#rigoletto

Sketch & Costume for Ganna Walska as Gilda in Rigoletto

Designed by Erté

1922

For example, Rigoletto. The libretto emphasizes that Gilda doesn't know her father's name, because he doesn't want her to know that he's Rigoletto, the court jester. But we the audience don't know his real name either, because "Rigoletto" is a professional nickname. It's derived from the French rigolet, "to laugh" or "to giggle." We have no idea what his birth name was.

Or Madame Butterfly, a.k.a. Cio-Cio-San. I think a common misconception is that "Cio-Cio-San" is her birth name, while "Madame Butterfly" is her geisha name. Not so. "Cio-Cio-San," or rather, "Chōchō-san," means "Madame Butterfly" or "Miss Butterfly" in Japanese. They're the same name – her geisha name. We never learn what she was called at birth.

In a subtle way, this adds to the tragedy of these characters. They're both marginalized figures who have no choice but to entertain (in very different way, of course) in order to survive, and cater to people who see them as less than human. Both of their professions force them to go by a name that reflects the role they play: his of comedy, hers of delicate beauty. And not even we, the audience, learn the real names they were given at birth.

alright, so:

the year is 2020. because the year is 2020, opera companies are being forced to cancel or drastically rework their season. and because it is the year 2020 in america, and the american government is absolutely not being helpful, pretty much every american opera company has to cancel their entire season.

tulsa opera sees this and says “there has to be another way”.

they decide to stage an opera in a (minor league) baseball stadium. people can be socially distanced onstage, audience members can be socially distanced, we can get away with a reduced orchestration, win-win.

they decide that because they are doing an opera in a baseball stadium, they might as well give an opera a baseball-centered concept.

they decide to do verdi’s rigoletto, one of the most popular operas of all time and also one where they can cast several oklahoma opera people (most notably famous soprano sarah coburn as gilda).

rigoletto is the team mascot. the duke is a cocky (in all senses of the word) star pitcher. sparafucile is an umpire from oklahoma city (one of the reasons the sparaficule/rigoletto duet is hysterically funny is because the subtitles kept it TOTALLY STRAIGHT until they got to the line about sparafucile being a foreigner, when they translated it as sparafucile saying he is from oklahoma city) who inexplicably carries a dagger with him at all times and likes to murder people.

when: sunday 8 March, 7pm UK time (check your local time)

where: kosmi

language: italian (english subs)

duration: 2h 15m

production: 2022 royal opera house

cast: Liparit Avetisyan (Duke of Mantua), Carlos Álvarez (Rigoletto), Lisette Oropesa (Gilda), Brindley Sherratt (Sparafucile). directed by Oliver Mears; conducted by Antonio Pappano.

plot:

The hunchback Rigoletto is the court jester of the Duke of Mantua, an amoral womaniser who's free to act as he pleases thanks to his position. During one of the Duke's parties, Rigoletto mocks an old man whose daughter was seduced by the Duke, causing the old man to curse him. Little does Rigoletto know that his own daughter, Gilda, is the Duke's next intended conquest... [read full synopsis]

la donna è mobile... 🎶 you know the tune. it's here. it's in here. and there's other bangers also.

Portrait of soprano Mattiwilda Dobbs as Gilda in Verdi's opera, "Rigoletto." Typed on back: "Metropolitan Opera House on Friday, November 9th in the role of Gilda in Rigoletto." Handwritten on back: "Mattiwilda Dobbs, Met's Rigoletto."