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The Duchess of Padua
a parlour opera in four acts after the play by Oscar Wilde Performances planned forJanuary/February 2021 have been postponed A Gothic drama of revenge, passion and murder turned into a ‘parlour opera’… In this early play by Wilde, the beauty of his verse mattered more than the realistic portrayal of character and the credibility of the drama. At times melodramatic, at times sentimental, with everything in between, this adaptation faithfully follows the twists and turns of Wilde's extraordinary plot and reveals it to be more modern than it seems. Designed to make a big impact in small spaces this is a grand, ‘Italian-style’ opera with arias, ensembles, a love-duet, and a death scene condensed for just four voices and piano duet. The performance lasts about 1 hour 40 minutes including interval Words - Oscar Wilde Music - Edward Lambert Movement Direction - Christina Fulcher Conductor - Thomas Payne Duchess - Lizzie Holmes (soprano) Guido - Natasha Agarwal (mezzo-soprano) Duke - Daniel Joy (tenor) Moranzone - Richard Wiegold (bass) |
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IN FIVE YEAR’S TIME
Lorca’s poetic drama of 1931 is in thrall to a surreal dream-world: his friends Salvator Dali and Luis Buñuel had collaborated in the making of Un Chien Andalou (1929) and Lorca was experimenting to see how surrealism could translate into theatre. The play explores themes of frustrated love, personal identity, decay and death; yet it does so in the manner of a fairy tale, clothed in fun and topsy-turviness. It confuses the nature of time and reality and, in the process, examines the illusion of theatre. This operatic version is a free translation and adaptation of Lorca's text.
Duration: approx. 75 minutes
Scene 1 In Belisa’s dressing room, the mannequin carrying her wedding dress is pining for it to be worn.
Overture
Scene 2 In his library, Federico, a writer, talks with Fernando, an old friend who, as a philosopher and astronomer, represents Time Past. Federico explains he has put off his marriage to Belisa for five years. Rosita, his secretary, appears briefly and seems to be upset.
Scene 3 A mortuary: a child explains to a dead cat what it was like to die.
Scene 4 In a forest, three clowns from a player troupe sing and dance.
Scene 5 Belisa, in love with another, more passionate lover, calls off her engagement to Federico; the mannequin is distraught.
Scene 6 Back in the library, Federico's friend Juan (Time Present) boasts of his sexual conquests and gets increasingly drunk. Another friend, Pedro (Time Future), enters in a morbid mood. Rosita, angry now, announces her intention to leave Federico’s employment.
Scene 7 In the mortuary, the cat tells of the cruelty that killed it.
Scene 8 In Venice, Rosita and the Countess' mask talk in a gondola. The mask once belonged to a famous Italian opera singer
Scene 9 Five years later, Federico comes to claim Belisa, his fiancée, but finds only the mannequin who tells him to seek out Rosita for a bride.
Scene 10 The theatre in the forest: encouraged by the clowns, Federico approaches Rosita. She now appears to be under the protection of the Mask and she decides to make him wait five years.
Scene 11 The dead child and the dead cat are afraid of being buried.
Scene 12 Federico is in the library reading tarot cards; as he draws Death, the three friends now wearing Falangist badges, shoot him dead. The cat is taken away by a giant hand. Terrified, the child soon meets the same fate.
Characters
SOPRANO 1 (S1)
Rosita, secretary to Federico and in love with him
SOPRANO 2 (S2)
Puppeteer 1 to a Mannequin, wearing a wedding dress
Puppeteer to a Dead Child
MEZZO-SOPRANO (S3)
Puppeteer 2 to a Mannequin, wearing a wedding dress
Puppeteer to a Dead Cat
CONTRALTO (A)
Belisa, betrothed to Federico, then lover of Juan
The Mask of an Italian Countess
COUNTERTENOR (C)
Pedro, friend of Federico
Colombina, character in a troupe of players
TENOR (T)
Federico, a young writer and poet
BARITONE (B1)
Juan, friend of Federico
Arlecchino, character in a troupe
BASS (B2)
Fernando, elderly gentleman, friend of Federico
Pantalone, character in a troupe
The stage contains a theatre complete with curtains and a proscenium arch; that is, a second stage ('upper'). A ladder connects the two stages.
The main stage represents Federico's library, a forest and Venice.
The upper stage represents Belisa's dressing room / bedchamber, a mortuary and a theatre.
Instruments
Clarinet, horn, accordion, 2 violins, viola, cello, harp & percussion
Lorca’s poetic drama of 1931 is in thrall to a surreal dream-world: his friends Salvator Dali and Luis Buñuel had collaborated in the making of Un Chien Andalou (1929) and Lorca was experimenting to see how surrealism could translate into theatre. The play explores themes of frustrated love, personal identity, decay and death; yet it does so in the manner of a fairy tale, clothed in fun and topsy-turviness. It confuses the nature of time and reality and, in the process, examines the illusion of theatre. This operatic version is a free translation and adaptation of Lorca's text.
Duration: approx. 75 minutes
Scene 1 In Belisa’s dressing room, the mannequin carrying her wedding dress is pining for it to be worn.
Overture
Scene 2 In his library, Federico, a writer, talks with Fernando, an old friend who, as a philosopher and astronomer, represents Time Past. Federico explains he has put off his marriage to Belisa for five years. Rosita, his secretary, appears briefly and seems to be upset.
Scene 3 A mortuary: a child explains to a dead cat what it was like to die.
Scene 4 In a forest, three clowns from a player troupe sing and dance.
Scene 5 Belisa, in love with another, more passionate lover, calls off her engagement to Federico; the mannequin is distraught.
Scene 6 Back in the library, Federico's friend Juan (Time Present) boasts of his sexual conquests and gets increasingly drunk. Another friend, Pedro (Time Future), enters in a morbid mood. Rosita, angry now, announces her intention to leave Federico’s employment.
Scene 7 In the mortuary, the cat tells of the cruelty that killed it.
Scene 8 In Venice, Rosita and the Countess' mask talk in a gondola. The mask once belonged to a famous Italian opera singer
Scene 9 Five years later, Federico comes to claim Belisa, his fiancée, but finds only the mannequin who tells him to seek out Rosita for a bride.
Scene 10 The theatre in the forest: encouraged by the clowns, Federico approaches Rosita. She now appears to be under the protection of the Mask and she decides to make him wait five years.
Scene 11 The dead child and the dead cat are afraid of being buried.
Scene 12 Federico is in the library reading tarot cards; as he draws Death, the three friends now wearing Falangist badges, shoot him dead. The cat is taken away by a giant hand. Terrified, the child soon meets the same fate.
Characters
SOPRANO 1 (S1)
Rosita, secretary to Federico and in love with him
SOPRANO 2 (S2)
Puppeteer 1 to a Mannequin, wearing a wedding dress
Puppeteer to a Dead Child
MEZZO-SOPRANO (S3)
Puppeteer 2 to a Mannequin, wearing a wedding dress
Puppeteer to a Dead Cat
CONTRALTO (A)
Belisa, betrothed to Federico, then lover of Juan
The Mask of an Italian Countess
COUNTERTENOR (C)
Pedro, friend of Federico
Colombina, character in a troupe of players
TENOR (T)
Federico, a young writer and poet
BARITONE (B1)
Juan, friend of Federico
Arlecchino, character in a troupe
BASS (B2)
Fernando, elderly gentleman, friend of Federico
Pantalone, character in a troupe
The stage contains a theatre complete with curtains and a proscenium arch; that is, a second stage ('upper'). A ladder connects the two stages.
The main stage represents Federico's library, a forest and Venice.
The upper stage represents Belisa's dressing room / bedchamber, a mortuary and a theatre.
Instruments
Clarinet, horn, accordion, 2 violins, viola, cello, harp & percussion
