| Anna Bolena | |
|---|---|
| Opera byGaetano Donizetti | |
 Giuditta Pasta in the title role | |
| Librettist | Felice Romani |
| Language | Italian |
| Premiere | |
Anna Bolena is a tragicopera (tragedia lirica) in two acts composed byGaetano Donizetti.Felice Romani wrote the Italianlibretto afterIppolito Pindemonte'sEnrico VIII ossia Anna Bolena andAlessandro Pepoli'sAnna Bolena, both recounting the life ofAnne Boleyn, the second wife of England'sKing Henry VIII.
It is one of four operas by Donizetti dealing with theTudor period inEnglish history—in composition order,Il castello di Kenilworth (1829),Anna Bolena (1830),Maria Stuarda (named forMary, Queen of Scots, it appeared in different forms in 1834 and 1835), andRoberto Devereux (1837, named for a putative lover of QueenElizabeth I of England). The leading female characters of the latter three operas are often referred to as "the Three Donizetti Queens."
Anna Bolena premiered on 26 December 1830 at theTeatro Carcano in Milan, to "overwhelming success." Weinstock notes that only after this success did Donizetti's teacher,Johann Simon Mayr, "address his former pupil as Maestro."[1] The composer had begun "to emerge as one of three most luminous names in the world of Italian opera",[1] alongsideBellini andRossini.
19th century
After its opening performances in Italy in 1830,Anna Bolena was first given in London at the King's Theatre on 8 July 1831. Its first US performance was given in French (asAnne de Boulen) in New Orleans, at theThéâtre d'Orléans on 12 November 1839.[2] The New York premiere of the opera, and the first Italian presentation of the work in the United States, took place at theAstor Opera House on January 7, 1850, with conductorMax Maretzek andApollonia Bertucca in the title role.[3] It appears to have been presented in Europe, up to 1850, in 25 cities and then again in 1881 in Livorno. After the rise ofverismo,[2] it was performed infrequently.
20th century and beyond
Rarely seen in the first half of the 20th century, it was revived more frequently after World War II. On 30 December 1947, the opera was performed atGran Teatre del Liceu inBarcelona, to mark that theatre's centennial (it had opened in 1847 withAnna Bolena). The cast wasSara Scuderi as Anna,Giulietta Simionato as Jane Seymour andCesare Siepi as Henry VIII. In April 1957, the opera was revived atLa Scala forMaria Callas (one of the seven performances was recorded) in a lavish production directed byLuchino Visconti, with Giulietta Simionato as Jane Seymour. It proved to be one of Callas' greatest triumphs. In the revival the following year, Callas and Simionato repeated their roles and were joined by Siepi as the king, this role having been sung byNicola Rossi-Lemeni at the premiere the year before.
Since its 1850 performance, the opera was not performed again in the United States until it was presented in a concert version by theAmerican Opera Society in October 1957 withGloria Davy the title role and Simionato as Giovanna Seymour for performances at bothTown Hall andCarnegie Hall.[4][5] On 26 June 1959, theSanta Fe Opera mounted the first fully staged production of the work since 1839.[6] Several famous modern sopranos have lent their voices to the role, includingLeyla Gencer,Montserrat Caballé,Marisa Galvany,Renata Scotto,Edita Gruberova andMariella Devia. In the 1970s,Beverly Sills earned a considerable degree of fame when she appeared in all three of Donizetti's "Tudor" operas at theNew York City Opera. (She also made studio recordings of all three operas.) And Anna was one of the last new roles performed byDame Joan Sutherland, at San Francisco Opera in 1984.
While not yet part of the "standard repertory",Anna Bolena is increasingly performed today,[7] and there are several recordings.
It was presented by theDallas Opera in November 2010, which has also stagedMaria Stuarda. TheMinnesota Opera presentedAnna Bolena as part of the "Three Queens" trilogy. TheVienna State Opera gave it in the Spring of 2011, withAnna Netrebko in the title role andElīna Garanča as Giovanna Seymour. New York'sMetropolitan Opera mounted it for the first time in September 2011, opening the company's 2011–2012 season, with Netrebko and withDavid McVicar directing.[8] Opera Seria UK in Manchester, England, stagedAnna Bolena in 2012 as the first in their "Tudor Queens" trilogy, which continues into 2014.[9] And theWelsh National Opera presented the trilogy between September and November 2013, in many different venues in Britain.[10][11] TheLyric Opera of Chicago also includedAnna Bolena in their 2014–2015 season.[12]Sondra Radvanovsky has sung the title role at several opera houses including the Met in 2015.[13][14]
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, 26 December 1830 (Conductor: - ) |
|---|---|---|
| Anna Bolena (Anne Boleyn) | soprano | Giuditta Pasta |
| Enrico (Henry VIII) | bass | Filippo Galli |
| Giovanna Seymour (Jane Seymour),Anna's lady-in-waiting | mezzo-soprano | Elisa Orlandi |
| Lord Rochefort (George Boleyn),Anna's brother | bass | Lorenzo Biondi |
| Riccardo Percy (Henry Percy, 6th Earl of Northumberland)[15] | tenor | Giovanni Battista Rubini |
| Smeton (Mark Smeaton),musician | contralto | Henriette Laroche |
| Hervey,court official | tenor | Antonio Crippa |
| Courtiers, soldiers, huntsmen | ||
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Scene One: Night. Windsor Castle, Queen's apartments
Courtiers comment that the queen's star is setting, because the king's fickle heart burns with another love.
Jane Seymour enters to attend a call by the Queen; Anna enters and notes that people seem sad. The queen admits to Jane that she is troubled. At the queen's request, her page Smeaton plays the harp and sings in an attempt to cheer the people present. The queen asks him to stop. Unheard by any one else, she says to herself that the ashes of her first love are still burning, and that she is now unhappy in her vain splendor. All leave, except Jane.
Henry VIII enters and tells Jane that soon she will have no rival, that the altar has been prepared for her, and that she will have husband, sceptre, and throne. Each leaves by a different door.
Scene Two: Day. Around Windsor Castle
Lord Rochefort, Anna's brother, is surprised to meet Lord Richard Percy, who has been called back to England from exile by Henry VIII. Percy asks if it is true that the Queen is unhappy and that the King has changed. Rochefort answers that love is never content.
Hunters enter. Percy is agitated at the prospect of possibly seeing Anna, who was his first love. Henry and Anna enter and express surprise at seeing Percy. Henry does not allow Percy to kiss his hand, but says that Anna has given him assurances of Percy's innocence but she still has feelings for Percy. Henry VIII tells Hervey, an officer of the king, to spy on every step and every word of Anna and Percy.
Scene Three: Windsor Castle, close to the Queen's apartments
Smeaton takes a locket from his breast containing Anna's portrait. He has stolen it and has come to return it. He hears a sound and hides behind a screen. Anna and Rochefort enter. Rochefort asks Anna to hear Percy. Then he leaves. Smeaton peeps out from behind the screen, but cannot escape. Percy enters. Percy says that he sees that Anna is unhappy. She tells him that the king now loathes her. Percy says that he still loves her. Anna tells him not to speak to her of love. Before leaving, Percy asks whether he can see Anna again. She says no. He draws his sword to stab himself, and Anna screams. In the mistaken belief that Percy is attacking Anna, Smeaton rushes out from behind the screen. Smeaton and Percy are about to fight. Anna faints, and Rochefort rushes in. Just then, Henry VIII enters and sees the unsheathed swords. Summoning attendants, he says that these persons have betrayed their king. Smeaton says that it is not true, and tears open his tunic to offer his breast to the king for slaying if he is lying. The locket with Anna's portrait falls at the king's feet. The king snatches it up. He orders that the offenders be dragged to dungeons. Anna says to herself that her fate is sealed.
Scene One: London. Antechamber of the Queen's apartments
The guards note that even Jane Seymour has stayed away from Anna. Anna enters with a retinue of ladies, who tell her to place her trust in heaven. Hervey enters and says that the Council of Peers has summoned the ladies into its presence. The ladies leave with Hervey. Jane enters and says that Anna can avoid being put to death by admitting guilt. Anna says that she will not buy her life with infamy. She expresses the hope that her successor will wear a crown of thorns. Jane admits that she is to be the successor. Anna tells her to leave, but says that Henry VIII alone is the guilty one. Jane leaves, deeply upset.
Scene Two: Antechamber leading into the hall where the Council of Peers is meeting
Hervey tells courtiers that Anna is lost, because Smeaton has talked and has revealed a crime. Henry VIII enters. Hervey says that Smeaton has fallen into the trap. Henry VIII tells Hervey to continue to let Smeaton believe that he has saved Anna's life. Anna and Percy are brought in, separately. Henry VIII says that Anna has made love to the page Smeaton, and that there are witnesses. He says that both Anna and Percy will die. Percy says that it is written in heaven that he and Anna are married. They are led away by guards.
Jane enters. She says that she does not want to be the cause of Anna's death. Henry VIII says that she will not save Anna by leaving. Hervey enters and says that the council has dissolved the royal marriage and has condemned Anna and her accomplices to death. Courtiers and Jane ask the king to be merciful. He tells them to leave.
Scene Three: Tower of London
Percy and Rochefort are together in their cell. Hervey enters and says that the king has pardoned them. They ask about Anna. Hearing that she is to be executed, they choose to be executed also. They leave, surrounded by guards.
In Anna's cell, a chorus of ladies comment on her madness and grief. Anna enters, she imagines that it is her wedding day to the king. Then she imagines that she sees Percy, and she asks him to take her back to her childhood home (Donizetti used the theme from the English/American songHome Sweet Home as part of Anna's Mad Scene to underscore her longing). Percy, Rochefort and Smeaton are brought in. Smeaton throws himself at Anna's feet and says that he accused her in the belief that he was saving her life. In her delirium, Anna asks him why he is not playing his lute. Cannon fire sounds and Anna regains her senses. She is told that Giovanna and Enrico are being acclaimed by the populace on their wedding day. Anna says she does not wish vengeance on them. She faints. Guards enter to lead the prisoners to the block.
| Year | Anna Bolena Enrico Giovanna Percy | Conductor, Opera House and Orchestra | Label[16] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1957 | Maria Callas, Nicola Rossi-Lemeni, Giulietta Simionato, Gianni Raimondi | Gianandrea Gavazzeni, Orchestra and Chorus ofLa Scala, Milan (Recorded live on 14 April) | CD: EMI Cat: CDMB5 66474-2 |
| 1958 | Leyla Gencer, Plinio Clabassi, Giulietta Simionato, Aldo Bertocci | Gianandrea Gavazzeni, Orchestra Sinfonica e Coro della RAI di Milano | CD: Andromeda Cat: ANDRCD 5114 |
| 1965 | Leyla Gencer, Carlo Cava, Patricia Johnson, Juan Oncina | Gianandrea Gavazzeni,Glyndebourne Festival, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Glyndebourne Festival Chorus (Recorded live on 13 June) | CD: Hunt Cat: CD 554 |
| 1967 | Teresa Żylis-Gara, Karl Ridderbusch, Vera Little Gene Ferguson | Alberto Erede, Orchester und Chor des Westdeutschen RundfunksCologne | CD: Opera Depot Cat: OD 10388-2 |
| 1968/69 | Elena Souliotis, Nicolai Ghiaurov, Marilyn Horne, John Alexander | Silvio Varviso, Vienna State Opera Orchestra and Chorus | CD: Decca Cat:455 069-2 |
| 1972 | Beverly Sills, Paul Plishka, Shirley Verrett, Stuart Burrows | Julius Rudel, London Symphony Orchestra John Alldis Choir | CD: DG Westminster Legacy Cat:471 217-2 |
| 1975 | Renata Scotto, Samuel Ramey, Susanne Marsee, Stanley Kolk | Julius Rudel, Opera Company of Philadelphia (Recorded "live" on December 16) | CD: Opera Depot Cat:11399-2 |
| 1984 | Joan Sutherland, James Morris, Judith Forst, Michael Myers | Richard Bonynge, Orchestra and Chorus of theCanadian Opera Company | DVD: VAI Cat: 4203 |
| 1987 | DameJoan Sutherland, Samuel Ramey, Susanne Mentzer, Jerry Hadley | Richard Bonynge, Orchestra and Chorus of theWelsh National Opera | CD: Decca Cat: 421 096-2 |
| 1994 | Edita Gruberova, Stefano Palatchi, Delores Ziegler, Jose Bros | Elio Boncompagni, Hungarian Radio Chorus and Orchestra | CD: Nightingale Classics Cat: NCO070565-2 |
| 2006 | Dimitra Theodossiou, Riccardo Zanellato, Sofia Soloviy, Gianluca Pasolini | Fabrizio Maria Carminati, Orchestra and Chorus of the Bergamo Musica Festival Gaetano Donizetti (Recorded atTeatro Donizetti in October) | DVD:Dynamic Cat: 33534 |
| 2011 | Anna Netrebko, Ildebrando D'Arcangelo, Elīna Garanča, Francesco Meli | Evelino Pidò, Orchestra and Chorus of theVienna State Opera | DVD: Deutsche Grammophon DDD 0440 073 4725 6 GH2 |
| 2011 | Anna Netrebko, Ildar Abdrazakov, Edita Gruberova, Stephen Costello | Marco Armiliato, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus (Production:David McVicar) | HD video: Met Opera on Demand[17] |
Notes
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