Charlotte Corday (opera)
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| Original title: | Charlotte Corday |
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| Shape: | Thoroughly composed |
| Original language: | Italian |
| Music: | Lorenzo Ferrero |
| Libretto : | Giuseppe Di Leva |
| Premiere: | February 21, 1989 |
| Place of premiere: | Teatro dell'Opera di Roma |
| Playing time: | approx. 95 minutes |
| Place and time of the action: | Paris , July 13, 1793 |
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Charlotte Corday is an opera in three acts by Lorenzo Ferrero based on a libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Di Leva, written for the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the French Revolution in 1989.
The basic theme of the opera is the individual terrorist act of everyone who believes they can eliminate something evil by eliminating one person - in most cases the wrong one. The work describes three encounters between the Girondist sympathizer Charlotte Corday and Jean-Paul Marat , the leading figure of the radical Jacobin faction: first two attempts and finally the murder itself.
Performance history
The premiere, directed by Mario Martone and conducted by Roberto Abbado , took place on February 21, 1989 at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma. The opera was subsequently staged twice in Germany; Performances took place on April 28, 1990 at the Bremen Theater under the direction of Istvan Dènes, and between April 27 and June 7, 2013 at the Central Saxon Theater under Jan Michael Horstmann .
action
- Place and time: Paris, July 13, 1793
1st act
Charlotte Corday arrives in Paris at dawn. On a market square she meets her childhood friend Camille, who is now a member of the National Convention . He is disappointed, depressed and fears for his life. Gaston is also in the crowd, telling Charlotte that he is Marat's bodyguard and confidante. The conversation is interrupted by a commotion that is developing around a bakery. In the game, a group of children simulate the events of the revolution. The square gradually empties, only one of the children, who was left tied up as a victim, remains and is freed by Charlotte. By comforting the child, she builds self-confidence and courage. Charlotte then buys a sharp knife and a scarf from a street vendor. Marat arrives surrounded by an admiring crowd. His tiredness and poor health cannot be hidden. For a moment, Charlotte catches his attention, but he proceeds to the National Convention Hall. She doesn't know how to use the situation to kill him. Marat, who is received by the MPs with a mixture of hostility and respect, speaks to the gathering.
2nd act
The decorations put up on the Marsfeld for the upcoming revolution celebration were destroyed by a storm. An aggressive, rampaging drunk is wandering around. Charlotte meets Camille again and finds him even more discouraged than ever. He admits his deep political disillusionment with her, but she says that a heroic deed is necessary right now. The drunk harasses her and accuses Camille of treason. Guards appear and arrest him. Charlotte accuses the revolution of abuse of power. Gaston arrives and justifies the arrest, but Marat releases him after Charlotte has vouched for him. Both Gaston and Marat are amazed at this unexpected gentleness. Charlotte wonders why she also missed her second chance to kill Marat. He feels uncomfortable again and can be brought home.
3rd act
Marat is in the bathtub, where his excruciating skin disease forces him to go. He, who wanted to heal the world, was defeated by his ailment. Charlotte knocks on the door. Marat's housekeeper tells her to come back at another time, but he demands that she be let in immediately. You are left alone. Charlotte gives him a list of the "enemies of the revolution" to review. He reads his own name in the first place and asks for an explanation. An argument begins about power, loneliness, truth and death, which ends with his murder with a knife. The moment the blade falls on him, Marat understands the meaning of the expression in Charlotte's eyes and dies without knowing her name.
literature
- Giorgio Bagnoli (Ed.): The La Scala Encyclopedia of the Opera. Simon & Schuster, New York 1993, ISBN 0-671-87042-4 .
- Nicolas Darbon, Pour une approche systémique de l'opéra contemporain. Université de Paris-Sorbonne, Paris 2001, ISBN 2-84591-064-9 .
- Piero Gelli (Ed.): Dizionario dell'Opera 2008. Baldini Castoldi Dalai editore, Milano 2007, ISBN 978-88-6073-184-5 .
- Gino Moliterno (Ed.): Encyclopaedia of Contemporary Italian Culture. Routledge, London / New York 2000, ISBN 0-415-14584-8 .
- Ettore Napoli, Guida alla musica sinfonica. Zecchini Editore, Varese 2010, ISBN 978-88-6540-001-2 .
- Nick Rossi, Opera in Italy Today. Amadeus Press, Portland 1995, ISBN 0-931340-77-2 .
- Guido Salvetti (Ed.): La cultura dei musicisti italiani nel novecento. Guerini Studio, Milano 2003, ISBN 88-8335-510-5 .
- Ulrich Schreiber, opera guide for advanced learners. Bärenreiter-Verlag, 2005, ISBN 3-7618-1437-2 .
- Stanley Sadie (Ed.): The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. Macmillan Publishers, London 2002, ISBN 0-19-522186-9 .
Web links
- Casa Ricordi catalog
- Intermezzo from the opera
- Casa Ricordi Digital Collection
- Charlotte Corday at the Central Saxon Theater, 2013
- The full opera on YouTube