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"Giovanna d'Arco; ossia, la pulzella d'Orléans" is an operatic dramma lirico with a prologue and three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Temistocle Solera.
The opera partly reflects the story of Joan of Arc and is based on a play by Friedrich von Schiller, although claimed by the librettist to be "an entirely original Italian drama."
The opera, Verdi's seventh, had its first performance at Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on February 15, 1845.
The original Giovanna was Erminia Frezzolini, who had previously appeared in Verdi's (and Solera's) I Lombardi alla prima crociata two years earlier.
She was paired with her husband, tenor Antonio Poggi, as Charles, King of France.
Baritone Filippo Colini portrayed Giovanna's father Giacomo.
Critics were rather dismissive of the opera.
Verdi himself esteemed his work but was unhappy with the way it had been staged, and vowed never to set foot on the stage of La Scala again.
Indeed, the Milan theater would have to wait for 36 years to stage another premiere of a Verdi's work – the revised version of Simon Boccanegra.
Nonetheless, the opera was positively received by the audience and went on for 17 performances.
For the opera's first production in Roma, three months after the Milan premiere, the plot had to be cleared of any direct religious connotations by order of the papal censor.
The title was changed to Orietta di Lesbo, the setting was shifted to the Greek island and the heroine, now of Genoese descent, became a leader of the Lesbians against the Turks.
For the next 25 years Giovanna d'Arco had steady success in Italy, while it was also presented elsewhere in Europe.[3] Later though, it started to sink into oblivion.
In 1951 Renata Tebaldi played the title role in Naples, Milan (a studio-recorded broadcast) and Paris, in a tour that led to further revivals.
However, the opera has been rarely staged in modern times.
Its US premiere was given in 1966, in a concert performance at Carnegie Hall, New York, with Teresa Stratas in the title role.
Its first stage performance in the US was given in 1976 by Vincent La Selva (now of the New York Grand Opera) at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. NYGO also gave the opera in 1983 and in 1995, the latter as part of its "Viva Verdi!" festival of all of the composer's operas in chronological order.[8] Another notable performance in the United States was a concert version at Carnegie Hall with June Anderson and Carlo Guelfi (May 1996) in a presentation by the Opera Orchestra of New York.[9]
The opera was also performed in concert at Avery Fisher Hall in 1985, with Welsh soprano Margaret Price, Carlo Bergonzi and Sherrill Milnes.
Fully staged productions were mounted by the San Diego Opera in June 1980 as part of its short-lived "Verdi Festival",[11] and by the Royal Opera, London in June 1996 with Vladimir Chernov as Giacomo and June Anderson as Giovanna.
The Teatro Regio di Parma presented the opera in 2008 as part of its "Festival Verdi".[12] and there was a 2008 production mounted in Rouen in France that same year and the opera performed by Sarasota Opera in March 2010 as part of its "Verdi Cycle" of all of the composer's operas by 2016.
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, 15 February 1845[13] (Conductor: – Eugenio Cavallini) |
|---|---|---|
| Giovanna | soprano | Erminia Frezzolini |
| Carlo VII, King of France | tenor | Antonio Poggi |
| Giacomo, shepherd and father of Giovanna | baritone | Filippo Colini |
| Talbot, an English Commander | bass | Francesco Lodetti |
| Delil, a French officer | tenor | Napoleone Marconi |
| French and English soldiers, French courtiers, villagers, nobles, angels, demons – Chorus | ||
Synopsis
- Time: 1429
- Place: Domrémy, Rheims and near Rouen, France
Prologue
Scene 1: The French village of DomrémyCharles (the not-yet-crowned King of France) describes to his officers and the villagers his vision of the Virgin Mary commanding him to surrender to the invading English army and laying down his weapons at the foot of a giant oak tree. (Aria: Sotto una quercia parvemi – "Beneath an oak I seemed"). Later, he expresses his frustration with the limitations of being a ruler. (Aria: Pondo è letal, martirio – "A deadly burden, a torment").
Scene 2: A forest
By a giant oak tree, Giacomo prays for the safety of his daughter Giovanna, who before she falls asleep by a nearby shrine offers prayers to be chosen to lead the French forces. (Aria: Sempre all'alba ed alla sera – "always at dawn and in the evening"). Suddenly, Charles arrives, prepared to lay down his arms at the base of the tree. Meanwhile, the sleeping Giovanna has visions in which angels ask her to become a soldier and lead France to victory (Tu sei bella, the Demons' Waltz). She cries out that she is ready to do so. Charles overhears her and thrills at her courage. Her father Giacomo weeps, believing that his daughter has given her soul to the Devil out of her devotion to the future King.
Act 1
Scene 1: Near ReimsCommander Talbot of the English army tries to convince his discouraged soldiers that their imminent surrender to the French is not due to forces of evil. Giacomo arrives and offers up his daughter, believing her to be under the influence of the Devil: Franco son io – "I am French, but in my heart..." and So che per via dei triboli – "I know that original sin...".
Scene 2: The French court at Reims
Preparations are under way for Charles' coronation. Giovanna longs for her simple life back home. (Aria: O fatidica foresta – "O prophetic forest..."). Charles confesses his love for Giovanna. She withdraws despite her feelings toward the King, because her voices have warned her against earthly love. Charles is taken to the Cathedral at Reims for his coronation.
Act 2
The Cathedral squareThe villagers of Reims have gathered in the Cathedral square to celebrate Giovanna's victory over the English army. The French soldiers lead Charles into the Cathedral. Giacomo has decided he must repudiate his daughter who, he believes, has entered a pact with the Devil. (Aria: Speme al vecchio era una figlia – "An old man's hope was a daughter"). He denounces her to the villagers (Aria: Comparire il ciel m'ha stretto – "Heaven has forced me to appear") and they are persuaded, although the King refuses to listen. Charles pleads with Giovanna to defend herself, but she refuses.
Act 3
At the stakeGiovanna has been captured by the English army and is awaiting her death at the stake. She has visions of battlefield victories and begs God to stand by her, explaining how she has shown her obedience by forsaking her worldly love for the King as the voices had commanded. Giacomo overhears her pleas and recognizes his error. He loosens his daughter's bonds and she escapes. She rushes to the battlefield to turn French defeat into victory once more.
Giacomo pleads with the King, first for punishment and then for forgiveness, which Charles grants. Charles learns of the French victory on the battlefield but also of Giovanna's death. (Aria: Quale al più fido amico – "Which of my truest friends"). As her body is carried in, Giovanna suddenly revives. Giacomo reclaims his daughter, and the King professes his love. The angels sing of salvation and victory, as Giovanna dies and ascends into heaven.
Orchestration
Giovanna d'Arco is scored for piccolo (briefly doubling second flute), flute, two oboes (second doubling cor anglais), two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, six or nine offstage trumpets, three trombones, cimbasso, timpani, snare drum, bass drum and cymbals (cassa), cymbals (piatti), triangle, bell, cannon, wind band, wind band of brass instruments only, offstage band, bass drum for band, harp, harmonium, strings.Recordings
| Year | Cast (Giovanna, Carlo VII, Giacomo) | Conductor, Opera House and Orchestra | Label[14] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | Renata Tebaldi, Carlo Bergonzi, Rolando Panerai | Alfredo Simonetto, RAI Milano Symphonic Orchestra and Chorus | Audio CD: Melodram Cat: 27021 |
| 1972 | Montserrat Caballe, Placido Domingo, Sherrill Milnes | James Levine, London Symphony Orchestra, Ambrosian Opera Chorus | Audio CD: EMI Classics Cat: 7-63226-2 |
| 1990 | Susan Dunn, Vincenzo La Scola, Renato Bruson | Riccardo Chailly, Teatro Comunale di Bologna Orchestra and Chorus. (Staged and directed by German film maker Werner Herzog) | DVD: Kultur Cat: D4043 |
References
- ^ Budden, J., Vol. 1
- ^ Kimbell, p. ?
- ^ a b c d Martin, G., "Verdi Onstage in the United States:Giovanna d'Arco", The Opera Quarterly, 21 (2):242, 2005.
- ^ Prag, R., "Giovanna d'Arco. Giuseppe Verdi", The Opera Quarterly, 14 (2): 164, 1997.
- ^ Osborne, p. 47
- ^ Weaver, pp. 123–25.
- ^ Warrack and West, p. ?
- ^ NYGO's repertoire list
- ^ Bernard Holland, "Music Review: A Young Verdi's Bold and Vivid Joan of Arc", The New York Times, May 11, 1996.
- ^ Donal Henahan, "Opera: Verdi's Giovanna D'Arco", The New York Times, October 28, 1985.
- ^ San Diego Opera's 1980 performance
- ^ Parma's 2008 "Festival Verdi"
- ^ List of singers taken from Budden, p. 204
- ^ Recordings on operadis-opera-discography.org.uk
- Budden, Julian, The Operas of Verdi, Volume 1: From ' Oberto to Rigoletto. London: Cassell, 1984. ISBN 0-304-31058-1.
- Kimbell, D.R.B., Verdi in the Age of Italian Romanticism, Cambridge University Press, 1981
- Osborne, Charles, Verdi: A Life in the Theatre. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1987
- Warrack, John and West, Ewan, The Oxford Dictionary of Opera New York: OUP: 1992 ISBN 0-19-869164-5
- Weaver, William, "The Golden Century of Italian Opera from Rossini to Puccini". New York: Thames and Hudson, 1980
- Holden, Amanda (Ed.), The New Penguin Opera Guide, New York: Penguin Putnam, 2001. ISBN 0-14-029312-4
- Phillips-Matz, Mary Jane, ‘’Verdi: A Biography’’, London & New York: Oxford University Press, 1993 ISBN 0-19-313204-4
- Rizzuti, Alberto (ed.), Giovanna d'Arco: Dramma lirico in Four Acts by Temistocle Solera in The Works of Giuseppe Verdi, Series I: Operas. (The critical edition) Chicago: University Of Chicago Press, 2009 ISBN 0-226-85330-6 ISBN 978-0226853307
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