10 Jan 2008
GLUCK/BERLIOZ: Orphée
Orphée: Opera in four acts.
Music composed by Christoph Willibald Gluck (arranged by Hector Berlioz, 1859). Libretto by Ranieri de' Calzabigi
Subscribe to
Opera Today
Receive articles and news via RSS feeds or email subscription.
Recently in Repertoire
MARTÍN Y SOLER: Andromaca
Andromaca: Dramma per musica in three acts.
ROSSINI: Ermione
Ermione: Azione tragica in two acts.
TRAETTA: Ippolito ed Aricia
Ippolito ed Aricia: Tragedia in five acts.
MOZART/STRAUSS: Idomeneo
Idomeneo: Opera seria in three acts.
GLUCK: Paride ed Elena
Paride ed Elena: Dramma per musica in five acts.
LULLY: Alceste, ou Le triomphe d’Alcide
Alceste, ou Le triomphe d’Alcide: Tragédie en musique in a prologue and five acts.
GLUCK: Alceste
Alceste: Tragédie opéra in three acts.
PACINI: Medea
Medea: Melodramma tragico in three acts.
SACCHINI: Oedipe à Colone
Oedipe à Colone: Tragédie lyrique in three acts.
STRAUSS : Elektra
Elektra: Tragedy in one act.
PAISIELLO: Fedra
Fedra: Dramma per musica in two acts.
BERLIOZ: Les Troyens
Les Troyens: Grand opéra in five acts.
WAGNER: Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg: Music drama in three acts.
STRAUSS: Ariadne auf Naxos
Ariadne auf Naxos, Oper with a prologue and one act. Music composed by Richard Strauss. Libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal.
MOZART: Der Schauspieldirektor
Der Schauspieldirektor [The Impresario], Singspiel in one act, K486.
SALIERI: Prima la musica e poi le parole
Divertimento teatrale in one act.
GIORDANO: Andrea Chénier
Andrea Chénier, an opera in four acts.
DONIZETTI: La Figlia del Reggimento
La figlia del reggimento [La Fille du régiment (‘The Daughter of the Regiment’)], Opéra comique in two acts.
DONIZETTI: L’elisir d’amore
L’elisir d’amore, Melodramma giocoso in two acts.
PUCCINI: La Bohème
La Bohème, opera in four acts. Music composed by Giacomo Puccini. Libretto by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi lllica, based on episodes from Henri Murger’s Scènes de la vie de Bohème.
OPERA TODAY ARCHIVES »
Repertoire
| First Performance: | |
| Italian Version | 5 October 1762, Burgtheater, Vienna |
| French Version | 2 August 1774, Paris Opéra |
| Principal Characters: | ||
| Italian version | ||
|---|---|---|
| Orfeo | Alto Castrato (Mezzo-Soprano (Berlioz version)) |
|
| Euridice, his wife | Soprano | |
| Amore | Soprano |
| French version | ||
|---|---|---|
| Orphée | Tenor | |
| Eurydice, his wife | Soprano | |
| Amour | Soprano |
Time and Place: Ancient Thrace
Synopsis:
At Eurydice’s funeral, Orphée’s grief turns to rage against the gods. Amour tells the distraught musician that he will be allowed to descend to the underworld to retrieve his wife if, through his music, he can appease the Furies.
There is a second condition that must be fulfilled if he is to return Eurydice to Earth; he must not look back at her during the journey out of the underworld, nor may he explain to her the reason for his apparent indifference. Orphée has no choice but to consent to the terms.
He subdues the Furies with his music and is permitted to enter the Elysian Fields. There, he meets Eurydice and begins to lead her back to Earth. Eurydice, unable to comprehend her spouse’s apparent indifference, becomes jealous and impatient, and is finally so overcome with frustration that she faints.
Orphée turns, looks, and loses her. He is distraught and on the brink of taking his own life, when Amour appears and restores the faithful lovers to each other.