TUESDAY February 9, 7:30 p.m. (finishing at approx 10:30 p.m.)
RUSALKA
A lyrical fairy tale in three acts
by Antonín Dvořák
Libretto by Jaroslav Kvapil
based on the novella Undine by Friedrich de la Motte Fouquéy
First performed in Prague on 31 March 1901
Cast
Production
A 2002 production from the Opéra National de Paris
Directed by Robert Carsen
Stage and costume design by Michael Levine
Lighting design by Robert Carsen and Peter van Praet
Orchestra of the Opéra National de Paris
conducted by James Conlon
Synopsis
Note:The characters are referred to by generic terms from Slavic mythology: ‘Rusalka’ means water nymph and ‘Vodnik’ water sprite, while ‘Ježibaba’ is a standard name for a witch.
ACT I The edge of a lakeThree wood-sprites merrily dance along the shores of a lake, while teasing the Water Goblin, ruler of the lake, who lives beneath the waves.
The Water Goblin's daughter, Rusalka, a water nymph, sulks and stares longingly in the distance. He asks her what is wrong. Rusalka tells him that she has fallen in love with a prince who regularly visits the lake for a swim. Because they are invisible to humans, no matter how hard Rusalka tries to embrace him, he is unaware of her existence. She asks her father if it is possible to transform herself into a human. He tells her it is possible, but she must know that all humans are full of sin.
She replies that they are also full of love. Knowing he will not be able to change his daughter's mind, he reluctantly tells her to visit the witch, Jezibaba, who lives in a small cabin on the lake's shore. As her father sinks deeply into the darkening waters, Rusalka floats to the surface to pray to the rising moon, asking it to reveal to the hunter her love for him.
Rusalka makes her way to Jezibaba's hut. After divulging her story, she impatiently awaits Jezibaba's guidance. The witch can make a potion that will transform Rusalka into a human, but it comes with a price. First, should Rusalka drink the potion, she will lose her voice. Rusalka is undeterred. Secondly, if the hunter betrays her, they will both be damned eternally. Again, Rusalka is focused only on the love of the Prince. She quickly agrees and drinks the potion.
When the sun rises the following morning, the Prince arrives with a hunting party in a nearby meadow, having chased a white doe into the clearing. When the doe seemingly vanishes, the Prince sends his party away so that he can ponder the strange feelings that have suddenly overcome him. He sees Rusalka, her long, beautiful hair dancing in the breeze. The Prince embraces her and leads her away to his castle. Mournful cries can be heard from the depths of the lake as Rusalka's sisters lament her departure.
ACT II A park near the Prince's castleIn the shaded garden outside the Prince's castle, the kitchen boy and gamekeeper gossip about the Prince's strange and unusual bride-to-be. Chalking it up to be some sort of witchcraft, the nameless and speechless girl will not keep the Prince's fickle attention long, the two men decide. Besides, he has already shown an interest in one of his wedding guests - a foreign princess, who seems desperate for his attention.
Inside the castle, the Prince enters into the room with Rusalka at his side. The Foreign Princess approaches them and scolds the Prince for not engaging with any of his guests. He hugs Rusalka tightly, and despite her cold body temperature, he tells her that he must have her anyway. The Foreign Princess mocks the couple under her breath and declares that if she can't have him, she will take away their happiness. The Prince sends Rusalka away so she can prepare for the evening's ball. The Foreign Princess seizes the opportunity and begins to charm the Prince, and soon enough, he begins to court her. As Rusalka prepares for the ball, the Prince and Foreign Princess dance together and sing along with the other guests.
Later that evening, the Water Goblin senses something has gone awry. After making his way to the castle's garden, he sees Rusalka, tears streaming down her face, running out of the castle. She has given up hope and asks for her father's forgiveness. Because she is neither nymph nor woman, she can't die but her empty heart prevents her from living. Behind her, the Prince and Foreign Princess make their way into the garden, flirting with one another as young lovers do. The Prince confesses his love to her. In a last effort to gain his affections, Rusalka tries to embrace the Prince once more. He pushes her away and shouts that she is cold as ice. The Water Goblin calls out to Rusalka and she returns to the water with her father. As the Prince becomes the Foreign Princess's lapdog, she laughs maniacally.
ACT III By the lakeRusalka asks Jezibaba if there is anything she can do to prevent her fate. Jezibaba hands her a dagger and instructs her to kill the human who has betrayed her - only then can she be free of damnation. Rusalka throws the dagger into the lake. She will not take away the happiness of her only love. Instead, she gives in to her fate and changes into a death spirit. She will live within the darkest depths of the lake and will come out only at night to lure humans into her death trap. Rusalka's sisters want nothing to do with her since she has lost all her joy.
The gamekeeper and kitchen boy seek out Jezibaba and accuse Rusalka of witchcraft. The Water Goblin quickly comes to Rusalka's defence and shouts with thunder and gusto that it was the Prince who truly betrayed her. The men run away.
Later that evening, the Prince, alone, travels to the lake in search of the white doe. He calls out to Rusalka. She appears and questions him about his betrayal. He begs for forgiveness and asks for her to kiss him once more. She tells him that her kiss will bring him death and damnation; he still kisses her, and dies in her arms. She thanks him for allowing her to experience human love. The Water Goblin bewails that all sacrifices are futile as Rusalka descends to the depths.
Click here to watch Paris Opera's preview video
of this production
Renée Fleming as Rusalka
in this production
Czech soprano Ružena Maturova,
Dvořák's first Rusalka
Rusalka: unanswered questions
One question that spectators might ask about this opera is whether the affair between the Prince and Rusalka is ever consummated. While it is never stated outright, several clues point to a positive answer to this question. As indicated at the conclusion of Act I, the Prince covers her with his cloak and leads her into the woods, where they would have some privacy, rather than back to his castle. Second, the prince’s complaints about her lack of passion seem to refer to something more than kissing. She apparently was only superficially transformed into a human, but with her other-worldly mentality she does not experience sexual passion. Finally, the implication of a sexual relationship seems implied in her father’s anger at the Prince’s betrayal. Most likely a man who deserted a woman he had merely kissed would not arouse such anger, but by the sexual mores of the time (which still persist in some places), a man who took a woman’s virginity and refused to marry her was worthy of condemnation.
Some critics have made note of the “love/death” motif in the opera, a theme which figured prominently in the operas of Dvorák’s principal model, Richard Wagner. The purest form of the “Liebestod” (love/death) appears in the conclusion of Tristan and Isolde. What could be more romantic than dying for love, whether by suicide (Werther), a jealous lover (Pagliacci, Francesca di Rimini, and others), exposure to the elements (Manon Lescaut), or a lover’s kiss, as in Rusalka?
Finally, there is the question of whether this opera has a deeper meaning for us beyond mere enjoyment of the story and the music. As critic Fred Cohn notes, “The longing to be something other than oneself is built into the human condition.” Does the opera suggest that one should not seek out forbidden relationships? To see the opera as moralistic in this way is to miss the emotional impact of Dvorák’s music. John Simon has described the opera as expressing “the ultimate incompatibility of man and woman, the impossibility of love.”
- Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Nov. 2015
NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, March 16, 7.30 pm
I Capuletti e I Montecchi
Bellini's bel canto masterpiece - yet another version of Romeo and Juliet – in a 2014 production from the San Francisco Opera, in conjunction with the Bavarian State Opera.
Joyce Di Donato is in splendid form in the trouser role of Romeo, with exciting new soprano Nicole Cabell as his (her?) Giuletta.
NOTE: The screening will be preceded by the annual general meeting of the Forum, including the election of officers.
COMING UP IN OUR 2016 PROGRAMME
April : Aida
Verdi’s Egyptian opera comes from the Zurich Opera and stars Nina Stemme
May : The Marriage of Figaro
From La Scala comes Mozart’s ever-delightful Figaro
June : Fierrabras
A too little known opera by the master of song Franz Schubert
July : The Gambler
Prokofiev’s opera is conducted by Daniel Barenboim in Berlin
August : Luisa Miller
From Malmö Opera, Sweden, comes Verdi's tragic tale of love across class barriers
September : La Favorite
One of Donizetti’s most beguiling scores
October : Dialogues of the Carmelites
Francis Poulenc gave us one of the most often performed and best loved post WWII operas
November : Showboat
Jerome Kern’s evergreen score, in the acclaimed San Francisco Opera production, will be a joyful way to end our year
PLEASE NOTE: The Committee of Auckland Opera Forum reserves the right to change the programme if deemed necessary