Noluvuyiso Mpofu. JAKE: Aubrey Lodewyk SERENA: Arline Jaftha/Tina Mene.    MARIA: Miranda Tini/ Fikile Mthetwa. Hit: “Summertime and the livin is easy”.

ATTO I. Place: Catfish Row, a fictitious black tenement (once, a mansion of the aristocracy) on the waterfront of Charleston, South Carolina. Time: The "recent past" (c. 1930). Scene 1: Catfish Row, a summer evening. The opera begins with a short introduction which segues into an evening in Catfish Row. Jasbo Brown entertains the community with his piano playing. Clara, a young mother, sings a lullaby to her baby ("Summertime") as the working men prepare for a game of craps ("Roll them Bones"). One of the players, Robbins, scorns his wife Serena's demands that he not play, retorting that on a Saturday night, a man has the right to play. Clara's husband, the fisherman Jake, tries his own lullaby ("A Woman is a Sometime Thing") with little effect. Little by little, other characters in the opera enter Catfish Row, among them Mingo, another fisherman, and Jim, a stevedore who, tired of his job, decides to give it up and join Jake and the other fishermen. Porgy, a disabled beggar, enters on his goat cart to organize the game. Peter, an elderly "honey man" returns, singing his vendor's call. Crown, a strong and brutal stevedore, storms in with his woman, Bess, and buys cheap whiskey and some "Happy Dust" off the local dope peddler, Sportin' Life. Bess is shunned by the women of the community, especially the pious Serena and the matriarchal cookshop owner Maria, but Porgy softly defends her. The game begins. One by one, the players get crapped out, leaving only Robbins and Crown, who has become extremely drunk. When Robbins wins, Crown attempts to prevent him from taking his winnings. A brawl ensues, which ends when Crown stabs Robbins with a cotton hook, killing him. Crown runs, telling Bess to fend for herself but that he will be back for her when the heat dies down. Sportin' Life gives her a dose of happy dust and offers to take her with him when he goes to New York, but she rejects him. He flees, and Bess begins to pound on doors, but is rejected by all of the residents of Catfish Row, with the exception of Porgy, who lets her in. Scene 2: Serena's Room, the following night. The mourners sing a spiritual to Robbins ("Gone, Gone, Gone"). To raise money for his burial, a saucer is placed on his chest for the mourners' donations ("Overflow"). Bess enters with Porgy and attempts to donate to the burial fund, but Serena rejects her money until Bess explains that she is now living with Porgy. A white detective enters and coldly tells Serena that she must bury her husband the next day, or his body will be given to medical students (for dissection). He suddenly accuses Peter of Robbins's murder. Peter denies his guilt and says Crown was the murderer. The Detective orders Peter to be arrested as a material witness, whom he will force to testify against Crown. Serena laments her loss in "My Man's Gone Now". The undertaker enters. The saucer holds only fifteen dollars of the needed twenty-five, but he agrees to bury Robbins as long as Serena promises to pay him back. Bess, who has been sitting in silence slightly apart from the rest of those gathered, suddenly begins to sing a gospel song and the chorus joyfully join in, welcoming her into the community. ("Oh, the Train is at de Station")

                           ATTO II.  Scene 1: Catfish Row, a month later, in the morning. Jake and the other fishermen prepare for work ("It take a long pull to get there"). Clara asks Jake not to go because it is time for the annual storms, but he tells her that they desperately need the money. This causes Porgy to sing from his window about his new, happy-go-lucky outlook on life. ("I got plenty o' nuttin"). Sportin' Life waltzes around selling "happy dust", but soon incurs the wrath of Maria, who threatens him. ("I hates yo' struttin' style"). A fraudulent lawyer, Frazier, arrives and farcically divorces Bess from Crown. When he discovers Bess and Crown were not married, he raises his price from a dollar to a dollar and a half. Archdale, a white lawyer, enters and informs Porgy that Peter will soon be released. The bad omen of a buzzard flies over Catfish Row and Porgy demands that it leave now that he finally has found happiness. ("Buzzard keep on flyin' over".) As the rest of Catfish Row prepares for the church picnic on nearby Kittiwah Island, Sportin' Life again offers to take Bess to New York with him; she refuses. He attempts to give her some "happy dust" despite her claims that she's given up drugs, but Porgy grabs his arm and scares him off. Sportin' Life leaves, reminding Bess as he goes that her men friends come and go, but he will be there all along. Bess and Porgy are now left alone, and express their love for each other ("Bess, You Is My Woman Now"). The chorus re-enters in high spirits as they prepare to leave for the picnic ("Oh, I can't sit down"). Bess is invited to the picnic by Maria, but she demurs as Porgy cannot come (due to his disability, he cannot get on the boat), but Maria insists. Bess leaves Porgy behind as they go off to the picnic. Porgy watches the boat leave ("I got plenty o' nuttin" reprise). Scene 2: Kittiwah Island, that evening. The chorus enjoys themselves at the picnic ("I ain't got no shame"). Sportin' Life presents the chorus his cynical views on the Bible ("It Ain't Necessarily So"), causing Serena to chastise them ("Shame on all you sinners!"). Everyone gets ready to leave. As Bess, who has lagged behind, tries to follow them, Crown emerges from the bushes. He reminds her that Porgy is "temporary" and laughs off her claims that she has been living decently now. Bess wants to leave Crown forever and attempts to make him forget about her ("Oh, what you want wid Bess?") but Crown refuses to give her up. He grabs her and will not let her go to the boat, which leaves without her, and then forcefully kisses her. He laughs at his conquest as her resistance begins to fail, and commands her to get into the woods, where his intentions are only too clear. Scene 3: Catfish Row, a week later, just before dawn. A week later, Jake leaves to go fishing with his crew, one of whom observes that it looks as if a storm is coming in. Peter, still unsure of his crime, returns from prison. Meanwhile, Bess is lying in Porgy's room delirious with fever, which she has had ever since returning from Kittiwah Island. Serena prays to remove Bess's affliction ("Oh, Doctor Jesus"), and promises Porgy that Bess will be well by five o'clock. As the day passes, a strawberry woman, Peter (the Honey Man) and a crab man each pass by with their wares ("Vendors' Trio"). As the clock chimes five, Bess recovers from her fever. Porgy tells Bess that he knows she has been with Crown, and she admits that Crown has promised to return for her. Porgy tells her she is free to go if she wants to, and she tells him that although she wants to stay, she is afraid of Crown's hold on her. Porgy asks her what would happen if there was no Crown, and Bess tells Porgy she loves him and begs him to protect her, and he promises that she will never have to be afraid again ("I Loves You, Porgy"). Clara watches the water, fearful for Jake. Maria tries to allay her fears, but suddenly the hurricane bell begins to ring. Scene 4: Serena's Room, dawn of the next day. The residents of Catfish Row are all gathered in Serena's room for shelter from the hurricane. They drown out the sound of the storm with prayers and hymns ("Oh, Doctor Jesus") while Sportin' Life mocks their assumption that the storm is a signal of Judgment Day. Clara desperately sings her lullaby ("Summertime" [reprise]). A knock is heard at the door, and the chorus believes it to be Death ("Oh there's somebody knocking at the door"). Crown enters dramatically, having swum from Kittiwah Island, seeking Bess. He shows no fear of God, claiming that after the long struggle from Kittiwah, God and he are friends. The chorus tries to drown out his blaspheming with more prayer, and he taunts them by singing a vulgar song. ("A red-headed woman"). Suddenly, Clara sees Jake's boat float past the window, upside-down, and she runs out to try to save him, handing her baby to Bess. Bess asks that one of the men go out with her, and Crown taunts Porgy, who cannot go. Crown goes himself, yelling out as he leaves "Alright, Big Friend! We're on for another Bout!" The chorus continue to pray as the storm rises.

ATTO III.  Scene 1: Catfish Row, the next night. A group of women mourn Clara, Jake, and all of those who have been killed in the storm ("Clara, Clara, don't you be downhearted"). When they begin to mourn for Crown as well, Sportin' Life laughs at them and is told off by Maria. He insinuates that Crown may not be dead, and observes that when a woman has a man, maybe she's got him for keeps, but if she has two men, then it's highly likely she'll end up with none. Bess is heard singing Clara's lullaby to her baby, whom she is now taking care of. ("Summertime" [reprise]). Once Catfish Row is dark, Crown stealthily enters to claim Bess, but is confronted by Porgy. A fight ensues which ends when Porgy kills Crown. Porgy exclaims to Bess, "You've got a man now. You've got Porgy!" Scene 2: Catfish Row, the next afternoon. The detective enters and talks with Serena and her friends about the murders of Crown and Robbins. They deny knowledge of Crown's murder, frustrating the detective. Needing a witness for the coroner's inquest, he next questions an apprehensive Porgy. Once Porgy admits to knowing Crown, he is ordered to come and identify Crown's body. Sportin' Life tells Porgy that corpses bleed in the presence of their murderers, and the detective will use this to hang Porgy. Porgy refuses to identify the body, but is dragged off anyway. Bess is distraught, and Sportin' Life puts his plan into action. He tells her that Porgy will be locked up for a long time, and points out that he is the only one still here. He offers her happy dust, and though she refuses, he forces it on her. After she takes a whiff, he paints a seductive picture of her life with him in New York ("There's a boat dat's leavin' soon for New York"). She regains her strength and rushes inside, slamming the door on his face, but he leaves a packet of happy dust on her doorstep, and settles down to wait. Scene 3: Catfish Row, a week later. On a beautiful morning, Porgy is released from jail, where he has been arrested for contempt of court after refusing to look at Crown's body. He returns to Catfish Row much richer after playing craps with his cellmates. He gives gifts to the residents, and pulls out a beautiful red dress for Bess. He does not understand why everyone seems so uneasy at his return. He sees Clara's baby is now with Serena and realizes something is wrong. He asks where Bess is. Maria and Serena tell him that Bess has run off with Sportin' Life to New York ("Oh Bess, Oh Where's my Bess?"). Porgy calls for his goat cart, and resolves to leave Catfish Row to find her. He prays for strength, and begins his journey. ("Oh, Lawd, I'm on my way")

1938

DALLAPICCOLA, VOLO DI NOTTE: melodramma in un atto, tratto dal romanzo d’Antonio di Saint-Exupery. Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires. Prima: Oct. 23 2016. Other peformances: 25 and 26 --   Italia siguió produciendo grandes óperas durante el siglo veinte. Uno de sus compositores más notables concibió dos títulos cortos, diferentes, de alto dramatismo. Desde la experiencia como piloto de Saint-Exupéry, narrada en su “Vuelo nocturne”, hasta las crueldades de L’Isle Adam en “El prisionero”, Dallapicola exhibe sus dotes de compositor formado en la época de las vanguardias. The subject of “Volo di notte” is an individual aviator, an Argentine long-distance mail carrier, during the early days of flying. He is caught in a storm, with no way to land; and the drama occurs both within his family, anxious for his safe return, and among his employers, anxious both for his safe return and the success of their enterprise.  Musical director: Christian Baldini. Stage design: Michał Znaniecki. Assistant stage director: Zofia Dowja. Set design: Luigi Scoglio. Costumes: Joanna Medynska. Lights: Bogumil Palewicz Personnagi. RIVIÈRE: Víctor Torres PÉLLERIN: Santiago Ballerini SIMONA FABIEN: Daniela Tabernig. OPERADOR DE RADIO: Sergio Spina ROBINEAU, UN INSPECTOR: Carlos Esquivel. “IL PRIGIONIERO: melodramma in un prologo e un atto, 1944, tratto dalla “Tortura per la speranza” nei “Nuovi racconti di crueli” di Augusto Villiers dell’Isola d’Adamo e da Carlo di Coster, “La leggenda di Thyl Ulenspiegel e da Lamme Goedzak”. MADRE DEL PRIGIONERO: Adriana Mastrangelo. PRISIONERO: Leonardo Estévez CARCELERO: Fernando Chalabe. GRAN INQUISIDOR: Fernando Chalabe. The first scene opens inside a cell in the Inquisitor's Prison with the Prisoner and his Mother speaking. The Prisoner speaks of his torture and suffering, and also of how the Gaoler has brought back his hope and faith, and has made him wish to return to prayer as he did as a child. The Gaoler then interrupts the conversation with news that Flanders is in revolt and that the bell of Roelandt could soon ring out again, trying to bring new hope to the Prisoner. As the Gaoler leaves with the words "There is one who watches over you ... Have faith, brother. Sleep now ... and hope," he also does not close the cell door completely. Upon noticing this, the Prisoner rushes out. The action moves out of the cell and follows the Prisoner on his attempt at escape through the underground passages of the prison. While trying to escape, the Prisoner sees but is not seen by a torturer and is passed unnoticed by two monks too deep in theological discussion to take notice of him. The Prisoner finally believes he can smell fresh air, and when he hears a bell he believes to be that of Roelandt, he opens a door to what he hopes is freedom. The final scene finds the Prisoner in a garden at night. He is exuberant at having escaped, and moves towards a great cedar tree that is in the foreground. He makes as if to hug the tree, only to be embraced by the words and sight of the Grand Inquisitor, who is seemingly a part of the tree. The Grand Inquisitor asks the Prisoner, "Why do you want to leave us now, on the very eve of your salvation?" At this point, the Prisoner comes around to the thought that perhaps his ultimate salvation is to be gained from the stake. The opera concludes with the Prisoner's enigmatic whisper of "Freedom?

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1847

VERDI, MACBETTO: melodramma in quattro atti, su libretto di Piave, tratto da Shakespeare. Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires. Estreno: Sept. 27 2016. Other performances: Oct. 1, 2, 4, 5 y 7. La dupla Verdi-Shakespeare es un punto de ignición fascinante. Así lo demuestra "Macbetto", una creación que deja al público sin aliento. La puesta de Marcelo Lombardero ahonda y actualiza la tragedia impenitente. En el podio estará Stefano Ranzani, que dirigió “La Bohemia” con que re-abrió Colon en 2010. Musical director: Stefano Ranzani. Stage director: Marcelo Lombardero Light design:: Diego Siliano. Costume design: Luciana Gutman. Light design: Horacio Efron. Projection design: Diego Siliano PERSONAGGI: . MACBETH (baritono) Jorge Lagunes/Fabián Veloz LADY MACBETH (soprano) Chiara Taigi/Mónica Ferracani BANQUO: Alex Teliga/Homero Pérez Miranda MACDUFF (tenor) Gustavo López Manzitti  ("Ah, la paterna mano"). . DAMA DE LADY MACBETH: Rocío Giordano MALCOLM: Gastón Olivera Weckesser DOCTOR: Iván García. Hits: “Patria oppressa”, “Ah, la paterna mano”.

Act 1. Place: Scotland, 11^th century. Scene 1: A heath. Groups of witches gather in a wood beside a battlefield, exchanging stories of the evils they have done. The victorious generals Macbeth and Banco enter. The witches hail Macbeth as Thane of Glamis (a title he already holds by inheritance), Thane of Cawdor, and king "hereafter." Banco is greeted as "lesser than Macbeth, but greater", never a king himself, but the progenitor of a line of future kings. The witches vanish, and messengers from the king appear naming Macbeth Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth protests that the holder of that title is still alive, but the messengers reply that the former Thane has been executed as a traitor. Banco, mistrusting the witches, is horrified to find that they have spoken the truth. In a duet, Macbeth and Banco muse that the first of the witches' prophecies has been fulfilled. Macbeth ponders how close he is to the throne, and whether fate will crown him without his taking action, yet dreams of blood and treachery: while Banco ponders on whether the minions of Hell will sometimes reveal an honest truth in order to lead one to future damnation. Scene 2: Macbeth's castle. Lady Macbeth reads a letter from her husband telling of the encounter with the witches. She is determined to propel Macbeth to the throne - by fair means or foul. [Revised version, 1865: Vieni! t'affretta!/ "Come! Hurry!"]. Lady Macbeth is advised that King Duncan will stay in the castle that night; she is determined to see him killed (Or tutti, sorgete / "Arise now, all you ministers of hell"). When Macbeth returns she urges him to take the opportunity to kill the King. The King and the nobles arrive and Macbeth is emboldened to carry out the murder (Mi si affaccia un pugnal? / "Is this a dagger which I see before me?"), but afterwards is filled with horror. Disgusted at his cowardice, Lady Macbeth completes the crime, incriminating the sleeping guards by smearing them with Duncan's blood and planting on them Macbeth's dagger. Macduff arrives for an appointment with the King, while Banco stands guard, only for Macduff instead to discover the murder. He rouses the castle while Banco also bears witness to the fact of Duncan's murder. The chorus calls on God to avenge the killing (Schiudi, inferno, . . / "Open wide thy gaping maw, O Hell"). Act II. Scene 1: A room in the castle. Macbeth is now king: Duncan's son Malcolm has fled the country, suspicion having conveniently fallen on him for his father's murder: but Macbeth is still disturbed by the prophecy that Banco, not he, will found a great royal line. To prevent this he tells his wife that he will have both Banco and his son murdered as they come to a banquet. [1865 revised version: In her aria, La luce langue / "The light fades", Lady Macbeth exults in the powers of darkness]. Scene 2: Outside the castle. A gang of murderers lie in wait. Banco is apprehensive (Come dal ciel precipita / "O, how the darkness falls from heaven"). He is caught, but enables his son Fleanzio to escape. Scene 3: A dining hall in the castle. Macbeth receives the guests and Lady Macbeth sings a brindisi (Si colmi il calice / "Fill up the cup"). The assassination is reported to Macbeth, but when he returns to the table the ghost of Banco is sitting in his place. Macbeth raves at the ghost and the horrified guests believe he has gone mad. Lady Macbeth manages to calm the situation once - and even mocks it by calling for a toast to the absent Banco (whose death is not yet public knowledge), only for the ghost to appear a second time and terrify Macbeth into insanity again. Macduff resolves to leave the country, saying it is ruled by a cursed hand and only the wicked may remain: the other guests are terrified by Macbeth's talk of ghosts, phantoms and witches. The banquet ends abruptly with their hurried, frightened departure. Act III. The witches' cave. The witches gather around a cauldron in a dark cave. Macbeth enters and they conjure up three apparitions for him. The first advises him to beware of Macduff. The second tells him that he cannot be harmed by a man 'born of woman'. The third that he cannot be conquered till Birnam Wood marches against him. (Macbeth: O lieto augurio / "O, happy augury! No wood has ever moved by magic power"). Macbeth is then shown the ghost of Banco and his descendants, eight future Kings of Scotland, verifying the original prophecy. (Macbeth: Fuggi regal fantasima / "Begone, royal phantom that reminds me of Banco"). He collapses, but regains consciousness in the castle. [Original 1847 version: The act ends with Macbeth recovering and resolving to assert his authority: Vada in fiamme, e in polve cada / "Macduff's lofty stronghold shall / Be set fire....".]^[29][30]A herald announces the arrival of the Queen (Duet: Vi trovo alfin! / "I've found you at last"). Macbeth tells his wife about his encounter with the witches and they resolve to track down and kill Banco's son, as well as Macduff and his family (whom they do not yet know has already fled the country). (Duet: Ora di morte e di vendetta / "Hour of death and of vengeance"). Act 4. Scene 1: Near the border between England and Scotland. Scottish refugees stand near the English border (Chorus: Patria oppressa / "Down-trodden country"): [Original 1847 version: While each version uses the same libretto, the music of this chorus is different. It begins with a less ominous, much shorter orchestral introduction and is sung straight through by the entire chorus.]^[30][1865 revised version: the music is divided into sections for the male and female members, then it unites them towards the end. The revised version is 2 minutes longer than the original.]^[30] In the distance lies Birnam Wood. Macduff is determined to avenge the deaths of his wife and children at the hands of the tyrant (Ah, la paterna mano / "Ah, the paternal hand"). He is joined by Malcolm, the son of King Duncan, and the English army. Malcolm orders each soldier to cut a branch from a tree in Birnam Wood and carry it as they attack Macbeth's army. They are determined to liberate Scotland from tyranny (Chorus: La patria tradita / "Our country betrayed"). Scene 2: Macbeth's castle. A doctor and a servant observe the Queen as she walks in her sleep, wringing her hands and attempting to clean them of blood (Una macchia è qui tuttora! / "Yet here's a spot"). She raves about the deaths of both Duncan and Banco, and even about the deaths of Macduff's family, and that all the perfumes of Arabia would not clean the blood off her hands: all are things that the horrified witnesses would never dare to repeat to any living man. Scene 3: The battlefield. Macbeth has learned that an army of Scottish rebels backed by England is advancing against him, but is reassured by remembering the words of the apparitions, that no man born of woman can harm him. However in an aria (Pietà, rispetto, amore / "Compassion, honour, love") he contemplates the fact that he is already hated and feared: there will be no compassion, honour and love for him in his old age even if he wins this battle, nor kind words on a royal tomb, only curses and hatred. He receives the news of the Queen's death with indifference. Rallying his troops he learns that Birnam Wood has indeed come to his castle. Battle is joined. [Original 1847 version's ending: Macduff pursues and fights Macbeth who falls. He tells Macbeth that he was not "born of woman" but "ripped" from his mother's womb. Fighting continues. Mortally wounded, Macbeth, in a final aria - Mal per me che m'affidai / "Trusting in the prophecies of Hell" - proclaims that trusting in these prophecies has caused his downfall. He dies on stage, while Macduff's men proclaim Malcolm to be the new King.] Macduff pursues and fights Macbeth who falls wounded. He tells Macbeth that he was not "born of woman" but "untimely ripped" from his mother's womb. Macbeth responds in anguish (Cielo! / "Heaven") and the two continue fighting, then disappear from view. Macduff returns indicating to his men that he has killed Macbeth. He then turns to Malcolm, hailing him as King. The scene ends with a hymn to victory sung by bards, soldiers, and Scottish women (Salve, o re!/ "Hail, oh King!). Malcolm as King, and Macduff as hero, together swear to restore the realm to greatness.

1900

PUCCINI, TOSCA: melodramma in tre atti, su libretto di Illica e Giacosa, tratto da Sardou. Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires. Estreno: Ag. 20 1016. Other performances: 23, 26, 28, 30 and 31. Production of the Colon theatre, a tribute to Roberto Oswald. Uno de los títulos favoritos de todo el mundo vuelve al escenario de Colón de la mano de tres artistas estelares: Eva-Maria Westbroek, debutante en la Argentina, Marcelo Álvarez, en un regreso largamente esperado, y Carlos Álvarez. La puesta de Roberto Oswald vuelve a verse, repuesta por sus colaboradores más cercanos. Carlos Vieu dirige por primera vez en el podio del Colón una partitura que siente como propia. Musical director: Carlos Vieu. Set designs, scenography, and lights: Roberto Oswald. Stage director: Aníbal Lápiz. Assistant director: Christian Prego
Assitant lights:: Rubén Conde. Assistant costume: Aníbal Lápiz. PERSONAGGI:  FLORIA TOSCA: Eva-María Westbroek/Eiko Senda:  MARIO CAVARADOSSI: Marcelo Álvarez/Enrique Folger. BARON SCARPIA: Carlos Álvarez/Fabián Veloz SACRISTÁN: Luis Gaeta/Gustavo Gibert. Hits: “Recondita armonia,” “E lucevan le stelle.”

Act 1[edit] Inside the church of Sant'Andrea della Valle. Cesare Angelotti, former consul of the Roman Republic and now an escaped political prisoner, runs into the church and hides in the Attavanti private chapel – his sister, the Marchesa Attavanti, has left a key to the chapel hidden at the feet of the statue of the Madonna. The elderly Sacristan enters and begins cleaning. The Sacristan kneels in prayer as the Angelus sounds. The painter Mario Cavaradossi arrives to continue work on his picture of Mary Magdalene. The Sacristan identifies a likeness between the portrait and a blonde-haired woman who has been visiting the church recently (unknown to him, it is Angelotti's sister the Marchesa). Cavaradossi describes the "hidden harmony" ("Recondita armonia") in the contrast between the blonde beauty of his painting and his dark-haired lover, the singer Floria Tosca. The Sacristan mumbles his disapproval before leaving. Angelotti emerges and tells Cavaradossi, an old friend who has republican sympathies, that he is being pursued by the Chief of Police, Baron Scarpia. Cavaradossi promises to assist him after nightfall. Tosca's voice is heard, calling to Cavaradossi. Cavaradossi gives Angelotti his basket of food and Angelotti hurriedly returns to his hiding place. Tosca enters and suspiciously asks Cavaradossi what he has been doing – she thinks that he has been talking to another woman. Cavaradossi reassures her and Tosca tries to persuade him to take her to his villa that evening: "Non la sospiri, la nostra casetta" ("Do you not long for our little cottage"). She then expresses jealousy over the woman in the painting, whom she recognises as the Marchesa Attavanti. Cavaradossi explains the likeness; he has merely observed the Marchesa at prayer in the church. He reassures Tosca of his fidelity and asks her what eyes could be more beautiful than her own: "Qual'occhio al mondo" ("What eyes in the world"). After Tosca has left, Angelotti reappears and discusses with the painter his plan to flee disguised as a woman, using clothes left in the chapel by his sister. Cavaradossi gives Angelotti a key to his villa, suggesting that he hide in a disused well in the garden. The sound of a cannon signals that Angelotti's escape has been discovered. He and Cavaradossi hasten out of the church. The Sacristan re-enters with choristers, celebrating the news that Napoleon has apparently been defeated at Marengo. The celebrations cease abruptly with the entry of Scarpia, his henchman Spoletta and several police agents. They have heard that Angelotti has sought refuge in the church. Scarpia orders a search, and the empty food basket and a fan bearing the Attavanti coat of arms are found in the chapel. Scarpia questions the Sacristan, and his suspicions are aroused further when he learns that Cavaradossi has been in the church; Scarpia mistrusts the painter, and believes him complicit in Angelotti's escape. When Tosca arrives looking for her lover, Scarpia artfully arouses her jealous instincts by implying a relationship between the painter and the Marchesa Attavanti. He draws Tosca's attention to the fan and suggests that someone must have surprised the lovers in the chapel. Tosca falls for his deceit; enraged, she rushes off to confront Cavaradossi. Scarpia orders Spoletta and his agents to follow her, assuming she will lead them to Cavaradossi and Angelotti. He privately gloats as he reveals his intentions to possess Tosca and execute Cavaradossi. A procession enters the church singing the Te Deum; exclaiming 'Tosca, you make me forget even God!', Scarpia joins the chorus in the prayer. Act 2[edit] Scarpia's apartment in the Palazzo Farnese, that evening Scarpia, at supper, sends a note to Tosca asking her to come to his apartment. He has been unable to find Angelotti, but has arrested Cavaradossi. As Cavaradossi is brought in and questioned, the voice of Tosca, singing a celebratory cantata in another room in the Palace, can be heard. Cavaradossi denies knowing anything about Angelotti's escape. Tosca arrives, just in time to see her lover taken to an antechamber to be tortured. He is able to speak briefly with her, telling her to say nothing. Tosca is told by Scarpia that she can save her lover from indescribable pain if she reveals Angelotti's hiding place. She resists, but hearing Cavaradossi's cries of pain, eventually tells Scarpia that Angelotti is in the well in the garden of Cavaradossi's villa. Scarpia orders the torture of Cavaradossi to cease and the wounded painter is brought back in. He recovers consciousness and, learning of Tosca's betrayal, is furious with her. Sciarrone, a police agent, enters with news of Napoleon's victory at Marengo; Cavaradossi gloats, telling Scarpia that his rule of terror will soon be at an end, before being dragged away by Scarpia's men. Scarpia, left with Tosca, proposes a bargain: if she gives herself to him, Cavaradossi will be freed. She is revolted, and repeatedly rejects his advances. Outside she hears the drums that announce an execution; as Scarpia awaits her decision, she prays to God for help, asking why He has abandoned her: "Vissi d'arte" ("I lived for art"). Scarpia remains adamant despite her pleas. When Spoletta brings news that Angelotti has killed himself, and that everything is in place for Cavaradossi's execution, Tosca, in despair, agrees to submit to Scarpia in return for Cavaradossi's freedom. Scarpia tells his deputy Spoletta to arrange a mock execution, both recalling that it will be "as we did with Count Palmieri". Following Spoletta's departure, Tosca imposes the further condition that Scarpia provide a safe-conduct out of Rome for herself and her lover. While he is signing the document, Tosca quietly takes a knife from the supper table. As Scarpia triumphantly embraces her, she stabs him, crying "this is Tosca's kiss!". As Scarpia falls dead, she declares that she now forgives him. She removes the safe-conduct from his pocket, lights candles in a gesture of piety and places a crucifix on the body before leaving. Act 3[edit] The upper parts of the Castel Sant'Angelo, early the following morning The Castel Sant'Angelo, (right), scene of the Tosca denouement, as painted in the 18th century A shepherd boy sings (in Romanesco dialect) "Io de' sospiri" ("I give you sighs") as church bells sound for matins. Cavaradossi is led in by guards and informed that he has one hour to live. He refuses to see a priest, but asks permission to write a letter to Tosca. He begins to write, but is soon overwhelmed by memories: "E lucevan le stelle" ("And the stars shone"). Tosca enters and shows him the safe-conduct. She tells him that she has killed Scarpia and that the imminent execution is a sham: Cavaradossi must feign death, but afterwards they can leave Rome together, before Scarpia's body is discovered. Cavaradossi is amazed at the courage shown by one so gentle and tender: "O dolci mani" ("Oh sweet hands"). The pair ecstatically plan the life they will live away from Rome. Tosca then anxiously instructs Cavaradossi on how to play his part in the mock execution convincingly. She tells him that he will be shot with blanks by the firing squad and instructs him to fall down as if dead. He agrees to act "like Tosca in the theatre". Cavaradossi is led away, and Tosca watches with increasing impatience as the execution is prepared. The men fire, Cavaradossi falls, and Tosca exclaims "Ecco un artista!" ("What an actor!"). When the soldiers have all left, she hurries towards Cavaradossi, only to find that he is really dead; Scarpia has betrayed her. Heartbroken, she clasps his lifeless body and weeps. The voices of Spoletta, Sciarrone and soldiers are heard, indicating that Scarpia's body has been found, and that Tosca is known to have killed him. As Spoletta, Sciarrone and the soldiers rush in, Tosca rises, evades their clutches, and runs to the parapet. Crying "O Scarpia, Avanti a Dio!" ("O Scarpia, we meet before God!"), she hurls herself over the edge to her death.

1964

ZIMMERMANN, I SOLDATI: melodramma in quattro atti di Zimmermann tratto da Lenz. Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires. Prima: July 12, 2016. Other perforamnces: 15, 17, 19 and 20. Uno de los grandes acontecimientos de la temporada en Coln es el esperado estreno de una de las más grandes partituras operísticas de la segunda mitad del siglo veinte. Obra de enorme complejidad, representa un desafío digno de Colón. Musical director: Baldur Brönnimann. Assistant musical director: Henning Kussel. Stage director: Pablo Maritano. Set designs: Enrique Bordolini . Costume design: Sofía Di Nunzio. Video design: Eugenio Szwarcer. PERSONAGGI:  MARIE: Suzanne Elmark. CHARLOTTE: Julia Riley CONDESA DE LA ROCHE: Noemí Nadelmann. DESPORTES: Tom Randle STOLZIUS: Leigh Melrose.WESENER Frode Olsen . EL JOVEN CONDE: Santiago Ballerini.EISENHARDT: Hernán Iturralde    MADRE DE STOLZIUS: Eugenia Fuentes. VIEJA MADRE DE WESSENER: Victoria Correa Dupuy CAPITAN PIRZEL: Iván Maier. TRES JÓVENES OFICIALES: Carlos Ullán, Santiago Bürgi, Nazareth Aufer CAPITÁN MARY: Alejandro Meerapfel. CAPITÁN HAUDY: Luciano Garay. CONDE OBRIST: Christian De Marco.

ATTO I. Place: Lille and nearby Armentières in French Flanders. Time: (Zimmermann) "Yesterday, today, and tomorrow." Preludio. Scene 1 (Strophe): Marie has moved from Armentières to Lille with her father Wesener, a fancy goods merchant. She writes a letter to the mother of her fiancé, Stolzius, a young draper in Armentières, while her sister Charlotte does needlework. Charlotte’s aria: Herz, kleines Ding, uns zu quälen. An argument breaks out between the sisters, Charlotte being scornful of Marie's love for Stolzius. Scene 2 (Ciacona I): Stolzius has been lovesick since Marie's departure for Lille, but he is encouraged when his mother brings him a letter. Scene 3 (Ricercari I): Desportes is a French-serving nobleman from Hainaut, and one of Wesener's customers. He courts the commoner Marie and wins her affection. Her father, however, forbids her to go with him to the theatre: for a commoner to accompany an officer in public would damage the family name. Scene 4 (Toccata I): At the trenches in Armentières, officers discuss with Padre Eisenhardt the relative merits of comedy. Captain Haudy, one of the officers, holds the view that it has more value than a sermon. Eisenhardt maintains that comedy undermines the soldiers' sense of what is right – their loose morals have already brought misery to countless young women. Haudy counters with the argument, "once a whore, always a whore". No, replies Eisenhardt, a whore would never be a whore if she were not forced to become one. Scene 5 (Nocturno I): Wesener advises his daughter to be cautious in her dealings with Desportes, although he secretly harbours the hope that she may marry the young aristocrat. In the meantime, he says, it would not be wise to give up Stolzius altogether. As stormclouds gather, Marie grows anxious at what lies ahead and the dilemma builds in her heart. Act 2[edit] Scene 1 (Toccata II): The officers discuss politics and Stolzius, and philosophize, at the Armentières café, owned by Madame Roux. When the Colonel and Eisenhardt leave, a jazzy dance begins (Rondeau à la marche), led by the Andalusian waitress: O Angst! Tausendfach Leben ... Götter wir sind! After five couplets, this screeches to a halt upon the return of the Colonel and Eisenhardt with Haudy. Stolzius arrives, and the officers make insinuating remarks about Marie's relationship with Desportes. Tumult. Intermezzo. Scene 2 (Capriccio, Corale e Ciacona II): Marie has received a reproachful letter from Stolzius. She is reading it in tears when Desportes enters. He scornfully dictates to her a brusque reply. His flattery finally has the desired effect: his spot with Marie is won. In the room next door, Wesener's aged mother sings the folk song Rösel aus Hennegay with its prophetic line, Some day your cross will come to you. On a partitioned stage appear, on one side, Marie and Desportes as a couple engrossed in love play, and on the other, Stolzius and his mother, who is trying to convince her son that having broken off his engagement, the "soldier's whore" Marie was not worthy of him. But Stolzius defends her and swears revenge on Desportes.. Act 3[edit]. Scene 1 (Rondino): A conversation between Eisenhardt and Captain Pirzel, whose odd behaviour is portrayed as the result of the monotony of military service, reveals that Captain Mary, a friend of Desportes, is to be transferred from Armentières to Lille.. Scene 2 (Rappresentazione): In order to move closer to Marie, Stolzius offers Captain Mary his services as a batman.. Scene 3 (Ricercari II): Desportes has left Marie. When she starts accepting gifts from Captain Mary, her sister Charlotte labels her a "soldier's girl". Marie claims she only behaved in this way in order to get news of Desportes. Captain Mary invites Marie and Charlotte for a drive; neither of them recognizes the identity of his batman Stolzius.. Romanza (Act 3 Zwischenspiel). Scene 4 (Nocturno II): Gräfin de la Roche reproaches her son, the Young Count, for his behaviour toward Marie. She advises him to leave town and, in order to protect Marie from the advances of other officers, she declares herself willing to take the girl into her own house as a companion. Scene 5 (Tropi): The Gräfin goes to find Marie at Wesener's house. In Charlotte's presence, she makes her offer, persuading Marie it is the only way she can now save her honour. Trio: Ach, ihr Wünsche junger Jahre. Act 4[edit]. Scene 1 (Toccata III): What the future holds in store for Marie is a living nightmare. Films I, II and III. Having turned down the Gräfin's offer in order to try to renew her contact with Desportes, she is now subjected by Desportes to the attentions of his young gamekeeper, who makes a brutal sexual assault. Dishonored and discredited, Marie wanders aimlessly while the Gräfin, the Young Count, Wesener, Charlotte, Pirzel, and Eisenhardt all search for her. Scene 2 (Ciacona III): Captain Mary and Desportes are eating their evening meal. Stolzius, who is serving them, overhears their conversation and learns of Marie's fate. He hands Desportes a bowl of poisoned soup and, before drinking some of the soup himself, triumphantly reveals his identity to the dying Desportes. Stolzius dies. Scene 3 (Nocturno III): As Eisenhardt sings the Pater noster, Marie, now sunk to the level of a street beggar, encounters her father and asks him for alms. Wesener does not recognize her, but, out of concern for his daughter, gives her money. He then joins an endless procession of enslaved and fallen soldiers, in which the drunken officers also take part. The procession builds to a vision of Hell: one human is raped by another, the individual by the collective conscience and, in this instance, by the power of the army.

1689

PURCELL, “ENEA E DIDONE, versione di Attilio Cremonesi, melodramma in un prologo e tre atti, su libretto di Nahum Tate, tratto dal Canto IV dell’Eneide di Virgilio. DIDO Y ENEAS, Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires. Estreno: Junio 7, 2016. Otras funciones: 8, 10, 11 y 12. El barroco vuelve a Colón con uno de sus referentes más logrados. Con “Enea e Didone”, Purcell sienta las bases de la ópera londinense en lengua vernacula, abrevando en una de las más apasionantes historias de la literatura romana. La visión magistral de Sasha Waltz le extrae a la partitura toda su actualidad y su dimensión teatral y dancística, convirtiéndola en un espectáculo del siglo veintiuno. Musical director: Christopher Moulds. Choreography: Sasha Waltz.Set designs: Thomas Schenk y Sasha Waltz. Light designs: Thilo Reuther. Costume designs: Christine Birkle. Orchestra: Academy for Old Music, Berlino. Chorus: Vocal consort, Berlino.  PERSONAGGI:  DIDONE: Aurore Ugolin (voz)/Yael Schnell (danza). ENEA: Reuben Willcox (voz)/Virgis Puodziunas (danza) BELINDA: Deborah York (voz)/Sasa Queliz (danza)

Act 1[edit] Dido's court The opera opens with Dido in her court with her attendants. Belinda is trying to cheer up Dido, but Dido is full of sorrow, saying 'Peace and I are strangers grown'. Belinda believes the source of this grief to be the Trojan Aeneas, and suggests that Carthage's troubles could be resolved by a marriage between the two. Dido and Belinda talk for a time—Dido fears that her love will make her a weak monarch, but Belinda and the Second Woman reassure her that "The hero loves as well." Aeneas enters the court, and is at first received coldly by Dido, but she eventually accepts his proposal of marriage. Act 2[edit] Scene 1: The cave of the Sorceress The Sorceress/Sorcerer is plotting the destruction of Carthage and its queen, and summons companions to help with evil plans. The plan is to send her "trusted elf" disguised as Mercury, someone to whom Aeneas will surely listen, to tempt him to leave Dido and sail to Italy. This would leave Dido heartbroken, and she would surely die. The chorus join in with terrible laughter, and the Enchantresses decide to conjure up a storm to make Dido and her train leave the grove and return to the palace. When the spell is prepared, the witches vanish in a thunderclap. Scene 2: A grove during the middle of a hunt Dido and Aeneas are accompanied by their train. They stop at the grove to take in its beauty. A lot of action is going on, with attendants carrying goods from the hunt and a picnic possibly taking place, and Dido and Aeneas are together within the activity. This is all stopped when Dido hears distant thunder, prompting Belinda to tell the servants to prepare for a return to shelter as soon as possible. As every other character leaves the stage, Aeneas is stopped by the Sorceress's elf, who is disguised as Mercury. This pretend Mercury brings the command of Jove that Aeneas is to wait no longer in beginning his task of creating a new Troy on Latin soil. Aeneas consents to the wishes of what he believes are the gods, but is heart-broken that he will have to leave Dido. He then goes off-stage to prepare for his departure from Carthage. Act 3[edit] The harbour at Carthage Preparations are being made for the departure of the Trojan fleet. The sailors sing a song, which is followed shortly by the Sorceress and her companions' sudden appearance. The group is pleased at how well their plan has worked, and the Sorceress sings a solo describing her further plans for the destruction of Aeneas "on the ocean". All the characters begin to clear the stage after a dance in three sections, and then disperse. The palace Dido and Belinda enter, shocked at Aeneas’ disappearance. Dido is distraught and Belinda comforts her. Suddenly Aeneas returns, but Dido is full of fear before Aeneas speaks, and his words only serve to confirm her suspicions. She derides his reasons for leaving, and even when Aeneas says he will defy the gods and not leave Carthage, Dido rejects him for having once thought of leaving her. After Dido forces Aeneas to leave, she states that "Death must come when he is gone." The opera and Dido's life both slowly come to a conclusion, as the Queen of Carthage sings her last aria, "When I am laid in Earth", also known as "Dido's Lament." The chorus and orchestra then conclude the opera once Dido is dead by ordering the "cupids to scatter roses on her tomb, soft and gentle as her heart. Keep here your watch, and never never never part."^[29]

1805

BEETHOVEN, FIDELIO: melodramma in due atti, su libretto di Giuseppe Sonnleithner, tratto da Bouilly. Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires. Prima: maggio 17, 2016. Other perforamnces: 20, 21, 22 and 24. Beethoven logró completar un solo melodramma. Su tema no podía ser otro que el de la lucha por la libertad, encarnada en un prisionero cuya esposa deberá travestirse y descender al sub-mundo del cautiverio para lograr salvarlo. Francisco Rettig dirige por primera vez en Colón con este título emblemático del romanticismo alemán. Musical director: Francisco Rettig.Stage director: Eugenio Zanetti. Stage design and costume design: Eugenio Zanetti. Assistant set and costume: Sebastián Sabas. Light: Eli Sirlin. PERSONAGGI: FLORESTÁN: Zoran Todorovich/Enrique Folger. LEONORA (FIDELIO): Elisabete Matos/Carla Filipcic. PIZARRO: Homero Pérez Miranda/Leonardo Estévez. DON FERNANDO: Hernán Iturralde/Alejandro Meerapfel. ROCCO: Manfred Hemm/Lucas Debevec. MARCELINA: Jaquelina Livieri/Oriana Favaro. JAQUINO: Santiago Bürgi/Arnaldo Quiroga.

ATTO I. Two years prior to the opening scene, the nobleman Florestan has exposed or attempted to expose certain crimes of the nobleman Pizarro. In revenge, Pizarro has secretly imprisoned Florestan in the prison over which he is governor. The jailer of the prison, Rocco, has a daughter, Marzelline, and a servant (or assistant), Jaquino. Florestan's wife, Leonore, came to Rocco's door dressed as a boy seeking employment named Fidelio, and Rocco hired her. On orders, Rocco has been giving Florestan diminishing rations until he is nearly starved to death. Place: A Spanish state prison, a few miles from Seville Time: Late 18th century Act 1[edit] Jaquino and Marzelline are alone in Rocco's house. Jaquino asks Marzelline when she will agree to marry him, but she says that she will never marry him now that she has fallen in love with Fidelio. She is unaware that Fidelio is actually Leonore in disguise. ("Jetzt, Schätzchen, jetzt sind wir allein" [Now, darling, now we are alone]). Jaquino leaves, and Marzelline expresses her desire to become Fidelio's wife ("O wär ich schon mit dir vereint" [If only I were already united with thee]). Rocco enters, looking for Fidelio. Fidelio enters carrying a heavy load of newly repaired chains. Rocco compliments Fidelio, and misinterprets her modest reply as hidden attraction to his daughter. Marzelline, Leonore, Rocco, and Jaquino sing a quartet about the love Marzelline has for Fidelio ("Mir ist so wunderbar" [A wondrous feeling fills me], also known as the Canon Quartet). Rocco tells Leonore that as soon as the governor has left for Seville, she and Marzelline can be married. He tells them, however, that unless they have money, they will not be happy. ("Hat man nicht auch Gold beineben" [If you don't have money on you]). Leonore says that she wants something else at least as much as money: to know why Rocco will not permit her to help him in the dungeons, because he always comes back out of breath. Rocco says that there is a prison where he can never take her, and inside is a man who has wasted away for two years because of his powerful enemies. Marzelline begs her father to keep Leonore away from such a terrible sight. Instead Rocco and Leonore sing of courage ("Gut, Söhnchen, gut" [All right, sonny, all right]), and soon Marzelline joins in their acclamations. All but Rocco leave. A march is played as Pizarro enters with guards. Rocco gives Pizarro a message with a warning that the minister plans a surprise visit tomorrow to investigate accusations that Pizarro is a tyrant. Pizarro exclaims that he cannot let the minister discover the imprisoned Don Florestan, who has been thought dead. Instead, Pizarro will murder Florestan ("Ha, welch ein Augenblick!" [Hah! What a moment!]). Pizarro orders that a trumpet be sounded at the minister's arrival. He offers Rocco money to kill Florestan, but Rocco refuses ("Jetzt, Alter, jetzt hat es Eile!" [Now, old man, we must hurry!]), and instead Pizarro orders him to dig a grave in the ruined well in the dungeons. When the grave is ready, Rocco should sound the alarm. Pizarro will then come disguised into the dungeon, and kill Florestan himself. Leonore has seen Pizarro plotting. She is agitated, but thoughts of her husband calm her down ("Abscheulicher! Wo eilst du hin? ... Komm, Hoffnung, lass den letzten Stern" [Scum! Where are you off to so fast? ... Come, hope, let the last star]). Jaquino begs Marzelline to marry him, but she refuses. Leonore, hoping to find Florestan, asks Rocco to let the poor prisoners roam in the garden and enjoy the beautiful weather. Marzelline also begs him, and Rocco agrees to distract Pizarro while the prisoners are set free. The prisoners, overjoyed at their freedom, sing joyfully ("O welche Lust" [O what a joy]), but, remembering that they could be caught, are soon quiet. Rocco reenters and tells Leonore of his success with Pizarro: Pizarro will allow the marriage, and Leonore will be permitted to join Rocco on his rounds in the dungeon ("Nun sprecht, wie ging's?" [Speak, how did it go?]). They prepare to go to the cell of a prisoner who, says Rocco, must be killed and buried within the hour. Leonore is so shaken that Rocco tries to persuade her to stay behind, but she insists on coming. As they prepare to leave, Jaquino and Marzelline rush in and tell Rocco to run: Pizarro has learned that the prisoners are free, and he is furious ("Ach, Vater, Vater, eilt!" [O, father, father, hurry!]). Before they can move, Pizarro enters and demands an explanation. Rocco pretends that they are celebrating the King's naming day, and suggests quietly that Pizarro save his anger for the prisoner in the dungeons below. Pizarro tells him to hurry and dig the grave, then announces that the prisoners will be shut in again. Rocco, Leonore, Jacquino, and Marzelline reluctantly usher the prisoners back to their cells. ("Leb wohl, du warmes Sonnenlicht" [Adieu, warm sunshine]). Act 2[edit] Florestan is alone in his cell, deep inside the dungeons. He sings first of his trust in God, then has a vision of Leonore coming to save him ("Gott! Welch Dunkel hier!" [God! What darkness here]... "In des Lebens Frühlingstagen" [In the spring days of life]). He collapses and falls asleep. Rocco and Leonore come to dig his grave and find him asleep. As they dig Rocco urges Leonore to hurry ("Wie kalt ist es in diesem unterirdischen Gewölbe!" [How cold it is in this underground chamber] ... "Nur hurtig fort, nur frisch gegraben" [Come get to work and dig!]). This is the Gravedigging Duet. Florestan awakes and Leonore recognizes him. When Florestan learns at last that he is in Pizarro's prison, he asks that a message be sent to his wife, Leonore Florestan, but Rocco says it is impossible. Florestan begs for a drop to drink, and Rocco tells Leonore to give him one. Florestan does not recognize Leonore but tells her she will be rewarded in Heaven ("Euch werde Lohn in bessern Welten" [You shall be rewarded in better worlds]). She begs Rocco to be allowed to give Florestan a crust of bread, and he agrees. Florestan eats. Rocco obeys his orders and sounds the alarm for Pizarro, who appears and asks if all is ready. Rocco says that it is and tells Leonore to leave, but instead she hides. Pizarro reveals his identity to Florestan, who accuses him of murder ("Er sterbe! Doch er soll erst wissen" [Let him die! But first he should know]). As Pizarro brandishes a dagger, Leonore leaps between him and Florestan and reveals her identity. Pizarro raises his dagger to kill her but she pulls a gun and threatens to shoot him. Just then the trumpet is heard, announcing the arrival of the minister. Jaquino enters, followed by soldiers, to announce that the minister is waiting at the gate. Rocco tells the soldiers to escort Governor Pizarro upstairs. Florestan and Leonore sing to their victory as Pizarro declares he will have revenge, and Rocco expresses his fear of what is to come ("Es schlägt der Rache Stunde" [Revenge's bell tolls]). Together, Florestan and Leonore sing a love duet ("O namenlose Freude!" [O unnamed joy!]). Here overture "Leonore No. 3" is sometimes played. The prisoners and townsfolk sing to the day and hour of justice which has come ("Heil sei dem Tag!" [Hail to the day!]). The minister, Don Fernando, announces that tyranny has ended. Rocco enters, with Leonore and Florestan, and he asks Don Fernando to help them ("Wohlan, so helfet! Helft den Armen!" [So help! Help the poor ones!]). Rocco explains how Leonore disguised herself as Fidelio to save her husband. Marzelline is shocked. Rocco describes Pizarro's murder plot, and Pizarro is led away to prison. Florestan is released from his chains by Leonore, and the crowd sings the praises of Leonore, the loyal savior of her husband ("Wer ein holdes Weib errungen" [Who has got a good wife]).

1787

MOZART, DON GIOVANNI: melodramma in due atti,  su libretto di Lorenzo da Ponte. di Mozart, libretto di Lorenzo da Ponte. Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires. Prima: Apr. 5, 2016. Otras funciones: 6, 8, 9, 10 and 12. PRODUCCIÓN TEATRO COLÓN. Vuelve a Colon la gran creación del binomio Mozart-Da Ponte. El burlador de Sevilla hará una vez más de las suyas en esta obra llena de comicidad y a la vez atravesada por la tragedia. Protagonizada por el gran bajo-barítono Erwin Schrott, serán de la partida varios de los mejores cantantes internacionales. DIRECCIÓN MUSICAL: Marc Piollet. DIRECCIÓN DE ESCENA: Emilio Sagi. DISEÑO DE ESCENOGRAFÍA: Daniel Bianco. DISEÑO DE VESTUARIO: Renata Schussheim. DISEÑO DE ILUMINACIÓN: Rubén Conde. PERSONAGGI: DON GIOVANNI: Erwin Schrott/Homero Pérez Miranda. DONNA ANNA: Paula Almerares/Daniela Tabernig. DONNA ELVIRA: María Bayo/Mónica Ferracani. DON OTTAVIO ("Dalla sua pace"): Dmitry Korchak/Santiago Bürgi. LEPORELLO: Simon Orfila/Lucas Debevec. ZERLINA: Jaquelina Livieri/Marisú Pavón.. MASETTO: Mario De Salvo . IL COMMENDATORE: Lucas Debevec. Hit: “Dalla sua pace la mia dipende.”

Don Giovanni, a young, arrogant, and sexually promiscuous nobleman, abuses and outrages everyone else in the cast, until he encounters something he cannot kill, beat up, dodge, or outwit. Act 1[edit] The overture begins with a thundering D minor cadence, followed by a short misterioso sequence which leads into a light-hearted D majorallegro. Scene 1 – The garden of the Commendatore Leporello, Don Giovanni's servant, complains of his lot ("Notte e giorno faticar" – "Night and day I slave away"). He is keeping watch while Don Giovanni has entered the Commendatore's house in an attempt to rape or seduce the Commendatore's daughter, Donna Anna. Don Giovanni enters the garden from inside the house, pursued by Donna Anna. Giovanni is masked and Donna Anna insists on knowing his true identity (Trio: "Non sperar, se non m'uccidi, Ch'io ti lasci fuggir mai!" – "Do not hope, unless you kill me, that I shall ever let you run away!"); before he can break free from her grasp she cries for help. The Commendatore appears and forces Giovanni to fight a duel while Donna Anna flees to seek help. Giovanni kills the Commendatore with his sword and escapes with Leporello. Anna, returning with her fiancé, Don Ottavio, is horrified to see her father lying dead in a pool of his own blood. She makes Ottavio swear vengeance against the unknown murderer. (Duet: "Ah, vendicar, se il puoi, giura quel sangue ognor!" – "Ah, swear to avenge that blood if you can!"). Scene 2 – A public square outside Don Giovanni's palace Ildebrando D'Arcangelo as Don Giovanni, Salzburg Festival 2014 Giovanni and Leporello arrive and hear a woman (Donna Elvira) singing of having been abandoned by her lover, on whom she is seeking revenge ("Ah, chi mi dice mai" – "Ah, who could ever tell me"). Giovanni starts to flirt with her, but it turns out he is the former lover she is seeking. The two recognize each other and she reproaches him bitterly. He shoves Leporello forward, ordering him to tell Elvira the truth, and then hurries away. Leporello tells Elvira that Don Giovanni is not worth her feelings for him. He is unfaithful to everyone; his conquests include 640 women and girls in Italy, 231 in Germany, 100 in France, 91 in Turkey, but in Spain, 1,003 ("Madamina, il catalogo è questo" – "My dear lady, this is the catalogue"). In a frequently cut recitative, Elvira vows vengeance. Scene 3 – The open country A marriage procession with Masetto and Zerlina enters. Don Giovanni and Leporello arrive soon after. Giovanni is immediately attracted to Zerlina, and he attempts to remove the jealous Masetto by offering to host a wedding celebration at his castle. On realizing that Giovanni means to remain behind with Zerlina, Masetto becomes angry ("Ho capito! Signor, sì" – "I understand! Yes, my lord!") but is forced to leave. Don Giovanni and Zerlina are soon alone and he immediately begins his seductive arts (Duet: "Là ci darem la mano" – "There we will entwine our hands"). Elvira arrives and thwarts the seduction ("Ah, fuggi il traditor" – "Flee from the traitor!"). She leaves with Zerlina. Ottavio and Anna enter, plotting vengeance on the still unknown murderer of Anna's father. Anna, unaware that she is speaking to her attacker, pleads for Giovanni's help. Giovanni, relieved that he is unrecognised, readily promises it, and asks who has disturbed her peace. Before she can answer, Elvira returns and tells Anna and Ottavio that Giovanni is a false-hearted seducer. Giovanni tries to convince Ottavio and Anna that Elvira is insane (Quartet: "Non ti fidar, o misera" – "Don't trust him, oh sad one"). As Giovanni leaves, Anna suddenly recognizes him as her father's murderer and tells Ottavio the story of his intrusion, claiming that she was deceived at first because she was expecting a night visit from Ottavio himself, but managed to fight Giovanni off after discovering the imposture, leading to the events we have already witnessed (long recitative exchange between Anna and Ottavio, leading to Anna's aria: "Or sai chi l'onore Rapire a me volse" – "Now you know who wanted to rob me of my honour"). Ottavio, not yet convinced (Anna having only recognised Giovanni's voice, not seen his face), resolves to keep an eye on his friend ("Dalla sua pace la mia dipende" – "On her peace my peace depends"). Leporello informs Giovanni that all the guests of the peasant wedding are in Giovanni's house and that he distracted Masetto from his jealousy, but that Zerlina, returning with Elvira, made a scene and spoiled everything. However, Don Giovanni remains cheerful and tells Leporello to organize a party and invite every girl he can find. (Giovanni's "Champagne Aria": "Fin ch'han dal vino calda la testa" – "Till they are tipsy"). They hasten to his palace. Scene 4 – A garden outside Don Giovanni's palace Zerlina follows the jealous Masetto and tries to pacify him ("Batti, batti o bel Masetto" – "Beat, O beat me, handsome Masetto"), but just as she manages to persuade him of her innocence, Don Giovanni's voice from offstage startles and frightens her. Masetto hides, resolving to see for himself what Zerlina will do when Giovanni arrives. Zerlina tries to hide from Don Giovanni, but he finds her and attempts to continue the seduction, until he stumbles upon Masetto's hiding place. Confused but quickly recovering, Giovanni reproaches Masetto for leaving Zerlina alone, and returns her temporarily to him. Giovanni then leads both offstage to his ballroom. Three masked guests – the disguised Ottavio, Anna, and Elvira – enter the garden. From a balcony, Leporello invites them to his master's party. They accept the invitation and Leporello leaves the balcony. Alone, Ottavio and Anna pray for protection, Elvira for vengeance (Trio: "Protegga il giusto cielo" – "May the just heavens protect us"). Luigi Bassi in the title role of Don Giovanni in 1787 Scene 5 – Don Giovanni's ballroom As the merriment, featuring three separate chamber orchestras on stage, proceeds, Leporello distracts Masetto by dancing with him, while Don Giovanni leads Zerlina offstage to a private room. When Zerlina screams for help, Don Giovanni tries to fool the onlookers by dragging Leporello into the room and threatening to kill him for assaulting Zerlina. But Ottavio produces a pistol, and the three guests unmask and declare that they know all. But despite being denounced on all sides, Don Giovanni escapes – for the moment. Act 2[edit] Scene 1 – Outside Elvira's house Leporello threatens to leave Giovanni, but his master calms him with a peace offering of money (Duet: "Eh via buffone" – "Go on, fool"). Wanting to seduce Elvira's maid, and believing that she will trust him better if he appears in lower-class clothes, Giovanni persuades Leporello to exchange cloak and hat with him. Elvira comes to her window (Trio: "Ah taci, ingiusto core" – "Ah, be quiet unjust heart"). Seeing an opportunity for a game, Giovanni hides and sends Leporello out in the open wearing Giovanni's cloak and hat. From his hiding place Giovanni sings a promise of repentance, expressing a desire to return to her and threatening to kill himself if she does not take him back, while Leporello poses as Giovanni and tries to keep from laughing. Elvira is convinced and descends to the street. Leporello, continuing to pose as Giovanni, leads her away to keep her occupied while Giovanni serenades her maid with his mandolin. ("Deh vieni alla finestra" – "Ah, come to the window"). Before Giovanni can complete his seduction of the maid, Masetto and his friends arrive, searching for Giovanni with the intent of killing him. Giovanni (still disguised as Leporello) convinces the posse that he also hates Giovanni, and joins the hunt. After cunningly dispersing Masetto's friends (Giovanni aria: "Metà di voi qua vadano" – "Half of you go this way"), Giovanni takes Masetto's weapons away, beats him up, and runs off, laughing. Zerlina arrives and consoles the bruised and battered Masetto ("Vedrai carino" – "You'll see, dear one"). Scene 2 – A dark courtyard Leporello abandons Elvira. (Sextet: "Sola, sola in buio loco" – "All alone in this dark place"). As he tries to escape, Ottavio arrives with Anna, consoling her in her grief. Just as Leporello is about to slip through the door, which he has difficulty finding, Zerlina and Masetto open it and, seeing him dressed as Giovanni, catch him before he can escape. When Anna and Ottavio notice what is going on, all move to surround Leporello, threatening him with death. Elvira tries to protect the man who she thinks is Giovanni, claiming that he is her husband and begging for pity. The other four are resolved to punish the traitor, but Leporello removes his cloak to reveal his true identity. He begs for mercy and, seeing an opportunity, runs off (Leporello aria: "Ah pietà signori miei" – "Ah, have mercy, my lords"). Given the circumstances, Ottavio is now convinced that Giovanni was the murderer of Donna Anna's father (the deceased Commendatore) and swears vengeance ("Il mio tesoro" – "My treasure" – though in the Vienna version this was cut).^[18] Elvira is still furious at Giovanni for betraying her, but she also feels sorry for him. ("Mi tradì quell'alma ingrata" – "That ungrateful wretch betrayed me").^[19] Graveyard scene of act 2 (Prague, probably 1790s), the earliest known set design for the opera Scene 3 – A graveyard with the statue of the Commendatore. Leporello tells Don Giovanni of his brush with danger, and Giovanni taunts him, saying that he took advantage of his disguise as Leporello by trying to seduce one of Leporello's girlfriends. But the servant is not amused, suggesting it could have been his wife, and Don Giovanni laughs aloud at his servant's protests. The voice of the statue warns Giovanni that his laughter will not last beyond sunrise. At the command of his master, Leporello reads the inscription upon the statue's base: "Here am I waiting for revenge against the scoundrel who killed me" (Dell'empio che mi trasse al passo estremo qui attendo la vendetta). The servant trembles, but the unabashed Giovanni orders him to invite the statue to dinner, threatening to kill him if he does not. Leporello makes several attempts to invite the statue to dinner but for fear cannot complete the task (Duet: "O, statua gentilissima" – "Oh most noble statue"). It falls upon Don Giovanni himself to complete the invitation, thereby sealing his own doom. Much to his surprise, the statue nods its head and responds affirmatively. Scene 4 – Donna Anna's room Ottavio pressures Anna to marry him, but she thinks it inappropriate so soon after her father's death. He accuses her of being cruel, and she assures him that she loves him, and is faithful ("Non mi dir" – "Tell me not"). Don Giovanni confronts the stone guest in a painting by Alexandre-Évariste Fragonard, ca 1830–35 (Musée des Beaux-Arts de Strasbourg) Scene 5 – Don Giovanni's chambers Giovanni revels in the luxury of a great meal, served by Leporello, and musical entertainment during which the orchestra plays then-contemporary late-18th-century operatic music: "O quanto in sì bel giubilo" from Vicente Martín y Soler's Una cosa rara (1786), "Come un agnello" from Giuseppe Sarti's Fra i due litiganti il terzo gode (1782) and finally, "Non più andrai" from Mozart's own The Marriage of Figaro (1786).^[20] (Finale "Già la mensa preparata" – "Already the table is prepared"). Elvira appears, saying that she no longer feels resentment for Giovanni, only pity. ("L'ultima prova dell'amor mio" – "The final proof of my love"). Surprised by her lack of hatred, Giovanni asks what it is that she wants, and she begs him to change his life. Giovanni taunts her and then turns away, praising wine and women as the "support and glory of humankind" (sostegno e gloria d'umanità). Hurt and angry, Elvira gives up and leaves. A moment later, her scream is heard from outside the walls of the palace, and she returns only to flee through another door. Giovanni orders Leporello to see what has upset her; upon peering outside, the servant also cries out, and runs back into the room, stammering that the statue has appeared as promised. An ominous knocking sounds at the door. Leporello, paralyzed by fear, cannot answer it, so Giovanni opens it himself, revealing the statue of the Commendatore. With the D minor cadences from the overture now accompanying the bass voice ("Don Giovanni! A cenar teco m'invitasti" – "Don Giovanni! You invited me to dine with you"), the Commendatore offers a last chance to repent, but Giovanni adamantly refuses. The statue disappears and Don Giovanni cries out in pain and terror as he is surrounded by a chorus of demons, who carry him down to Hell. Leporello, watching from under the table, also cries out in fear. Donna Anna, Don Ottavio, Donna Elvira, Zerlina, and Masetto arrive, searching for the villain. They find instead Leporello hiding under the table, shaken by the supernatural horror he has witnessed. Giovanni is dead. Anna and Ottavio will marry when Anna's year of mourning is over; Elvira will spend the rest of her life in a convent; Zerlina and Masetto will finally go home for dinner; and Leporello will go to the tavern to find a better master. The concluding ensemble delivers the moral of the opera – "Such is the end of the evildoer: the death of a sinner always reflects his life" ("Questo è il fin di chi fa mal, e de' perfidi la morte alla vita è sempre ugual"). In the past, the final ensemble was sometimes omitted by conductors (such as Gustav Mahler) who claimed that the opera should end when the title character dies. However, this approach has not survived, and today's conductors almost always include the finale in its entirety. The return to D major and the innocent simplicity of the last few bars conclude the opera.

1971

·                  GINASTERA, “BEATRICE CENCI: melodramma in due atti su libretto di William Shand e Alberto Girri, tratto da Shelley.   Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires. Estreno: Marzo 15, 1016. Otras funciones: 18 y 20. MELODRAMA EN DOS ACTOS, Y CATORCE ESCENAS, MÚSICA DE ALBERTO GINASTERA, LIBRETO DE WILLIAM SHAND Y ALBERTO GIRRI, BASADO EN LAS CRÓNICAS ITALIANAS DE STENDHAL Y “LOS CENCI” DE PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY, PRODUCCIÓN DEL TEATRO COLÓN. El centenario del nacimiento de Ginastera se hace sentir con la presencia de varias de sus obras durante esta temporada. Una de ellas estará nada menos que en la apertura de la actividad lírica de Colon. Su tercera y última ópera completada preúne todos los elementos de la intriga y la tragedia en un cóctel de alto impacto emocional. DIRECTOR MUSICAL: Guillermo Scarabino. DIRECTOR DE ESCENA: Alejandro Tantanian. DISEÑO DE ESCENOGRAFÍA Y VESTUARIO: Oria Puppo. DISEÑO DE ILUMINACIÓN: David Seldes. DISEÑO DE PROYECCIONES: Maxi Vecco. Personaggi: BEATRIX CENCI: Mónica Ferracani/Daniela Tabernig. CONDE FRANCISCO CENCI: Víctor Torres/Leonardo Estévez.. LUCREZIA: Alejandra Malvino/Maria Luján Mirabelli ORSINO: Gustavo López Manzitti/Fernando Chalabe.  BERNARDO: Florencia Machado/Rocío Arbizu ANDREA: Mario De Salvo/Emiliano Bulacios. The setting of Ginastera’s opera is the Cenci Palace, Rome, in the late 16th century. Count Francesco Cenci has arranged for a masked ball to celebrate the death of his two sons at Salamanca. The people despise the Count, and his daughter Beatrice and his second wife Lucrezia live in fear of him. Beatrice wants to escape by having her former suitor, Orsino, communicate a letter to the Pope Clemente VIII. Orsino, who has taken holy orders, destroys the letter. At the ball, the guests are repelled at the idea of the Count celebrating the deaths of his own sons. They leave, to the terror of Beatrice, who does not want to be alone in her father's company. Orsino enters and covers his destruction of Beatrice's letter by saying that Clemente VIII has rejected her plea. Left alone, the Count rapes his daughter. When in exile after reporting her father's act, Beatrice’s older brother Giacomo convinces Beatrice to kill her father. Beatrice then hires two assassins for the task, Olimpio and Marzio. Lucrezia gives his father a sleeping potion. The assassins kill the Count and conceal his body. Months later, Orsino announces that the Count’s body has been discovered. One of the assassins has been killed, and the other has confessed to the murder. Beatrice is arrested for the crime, and then bound and tortured. Finally, she is executed at the scaffold.

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