| Pagliacci | |
|---|---|
| Opera byRuggero Leoncavallo | |
 Cover of first piano/vocal score, published in 1892 | |
| Librettist | Ruggero Leoncavallo |
| Language | Italian |
| Premiere | |
Pagliacci (Italian pronunciation:[paʎˈʎattʃi]; literal translation, 'Clowns')[a] is anItalian opera in a prologue and two acts, with music andlibretto byRuggero Leoncavallo. The opera tells the tale of Canio, actor and leader of acommedia dell'arte theatrical company, who murders his wife Nedda and her lover Silvio on stage during a performance. Canio portrays on stage the character of Pagliaccio (Pierrot), while Nedda portays Pierrot's unfaithful loverColumbina.
Pagliacci premiered at theTeatro Dal Verme in Milan on 21 May 1892, conducted byArturo Toscanini, withAdelina Stehle as Nedda,Fiorello Giraud as Canio,Victor Maurel as Tonio, andMario Ancona as Silvio. Soon after its Italian premiere, the opera played in London (withNellie Melba as Nedda) and in New York (on 15 June 1893, with Agostino Montegriffo as Canio).Pagliacci is the best-known of Leoncavallo's ten operas and remains a staple of the repertoire.[1]Pagliacci is often staged withCavalleria rusticana byPietro Mascagni, a double bill known colloquially as "Cav/Pag".
Leoncavallo was a little-known composer whenPietro Mascagni'sCavalleria rusticana premiered around 1890. After seeing Mascagni's success, Leoncavallo decided to write an opera in response: one act composed in theverismo style.
Leoncavallo based the story ofPagliacci on an incident from his childhood:[2] the 1865 murder of a Leoncavallo family servant, Gaetano Scavello, killed by Gaetano D'Alessandro, with his brother Luigi acting as accomplice. The incident stemmed from a series of perceived romantic entanglements involving Scavello, Luigi D'Alessandro, and a village girl with whom both men were infatuated.[3] Leoncavallo's father, a judge, presided as magistrate over the criminal investigation.[4]
Leoncavallo originally titled his storyIl pagliaccio (The Clown). The baritoneVictor Maurel, who was cast as the first Tonio, requested that Leoncavallo change the title from the singularIl pagliaccio to the pluralI Pagliacci, to broaden dramatic interest from Canio alone to include Tonio (his own role).[5]
The French authorCatulle Mendès sued Leoncavallo forplagiarism after learning of the plot of Leoncavallo's libretto from an 1894 French translation. Mendès thought it resembled his 1887 playLa Femme de Tabarin ("Tabarin's Wife"), which was structured as a play-within-the-play and featured a clown murdering his wife. Leoncavallo pleaded ignorance of Mendès's play.[2] Later, there were counter-accusations that Mendès's play resembled DonManuel Tamayo y Baus'sUn Drama Nuevo (1867). Mendès dropped his lawsuit. ScholarMatteo Sansone has suggested that Leoncavallo had ample opportunity to be exposed to new French art and musical works while living in Paris from 1882 to 1888, including potentially Mendès's play, another version ofLa femme de Tabarin by Paul Ferrier, andTabarin, an opera composed byÉmile Pessard that was based on Ferrier's play.[6]
The opening Prologue was written for Maurel "as an afterthought", as Leoncavallo said in a conversation with the critic and singing teacherHerman Klein during his visit to London for the UK premiere in 1893: he wrote it "as an inducement to a clever, but rather egotistical baritone to sing the part of Tonio, who felt it wasn't important enough for an artist of his distinction. Perhaps he was right. Anyhow I thought the matter over and hit upon the idea that a prologue, sung before the curtain by one of the humblest characters, would prove something of a novelty and by no means out of place. Being, as you know, my own librettist, I quickly wrote the words and sketched the music. My baritone was delighted, both with the notion and the result, and I am bound to add that it proved one of the most striking features of the opera when I brought it out at the Dal Verme, Milan, just a year ago."[7]
Towards the end of the prologue, singers often interpolate a high A♭ and a high G, although these do not appear in the original full score.[8] In an Australian newspaper article in December 1893, the baritone Guigliemo Caruson, who had already sung the part in Genoa earlier that year[9] said that "whilst rehearsing under Signor Leoncavallo's immediate direction, the composer gave his consent to the interpolation remarking that it was very effective, but that he would not add it to the score as he did not wish to force the note upon voices it did not suit."[10]
Pagliacci received mixed critical reviews after its world premiere, but was instantly successful with the public[11] and has remained so ever since.
The UK premiere ofPagliacci took place at theRoyal Opera House,Covent Garden, under the management of SirAugustus Harris in London on 19 May 1893, supervised by the composer.Nellie Melba sang Nedda, withFernando De Lucia as Canio andMario Ancona as Tonio, M. Bonnard (Beppe) and Richard Green (Silvio). The conductor wasLuigi Mancinelli.[7]
The US premiere followed a month later at theGrand Opera House in New York City on 15 June 1893, conducted byGustav Hinrichs, withSelma Kronold (Nedda), American tenor Agostino Montegriffo (Canio), andGiuseppe Campanari (Tonio).[12][13]
The 'old'Metropolitan Opera House first staged the work on 11 December as a double-bill withOrfeo ed Euridice, with the same cast as the London premiere with Melba in the role of Nedda, De Lucia as Canio, and Ancona as Tonio.[14][15] The Met again stagedPagliacci as a double-bill with the same cast and conductor, this time followed byCavalleria rusticana on 22 December 1893 withEmma Calvé as Santuzza, conducted byEnrico Bevignani.[16][17] The two operas have since been frequently performed in this double-bill, a pairing referred to in the operatic world colloquially as "Cav and Pag".
The Belgian premiere (in a French translation) took place on 14 February 1895 (Valentine's Day) at theTheatre de la Monnaie, Brussels, withCécile Simonnet as Nedda, conducted byPhilippe Flon.[18]
In 1902, the opera received its French premiere at theParis Opera, with legendary tenorJean de Reszke as Canio in what would be his last public performance, as he would later retire from the stage to focus on teaching and to spend more time with his family.[19][20]
Pagliacci was produced alone inWashington National Opera's November 1997 production byFranco Zeffirelli.[21] The re-organisedNew York City Opera presentedPagliacci in 2016 on a double bill with Rachmaninoff'sAleko.[22]
| Role | Role inCommedia dell'arte | Voice type | Premiere cast, 21 May 1892 Conductor:Arturo Toscanini |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canio,head of the troupe | Pagliaccio (Pierrot),Colombina's husband | tenor | Fiorello Giraud |
| Nedda,Canio's wife, in love with Silvio | Colombina,Pagliaccio's wife, in love with Arlecchino | soprano | Adelina Stehle |
| Tonio,actor with physical deformity | Taddeo,Colombina's servant | baritone | Victor Maurel |
| Beppe (Peppe[b]),actor | Arlecchino,Colombina's lover | tenor | Francesco Daddi |
| Silvio,Nedda's lover | baritone | Mario Ancona | |
| Chorus of villagers | |||
During the orchestral introduction, Tonio, dressed as hiscommedia dell'arte character Taddeo, pokes his head through the curtain, advances, and addresses the audience.[23] ("Si può?... Si può?... Signore! Signori! ... Un nido di memorie"). He reminds the audience that actors have feelings too, and that the show is about real people. Tonio returns behind the curtain, which then rises for the main action.[24]
At three o'clock in the afternoon, the commedia troupe enters the village to the cheering of the villagers. Canio describes the night's performance: the troubles of Pagliaccio. He says the play will begin atventitré ore, an agricultural method of time-keeping that means the play will begin an hour before sunset.[c] As Nedda steps down from the cart, Tonio offers his hand, but Canio pushes him aside and helps her down himself.
The villagers suggest drinking at the tavern. Canio and Beppe accept, but Tonio stays behind. The villagers tease Canio that Tonio is planning an affair with Nedda. Canio warns everyone that while he may act the foolish husband in the play, in real life he will not tolerate other men making advances to Nedda. Shocked, a villager asks if Canio really suspects her. He says no, and sweetly kisses her on the forehead. As the church bells ringvespers, he and Beppe leave for the tavern, leaving Nedda alone.
Nedda is frightened by Canio's vehemence ("Qual fiamma avea nel guardo"), but the birdsong comforts her ("Stridono lassù"). Tonio returns and confesses his love for her, but she laughs. Enraged, Tonio grabs Nedda, but she takes a whip, strikes him and drives him off. Silvio, who is Nedda's lover, comes from the tavern, where he has left Canio and Beppe drinking. He asks Nedda to elope with him after the performance and, though she is afraid, she agrees. Tonio, who has been eavesdropping, leaves to inform Canio so that he might catch Silvio and Nedda together. Canio and Tonio return and, as Silvio escapes, Nedda calls after him, "I will always be yours!"
Canio chases Silvio, but does not catch him and does not see his face. He demands that Nedda tell him the name of her lover, but she refuses. He threatens her with a knife, but Beppe disarms him. Beppe insists that they prepare for the performance. Tonio tells Canio that her lover will give himself away at the play. A heartbroken Canio is left alone to put on his costume and prepare to laugh ("Vesti la giubba" – "Put on the costume").
As the crowd arrives, Nedda, costumed asColombina, collects their money. She whispers a warning to Silvio, and the crowd cheers as the play begins.
Colombina's husband Pagliaccio has gone away until morning, and Taddeo is at the market. Alone, she anxiously awaits her loverArlecchino, who comes to serenade her ("O Colombina") from beneath her window. Taddeo returns and confesses his love, but she mocks him. She lets Arlecchino in through the window. He boxes Taddeo's ears and kicks him out of the room, and the audience laughs.
Arlecchino and Colombina dine, and he gives her a sleepingpotion to use later, "so that when Pagliaccio returns, she can drug him and elope with Arlecchino." Taddeo then bursts in, warning them that Pagliaccio is suspicious of his wife and is about to return. As Arlecchino escapes through the window, Colombina tells him, "I will always be yours!"
As Pagliaccio enters, he hears Colombina speak this line and, now as Canio, exclaims "Nome di Dio! Quelle stesse parole!" – "Name of God! Those same words!" He tries to continue the play, but loses control and demands to know her lover's name. Nedda, hoping to keep to the performance, calls Canio by his stage name "Pagliaccio" to remind him of the audience's presence. He answers with hisarietta: "No! Pagliaccio non son!" – "I am not Pagliaccio!" He sings that if his face is pale, it is not from the stage makeup but from the shame she has brought him. The crowd is impressed by his emotional performance and cheers him, without realizing that it is real.
Nedda, trying to continue the play, admits that she has been visited by the innocent "Arlecchino". Canio, furious and forgetting the play, demands the name of her lover. Nedda swears she will never tell him, and it becomes apparent that they are not acting. Side-stage, Beppe asks Tonio to intervene, but Tonio refrains and prevents Beppe from halting the action. Silvio begins to fight his way toward the stage. Canio, grabbing a knife from the table, stabs Nedda. As she dies, she calls: "Help! Silvio!" Silvio attacks Canio, but Canio kills him as well. The horrified audience then hears the celebrated final line:
In the original manuscript, Tonio sang the opera's final line, "La Commedia è finita!", paralleling the prologue, also sung by Tonio. The appropriation of this final line by Canio dates back to 1895. John Wright has analysed thedramaturgy of the opera in the context of assignment of the final line, and concluded that the original assignment of the final line to Tonio is the most consistent and appropriate assignment. Wright says that Tonio shows more deliberate control in his manipulation of the other characters in order to obtain his revenge upon Nedda, after she has rejected him, and is more aware of the demarcation between life and art. By contrast, Canio is unaware of the behind-the-scenes manipulations and surrenders control of his perception of the difference between life and art as the opera proceeds.[27]
In the present day, the assignment of the final line to Canio has continued to be standard. Several exceptions, where Tonio delivers the final line, include:
The orchestra consists of 2flutes, 1piccolo, 2oboes, 1cor anglais, 2clarinets, 1bass clarinet, 3bassoons, 4horns, 3trumpets, 3trombones, 1tuba, 2harps,timpani,tubular bells, percussion (triangle, cymbals, bass drum, glockenspiel, and tam-tam[37]) and strings. Additionally, there is an onstage violin, oboe, trumpet, andbass drum.[38]
In 1907,Pagliacci was the first opera to be recorded in its entirety, with the Puerto Rican tenorAntonio Paoli as Canio and under Leoncavallo's personal supervision. In 1931, it became the first complete opera to be filmed with sound, in a now-obscure version starring the tenor Fernando Bertini as Canio, in his only film, with theSan Carlo Opera Company.[citation needed] Franco Zeffirelli directed his 1981 La Scala production withPlácido Domingo andTeresa Stratas for a1982 television airing,[39] which has since been released on DVD. The movie's soundtrack received aGrammy nomination for Best Opera Recording.Pagliacci was also recorded in English in 1997, and released commercially in 1998, for theChandos "Opera in English" label withDennis O'Neill as Canio,Alan Opie as Tonio, andRosa Mannion as Nedda.[40]
In 1991,Kent State University student Michael Mould began translatingPagliacci into English for a comics adaptation, but died onUSAir Flight 405 before he could complete it.Marc Andreyko finished Mould's translation asThe Clowns, aone-shot written byP. Craig Russell and illustrated by Galen Showman. Published in 1998 byDark Horse Comics,The Clowns is dedicated in memory of Mould.[41]
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