Edmonton Opera
Education Guides
2010-2011
La Bohème
Presented By
Inside this Guide….
Section 1: What is Opera
Opera Etiquette …………………………………………………………………...3
What is Opera ……………………………………………………………………. 4
History ……………………………………………………………………………. …5
Activity: Who’s Who in Opera ………………………………………..….6
The Operatic Voice..……………………………………………………………...7
Anatomy of Sound ……………………………………………………………….9
Activity: Opera is Everywhere! ………………………………………..11
Activity: Opera is Storytelling ………………………………………….12
Section 2: La Bohème
The Cast …………………………………………………………………………...15
Synopsis ………………………………………………………………………….. 16
The Story Behind the Story………………………………………………. 18
Biography………………………………………………………………………… 19
Puccini’s Place in the History of Opera……..………………………….20
What is Verismo Opera? …………………………………………………….22
Activities: Very Verismo!.......................................................................23
Activity: Historical Context ……………………………………………..25
Discussion Questions………………………………………………………….26
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Write to us!
Student feedback is a very important part of our Education Program,
and we welcome any student assignments, projects, letters that you
would like to share with us.
Please send student feedback
to Edmonton Opera at:
Edmonton Opera
9720 102 Ave
Edmonton, AB T5J 4B2
edmopera@edmontonopera.com
Thanks!
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Opera Etiquette
ALWAYS BE EARLY! Once a performance begins, no one will be allowed into the
theatre until intermission because it will disrupt other patrons. We suggest you
arrive half an hour early to pick up your tickets, and prepare to enter the auditorium
fifteen minutes prior to showtime.
USE THE RESTROOM. Once in the theatre it is courteous to remain seated and
involved in the production until intermission. Please do not leave the theatre unless
there is an emergency.
PLEASE BE COURTEOUS to everyone in the audience and on stage. Theatre is live
performance, so any talking, cell-phone use (including texting) or other noise/light
disruption takes away from everyone’s experience at the opera.
APPLAUSE WELCOME! Opera is spectacle. Your presence in the audience is
essential to complete the whole experience. Enjoy the performance and respond to
what you see. Unlike television or film, every live performance is unique: only you
and the performers will share the experience you have in the theatre. Your warmth
and good humour are important to them, so when you like something, tell them with
your applause.
NO FOOD, DRINKS, OR GUM IN THE THEATRE. This rule is strictly enforced.
NO CAMERAS OR TAPE RECORDERS: the artists’ images and performances belong to
them and we ask you to respect that by refraining from recording their work in any
way.
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What is Opera?
The word opera is the plural form of the Latin word opus (which translates quite
literally as work). Today we use the word opera to refer to a theatrically based musical art form in which
the drama is sung (without microphones!), rather than spoken, and is accompanied by a full symphony
orchestra.
Opera was born out of the belief that drama can be better expressed by music and text than by text
alone. One of the unique things about opera is how it combines so many different art forms (music,
drama, and visual arts) to create an artistic spectacle. Of course, the use of many art forms means that
there are many people involved in the creation and production of an opera. These may include:
Composer: Writes the music
Librettist: Chooses a story, writes or adapts the words
Conductor: Leads the musicians
Director: Blocks or stages the entire production
Principal Singers: Have the leading and supporting roles
Chorus: Sing as a group
Supernumeraries: Act but do not sing
Repetiteur: Accompanies singers during rehearsal, plays the whole orchestral score on piano
Costume Designer: Designs the costumes for each character
Wardrobe/Costume Staff: fit, clean and repair costumes; help singers put costumes on
Wig Staff: Make wigs and prepare make-up
Make-up Staff: Apply make-up for principal singers, assist chorus with make-up
Set Designer: Designs the scenery for each scene
Lighting Designer: Designs lighting effects
Prop Builders: Build/buy all the set pieces that are not structural
Stage Manager: “Calls the show” -- cues scenery changes, lighting and actors so that everything
happens at the right time.
Stagehands: Move scenery; run lighting & sound cues
Front of House Staff: Work in the performance venue: seating patrons, operating coat check
Artistic Director: Chooses which shows to produce and which artists to hire
Administrative Staff: Find funding (!); sell tickets; hire artists; take care of the business side of
opera.
Audience: Enjoys and appreciates opera from a seat in the hall!
Critic: Writes a critique of performance for newspaper, radio, or TV
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A Short History of Opera
Opera as an art form began with the inclusion of incidental music performed during the tragedies and comedies
popular during ancient Greek times. The tradition of including music as an integral part of theatrical activities
expanded in Roman times and continued throughout the Middle Ages. Traditional view holds that the first
completely sung musical drama (or opera) developed in Florence in the 1570s by an informal group of composers,
musicians and artists known as the Florentine Camerata, which led to the musical setting of Rinuccini’s drama,
Dafne, by composer Jacopo Peri in 1597.
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In the 17 century, Italian masters Giulio Caccini and Claudio Monteverdi developed a kind of musical
entertainment where a story – including the events, conversations, and characterizations – is told through singing
and orchestral accompaniment. Two key components of these entertainments became hallmarks of opera:
recitative sections and arias. Recitatives are song-speech, and the words are sung but with little or no
recognizable melody, and with a rhythm that imitates those of speech. Recitatives function to further the storyline
of the drama. Arias (Italian for “air”) are main songs that reveal both the emotion of the characters, and the
qualities of the soloists’ voices. Additionally, there were groups of singers called the chorus, who played
background characters of the story. Their songs were usually a comment on the action, much like the chorus from
ancient Greek drama.
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Opera gained popularity throughout Europe in the late 17 and 18 centuries and Italian composers dominated
the field (this is why operatic terms are often Italian words). German opera followed the lead of Italian opera
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through much of the 18 century, with composers actually producing operas to be sung in Italian. Wolfgang
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Amadeus Mozart, an Austrian composer, wrote some of the first German-language operas in the mid 18 century,
and also brought the technique of singspiel (“sing play” where spoken dialogue is used instead of recitative) to
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greater attention. Giaochino Rossini was the most popular composer at the turn of the 19 century, and his bestknown works were comic operas (known as opera buffa). Giuseppe Verdi, the most prolific and influential
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operatic composer in the 19 century, emerged from the Italian bel canto and opera buffa styles to a new kind of
opera, which focused on great emotion and dramatic portrayal of character, and began the path to realism in
operatic stories.
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Also in the 19 century, German composer Richard Wagner introduced the idea of through-composed operas, in
which the distinctions between aria and recitative were to be blurred entirely. He also used leitmotif (wherein
musical motives and phrases represent characters, ideas, or themes, and are re-introduced throughout the work as
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a way of musically telling the story). At the turn of the 19 century, Giacomo Puccini followed his hero Verdi into
the world of verismo opera, and told stories of common people with a depth of emotion and transcendence of
musical lines that has not been surpassed. In France, George Bizet’s operas likewise focused on realistic characters
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and plots. Also at the turn of the 20 century, Austrian, British, and Spanish composers were extremely popular for
their light operas (and operettas).
Today opera continues to grow, both in new staging and productions, and in the creation of new works. American
composers such as John Adams and Philip Glass are credited with breathing new innovation into the art form, and
Aaron Copeland took American history for the sources of his operatic works. John Estacio, an Edmonton composer
and John Murrell (an Albertan playwright) recently created an opera called Filumena, which tells the story of the
last woman executed in Alberta, and it was performed by Edmonton Opera in 2005. Opera may be 500 years old,
but it continues to captivate audiences and tell important stories today!
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Student Handout
Activity: “Who’s Who” in the World of Opera
In the boxes below, use the clues to determine which composers fit into each century. Use “A
Short History of Opera” to help.
1600-1750
•
•
First “operas”
Development of
recitative and aria
Composers
1750 - 1830
•
•
Introduction of
singspiel
Popular opera buffa
Composers
Composers
1. Georges
Bizet
2. Giulio
Caccini
3. Claudio
Monteverdi
4. W.A. Mozart
1830 – 1890
•
•
•
Dramatic, emotional
style
Through-composed
opera
Leitmotif
Composers
1890 - 1920
•
•
Verismo opera
Soaring melodies
6. Giaochini
Rossini
7. Giuseppi
Verdi
Composers
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5. Giacomo
Puccini
8. Richard
Wagner
The Operatic Voice
Being an opera singer is hard work! Singers need to be physically strong and have superb
technique in order to sustain long phrases (musical thoughts): this means they have excellent
control of both the inhalation and exhalation of their breath. Likewise, their voices must
maintain a resonance (using the cavities in the face to increase the audibility of the voice, even
when singing quietly) in both the head (mouth, sinuses) and chest cavities. All this resonance is
necessary to achieve the volume required to be heard above the orchestra that accompanies
the singers. Opera singers do not usually use microphones, so they must project their voices
throughout a whole theatre using only their muscles and technique! All voices are defined by
both the actual voice “type” and the selection of repertoire for which the voice is ideally suited.
The range, pitch, and tone of a singer’s voice will determine what kind of role they will play in
the opera. Below are a list of the voice types (and ranges) commonly found in operas:
Female Voice Types
• Soprano (“sopra” = “over”)
The highest pitched female voice. Soprano voices vary by sound
type: there are coloratura sopranos, who
can sing very high notes and rapid passages with ease, dramatic
sopranos, whose voices have great power, and
lyric sopranos, whose voices have exceptional beauty and can sustain long passages.
Composers often (but not always) write the female lead role in an opera for a soprano.
• Mezzo-Soprano (“mezzo” = “medium”)
Lower than the soprano and higher than contralto. Usually plays
either the character of a young boy (this is called a trouser role)
or a complex character with energy
and awareness of life, or an evil character. Bizet’s Carmen is one
of the most famous mezzo roles in opera, and is a rare lead role for a mezzo.
• Contralto (“contra” = “against” & “alto” = “high”)
The lowest pitched female voice, these singers have a deep,
well rounded sound. Contraltos more rare than sopranos
or mezzos, and they are usually given the role of a maid, mother,
or grandmother. Olga in Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin is one such
role.
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Male Voice Types
• Tenor (“tenere”= “to hold” - central notes of harmony)
The highest sounding male voice: often the leading role. Tenors,
like sopranos, can have lyric or dramatic sound quality. Luciano
Pavarotti was one of the world’s most famous lyric tenors. The
role of Otello is one of the most demanding tenor roles in all of
opera!
• Baritone (from the Greek term for “deep sounding”)
Theses voices are more mellow-sounding and slightly lower than
tenors. The roles sung by baritones are usually father figures or
counts and other nobles, and these are often important roles in
the story (like Rigoletto in Verdi’s Rigoletto).
• Bass (“low”)
Basses are the lowest sounding human voices, and they often play
roles of wise and older characters in opera, like kings, emperors,
or gods. They can also play profoundly evil characters, like Satan
in Mephistopheles or Faust. The basso profundo is the lowest
voice in singing, and is commonly heard in Russian opera. One of
the most recognizable bass roles in opera is Leporello in W.A. Mozart’s Don Giovanni.
Bass Uwe Dambruch as the assassin Sparafucile in
Edmonton Opera’s 2009 production of Verdi’s Rigoletto.
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A Sound Anatomy of Opera
There are many different kinds of songs in opera. Performers may sing alone, in couples
(duets), trios, or larger groups, and there are also moments when no one sings at all – and each
composer develops his or her own preferred combinations of these options. The following are
the major musical components of an opera:
The Overture
An opera usually begins with an orchestral piece of music called the overture, which functions
as an introduction to the opera. The overture generally includes themes that will be heard
throughout the opera, and can be anywhere from five to twenty-five minutes long. Before
1800, house lights were not dimmed while the overture played, and audiences would continue
to talk, drink, and even play cards. This changed in the nineteenth century when the overture
began to take its place as an integral part of the operatic performance. Usually, at the end of
the overture, the curtain rises and the story of the opera unfolds through a series of scenes,
which are usually organized into acts.
Arias (Italian for “air” or song)
Arias are solos performed to the accompaniment of the orchestra. They allow the character to
express his or her feelings and reflect on the events of the drama. The focus of an aria is
emotions rather than actions, and provides an opportunity for the singer to demonstrate his or
her vocal or artistic skill. Some of the most successful composers of arias, such as Mozart, Verdi
and Puccini were able to achieve a remarkable balance between memorable melodies that
perfectly suit the human voice, and making the music reflect the drama of the text.
Recitatives
Recitative is a type of singing unique to opera, and is used when characters are conversing, or
introducing an aria. The text is delivered quickly in a musical way that imitates speech, and has
a very limited melodic range. It has no recognizable melody and its rhythms follow those of the
spoken word. Recitative is meant to carry the action forward and can be accompanied either
by a full orchestra, or, as is often the case in opera written before 1800, by a harpsichord or
keyboard instrument.
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Ensemble (“together”)
Ensemble singing is when two or more voices of different ranges perform together. These
include duets, trios, quartets, quintets, and sometimes even a sextet! In each of these, the way
the composer blends the voices will depend on the dramatic requirements of the plot. In a duet
where the characters singing are in love, a composer may show this musically by having each
performer sing different music at different times, and gradually bring both lines of music
together in harmony as the duet culminates. If the characters are in conflict, their music might
never come together. Georges Bizet did just this in Carmen: Carmen and Don José are lovers
but their musical lines are never completely blended, and this foreshadows their tragic ends.
Chorus
Most operas include music sung by a large group of singers (sometimes as many as 40 or more)
called a chorus. The chorus appears on stage most often in crowd scenes. The chorus can
provide a stunning contrast to solo or ensemble singing. In one opera by Benjamin Britten, the
chorus is played by a single male and a single female (this is in the tradition of ancient Greek
theatre).
Orchestral Music
The orchestra is an important part of any opera, and not only because it accompanies the
singing and introduces the opera in the overture. Themes (both musical and emotional) of the
opera can appear in orchestral introductions and conclusions to arias, recitatives, and
choruses, and sometimes the orchestra becomes a character in the story, and has music to play
by itself outside of the overture or introduction. One of the most famous of these instances is
the intermezzo (“in the middle”) from Cavalleria rusticana by Mascagni. In between the scenes
of this one-act opera, the orchestra takes up the story through incredibly expressive and lyrical
(singing-like) melodies, and through the voices of instruments rather than singers, brings to life
the emotion of the characters,
the foreboding conclusion, and
also a sense of hope.
The final (and finale) chorus of Falstaff
from our 2007/2008 season
Photo credit: Ellis Brothers
Photography
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Activity: Teacher Resource
Opera is Everywhere!
Background:
We don’t called it the greatest and grandest of art forms for nothing… the stories, characters and music
from opera can be found in every corner of Western culture, from books and plays to hip-hop and
cartoons.
For students new to opera, a great starting point may be discovering all the places where they may have
heard music from opera without even realizing it.
Activity:
Choose a famous piece of operatic music (a list is provided below for help), and go exploring with your
students, to see where the themes, characters, and music appear in our culture today. Good places to
start looking are musicals (Rent, for example, is based directly on La Boheme), cartoons (Bugs Bunny and
Mickey Mouse were big opera fans), and movie scores, but the sky is the limit – you’ll be surprised
where you find opera these days! Websites like Wikipedia, the Internet Movie Database, and “Opera
goes to the Movies” are a great help, and can help to begin discussions about how music is performed in
and outside of its original context.
Some Questions to ask: What changes when opera is introduced in new places (like ads or movies)?
What stays the same? Even the important question of genre: is it still opera if it’s used in a car
commercial? And if not, what does it become?
Below are some very famous operatic pieces that can easily be found in popular culture
(and online) today:
“Largo al Factotum” from The Barber of Seville by Rossini
“Habanera” from Carmen by Bizet
The Intermezzo from Cavalleria rusticana by Mascagni
“O mio babbino caro” from Gianni Schicci by Puccini
“The Flower Duet” from Lakmé by Delibes
“Un bel dì vedremo” from Madama Butterfly by Puccini
“Non più andrai” from The Marriage of Figaro by Mozart
“La Donna é mobile” from Rigoletto by Verdi
“Nessun Dorma” from Turandot by Verdi
“The Anvil Chorus” from Il Trovatore by Verdi
“Overture – part 2” from William Tell by Rossini
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Activity: Teacher Resource
Opera is Storytelling!
Background:
One of the most important things about going to see an opera, or any live theatrical
performance, is that each performance is different, even within the run of the same show:
nothing is every exactly the same twice. The conductor might set a faster or slower tempo, the
actors might take more time in moments that worked well or not well enough the night before,
a bat might fly into the auditorium (this actually happened in 1966 during an Edmonton Opera
performance of La Bohème): part of the magic of theatre is that
only the performers on stage and the people there that night will
ever be a part of that experience.
Even though the music may have been written a long time ago, and
the stories can often be much, much older again, each time an
opera is performed it’s a new telling, and a new experience. Think
back to when you had bed-time stories. Did one person tell it
differently than the other? Did a babysitter use special voices for
different characters, or maybe read too slowly, not pausing in the
right places?
Jeff Haslam and Renée Brad in H.M.S. Pinafore. Mr. Haslam
got so many laughs in “When I was a Lad” that he got more
and more silly with it each night – on closing night it was much
longer than it was at the dress rehearsal!
Photo Credit: Ellis Brothers Photography
Activity: Selective Storytelling
To illustrate the uniqueness of each operatic telling, create a simple plotline as a class or choose
a familiar story – it can be a fairytale or mystery, or a person or event from a particular time in
history – perhaps something that fits into other units coming up or just past.
Then separate into partners or groups, and have students decide on one or two aspects of the
story to focus on – it could be a character, a theme, or a particular scene – and using their
chosen aspects, create a new “telling” of the story through a visual representation, physical
presentation, or rewritten story (for more advanced students) with a new perspective. How,
for example, would an episode of Harry Potter feel if the main character was Voldemort instead
of the young wizard? If Shrek was a movie produced in black and white? Would it appeal to
different audiences or entertain in different ways?
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Student Handout: Selective Storytelling
Story Title:
Group Names:
New Focus:
Why did you choose this / these element(s)?
How does your representation differ from the original story? What is
added? What’s left out?
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Music by Giacomo Puccini
Libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa
Based on the novel Scènes de la Vie de Bohème by Henry Murger
Sung in Italian with English Supertitles
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La Bohème Synopsis
Setting: Paris, 1830’s.
Act One In Rodolfo and Marcello’s garret apartment
Marcello and Rodolfo work and laugh in their garret apartment. Marcello paints while Rodolfo
begins to burn a manuscript for one of his plays: they have no other fuel to keep warm. Colline
(a philosopher) and Schaunard (a musician) arrive. Schaunard brings food, firewood, cigars and
money with him, and explains to his astounded friends that he has gotten a job working for an
eccentric English gentleman. The friends begin to eat the food, but Schaunard whisks the food
away because he intends to take them all to celebrate at the nearby Café Momus.
Benoit, their landlord, arrives to collect the rent. The friends flatter and distract him with wine,
until he declares he has gotten married. The friends feign indignation at his matrimony and
thrust him from the room, thus avoiding paying the rent. Instead, they plan to spend all their
money in Christmas celebrations at the Café Momus and in the Latin Quarter.
All the bohemians leave save Rodolfo, who needs to finish an article he is writing. He plans to
join them soon, but is interrupted when Mimi, the flower maker, knocks at his door. Her candle
has blown out and she asks Rodolfo to light it for her. She thanks him and leaves, but returns as
she has lost her key. A gust of wind blows out both their candles and in the dark Rodolfo and
Mimi search for her key; what they find is that they are falling in love. They tell each other of
their backgrounds while below, the friends call for Rodolfo to join in their celebrations. Rodolfo
and Mimi leave the apartment together, singing of their love as they join their friends.
Act Two Latin Quarter and the Café Momus
A crowd of merchants and children sing of the wares they have for sale. The friends, including
Mimi, are flushed with the excitement of the Christmast festivities. As the group dines at the
café, Musetta arrives. She is Marcello’s former girlfriend, and she is accompanied by a new (and
much older) admirer named Alcindoro. It is clear that Musetta is tired of the older man, and
she begins to flirt with everyone in the café, including Marcello. She sends Alcindoro on an
errand to fix her shoe, and falls back into the waiting arms of Marcello.
When the bill arrives the friends discover that they haven’t enough money to pay for all their
food and drink, but the sly Musetta has the entire bill charged to the absent Alcindoro.
Marcello and Colline hoist Musetta onto their shoulders and carry her out of the café to the
applause of the surrounding crowd. When all the friends have gone, the aged Alcindoro returns
to find himself without Musetta, but stuck with both her shoe, and the entire bill.
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Act Three At the toll gate
Mimi is entering the city, coughing violently. She finds Marcello, who lives in a small tavern
nearby. She tells him of her hard life with Rodolfo, who has abandoned her that night.
Marcello warns Mimi that Rodolfo is inside, but he awakes and as he enters, Mimi hides.
Unaware of Mimi, Rodolfo confesses to his friend that he has left Mimi not because she is
flirting with others, but really because she has become so sick and he cannot care for her
properly. He is worried that she has a deadly illness and hopes that if she finds someone with
more money to care for her, she will get better. He has been unkind to Mimi to push her away
because he loves her too much to see her suffer in poverty with him. Marcello tries to silence
Rodolfo before Mimi hears, but it is too late. Her coughing reveals her to Rodolfo, and they
plan to separate as friends, but their love is too strong and ultimately the promise to stay
together until spring. Meanwhile, Marcello quarrels with Musetta and it is clear that this pair
will not remain together.
Act Four Rodolfo and Marcello’s Garret Apartment, some months later
Marcello and Rodolfo try to work but are distracted by the loss of their respective girlfriends.
Schaunard and Collini arrive with a meagre dinner and the friends make believe it is a grand
feast. Musetta arrives with news of Mimi: although she met a wealthy viscount after leaving
Rodolfo, she has left this patron. Musetta found Mimi in the streets, severely weakened by her
illness, and at Mimi’s request brought her to see Rodolfo. Mimi is haggard and pale; Musetta
and Marcello leave to sell Musetta’s earrings for medicine. Colline plans to do the same with
his coat, and Schaunard quietly leaves to seek a doctor. Alone, Rodolfo and Mimi sing of their
past happiness, and Rodolfo gives Mimi the bonnet he had purchased for her. The friends
return with medicine and the promise of a doctor, but it is too late for Mimi. As Musetta prays,
Mimi lapses into unconciousness and dies. Schaunard discovers that Mimi is gone, and Rodolfo
calls out Mimi’s name in anguish, weeping helplessly.
La Bohème Synopsis -- Words to Know
garret – an attic or living space directly under a sloped roof
manuscript – a handwritten or un-published (printed) document
feign – to pretend or deceive by action
meager – lacking in quality or quantity
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The Story Behind the Story
Scenes de la vie de Bohème were originally a series of vignettes about life in Paris’ Latin
Quarter, written by the author Henry Murger. They appeared in the magazine le Corsaire in the
1840s. Many of the characters were based on Murger’s acquaintances. The author was later
approached by the playwright Théodore Barrière, and the two collaborated to translate the
vignettes into a play. Murger would also later collate the vignettes into a kind of novel,
complete with his own contemplations on the
bohemian life.
Puccini originally wanted to eliminate the separation
of Mimi and Rodolfo, opening Act 4 with them both
in the garret apartment, but Illica intervened, and (as
was rarely the case in their relationship) won the
battle, based on the dramatic heights attainable only
with a reconciliation scene on Mimi’s deathbed.
There were constant revisions to the libretto,
demanded by Puccini, and the opera took nearly 3
years to complete. This drove all involved to
distraction, but publisher Tito Ricordi’s belief in
Puccini never wavered.
Illustration by Joseph Hémard from Scènes
de la Vie de Bohème, Paris, 1921.
Intriguingly, Puccini’s opera is not the only one based
on Murger’s Bohemian tales. Composer Ruggero Leoncavallo (who would earned his fame with
Pagliacci in 1892) actually wrote a libretto for La Bohème and suggested that he and Puccini
collaborate on the work sometime in 1892. Puccini turned it down without looking at it, but a
year later, after reading Murger’s novel, Puccini asked the librettist Luigi Illica to write an
operatic scenario based on La Vie de Bohème. During a chance meeting in March 1893, Puccini
and Leoncavallo discovered that each was working on an opera based on the same story! A
scandal arose, and both composers were quoted widely in the papers as they jockeyed for both
the rights to Murger’s work and for public opinion. Eventually it was determined that Murger’s
work was public domain, and Puccini suggested that “the audience will decide” which Bohème
opera was worthy.
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Giacomo Puccini Biography
1858-1924
Giacomo Puccini, the creator of some of the world’s most beloved
operas, was descended from a long line of composers and church
organists. He was born in 1858 in Lucca and died in Brussels in 1924
of throat cancer. He began studies in Lucca with Carlo Angeloni at
the Istituto Musicale of Lucca. He held various organist positions
and wrote music for the church before becoming a student at the
Milan Conservatory in 1880, where, like his characters in this opera, he lived a hand-to-mouth
existence. Often in trouble for being an inattentive student, Puccini’s schooling progressed
largely through the efforts of his mother, Albina Puccini. She worked constantly to raise both
money and support for her son, and they remained very close throughout her life.
The 1890’s was a time of great artistic energy in Italy, as the newly formed nation was balancing
between the “Old guard” of Verdi’s romanticism, and a more German-inspired movement of
artists, notably the Scapigliati or “Dishevelled ones from Milan” many of whom revered Wagner
and a more modern kind of music. Puccini’s contemporaries Ruggero Leoncavallo (Pagliacci)
and Pietro Mascagni (Cavalleria Rusticana) both produced one such famous work. Puccini had
more lasting success. Shortly after Puccini graduated from the Milan Conservatory, his first
opera, Le Villi, was produced and he began to receive commissions for new works (his second
opera, Edgar) and an annuity from Italy’s leading publisher, Ricordi. His first great success was
Manon Lescaut, premiered in 1893, which made him a household name throughout Italy. La
Bohème brought him even more fame, although fortune came a little later as his royalties were
measured against the debts he owed to his publisher for many years.
Puccini’s successes allowed him to seek out the finest singers, librettists, and conductors with
which to collaborate on his later works, which included Tosca (1900), Madama Butterfly (1906),
La Fanciulla del West (1910), La Rondine (1917), Il Trittico (1918), and his unfinished Turandot
(premiering in 1926). He finally married his wife Elvira in 1904 and traveled extensively,
especially in America. While he never achieved the Italian national hero-worship to the extent
that Giuseppi Verdi did before him, his name has been synonymous with Opera throughout the
20th century and La Bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly and Turandot remain some of the
world’s most frequently produced operas.
Puccini developed throat cancer in 1923. He received the then-radical radiation therapy, but
was unaware of the severity of his disease (only his son Tonio was given the full prognosis) and
died in Brussels in 1924 after complications from his cancer treatments led to a heart attack.
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Puccini’s Place in the History of Opera
Although many musicologists discounted Puccini’s achievements as shallow or trite, many
factors have contributed to his lasting popularity: his great sense of theater, his conjunct
(stepwise) melodies with their short, memorable phrases and clear rhythmic outlines, the
idiomatic nature of his melodies for great operatic voices, the intense emotional content of his
libretti and music, and the power of his orchestra to suggest and sustain mood. Puccini was
extremely concerned with finding exactly the right libretto, spending much more of his creative
life searching for and rejecting librettos (he was a self-stylized “hunter of fowl and hunter of
librettos”), demanding rewriting from his librettists (five different writers worked on Manon
Lescaut) than he did actually composing. Moreover, he took infinite pains in polishing and
revising his scores.
Puccini’s opera were, with the exception of Tosca, set in exotic locations, and more often than
not follow the lives of unextraordinary people. This focus more human, well-defined
characters, is an example of verismo opera, in which a sense of reality is sought, as opposed to
the fantastical world of a composer such as Richard Wagner.
Immensely hummable melodies are a trademark of Puccini’s work, and to this day his are some
of the most recognizable operatic music in the world. It might be said that Puccini’s work helps
to keep opera in the public eye, as his tunes have appeared in more movies, commercials,
television shows, books, magazines and cartoons than any other composer.
The four bohemians from
La Bohème in Edmonton Opera’s 2005
production.
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Puccini’s Operas
Opera
1. Le Villi
2. Edgar
Premiere
May 31, 2884
Teatro dal Verme, Milan
April 21, 1884
Teatro Regio, Turin
3. Manon Lescaut
February 1, 1892
Teatro Regio, Turin
4. La Bohème
February 1, 1896
Teatro Regio, Turin
5. Tosca
January 14, 1896
Teatro Regio, Turin
6. Madama Butterfly
7. La Fanciulla del West
8. La Rondine
9. Il Trittico (Il tabarro, Suor Angelica,
Gianni Schicchi)
10. Turandot
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February 17, 1904
Teatro alla Scala, Milan
December 12, 1910
Metropolitan Opera, New York
March 27, 1917
Opéra, Monte Carlo
December 14, 1918
Metropolitan Opera, New York
April 25, 1926
Teatro alla Scala, Milan
What is Verismo?
In the late 19th century, the operatic world was ripe with ideas and styles, some of which
conflicted with or worked against what had come before. This is the case with the work of
Puccini and many of his contemporaries, who are the composers of a style known as verismo.
Verismo comes from the latin word vero, which means “true,” and the verismo style of operatic
storytelling is noticeable in a few ways:
•
•
•
•
The story is not about kings and queens or gods, but ‘real’ people like peasants
and students
The setting is usually very particular: Bizet’s Carmen is set in Seville; Puccini’s
Tosca is even set in a specific year in Rome. This differs from an opera like
Rigoletto, where the action takes place in a vaguely “older” time in an imaginary
court of the Duke of Mantua
There is often some ugliness or violence in the story
The music is usually not divided into set pieces, but flows from solo singing into
small group singing; there are few big choruses.
The goal of verismo is to bring to life the naturalism found in a lot of 19th century literature,
such as the work of Emile Zola and Henrik Ibsen, and very few verismo characters have the
flawless heroism that can be found in classical and some romantic opera of earlier times.
Some examples of Verismo opera include
•
•
•
•
•
Cavalleria Rusticana by Pietro Mascagni
I Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo
La Bohème by Giacomo Puccini
Carmen by Georges Bizet
Tosca by Giacomo Puccini
The drama of verismo opera is usually tension between its main characters, and it takes up very
basic human issues like love, jealousy, revenge and power.
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Activity: Teacher Resource
Very Verismo!
The Visuals: Compare production photos below from Edmonton Opera’s production of La
Bohème and Turandot. What visual cues help us to understand that we’re in the world of
verismo?
Verismo Music: Listen to the famous intermezzo from the verismo opera Cavalleria Rusticana,
and then to the overture from Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro (which is classical, not verismo,
opera). Have students describe what they hear. How are the tones different? What kind of
people might be on stage during this music? What kind of energy might they have?
The Matter of Story: Examine the story and music of La Bohème, and identify some of its more
realistic elements. Compare this story to others that have been read or watched in class, and
divide components into “realistic” and “non-realistic.”
Evaluate the dramatic elements of each and decide how realism adds or detracts from the
themes and artistry of each.
Discussion Questions:
•
If the students in La Bohème were kings and queens instead of poor bohemians, how
would the story differ? Would it have the same kinds of meaning?
•
Are verismo characters more accessible that then kings and queens found in classical
and baroque opera? Do we automatically have more sympathy for them?
•
How would you compare a verismo opera with its literary counterpart, the realistic
novel (popularized in the late 19th century)? Perhaps with Great Expectations or
Middlemarch?
•
Do the stories of “regular people” make compelling opera subjects? Why or why not?
•
Is Degrassi (either the original or the new version) a kind of verismo TV series? Why or
why not?
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La Bohème
Mimi, Rodolfo and Marcello
in Act 3
Turandot
Ping, Pang and Pong
in Act 2
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Activity: Teacher Resource
Background: Historical Perspective
Puccini lived and worked at the turn of the 20th century, which was a period of great intellectual
and political change. Below is a list of some world and Canadian events that took place in 1896,
the year that La Bohème premiered.
•
World Events
X Rays are invented in Austria by
Wilhelm Röntgen
•
•
The first modern Olympic Games
are held in Athens
•
•
The U.S. Supreme Court upholds
Racial Segregation with the
“Separate but Equal” decision
The Federal Government unveils its
plan to populate the Prairies
through a program of immigration
from Eastern Europe.
•
Gold is discovered in the Yukon,
prompting the beginning of the
Klondike Gold Rush
•
Alberta is not yet a province!
•
F. Scott Fitzgerald (who would
write The Great Gatsby) was born.
Canadian Events
Wilfred Laurier becomes Canada’s
7th Prime Minister
Activity: Historical Comparison Questions
#1 What was happening in Edmonton/ Alberta during Puccini’s lifetime (1858-1924)?
#2 Compare and contrast the life and works of Puccini with another artist from the same
period. How and where can their influences be seen today?
#3 What do you think is the most important thing that happened during Puccini’s lifetime
(1858-1924) and why
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Activity: Pre-Performance Discussion Questions
#1 Opera perceptions: What do students think of when they think of “opera”? What
expectations do they have of the performance?
#2 How is opera different from other theatrical and musical performances? What is the
difference between a “musical”, an operetta, and an opera? Are there exceptions to the
definitions?
#3 How is La Bohème different from other operas that students have seen or studied?
#4 What does the word “bohemian” mean to students today?
#5 Have you ever been separated from someone who is very important to you? How did it
feel?
Activity: Post-Performance Discussion Questions and Activities
#1 Identify some important dramatic features of the performance: musically, visually, among or
within particular characters etc.
#2 Imagine you are Rodolfo and write a Eulogy for Mimi. What would you say to or about her.
Extension: If you had a chance to speak with or write to someone you have lost, what would
you say and why?
#3 The seasons are an important part of the setting in this opera. How do they tie in to the
themes of love, loss and youth?
#4 Musetta isn’t always a very nice character. Tracing her actions and words throughout the
opera, evaluate her: is she a good friend? Would you want her in your group of friends? Why
or why not?
#5 Rodolfo and Mimi attempt to separate because of her illness, and are ultimately reunited
before she dies. Their choice is a difficult one: if you were either character, would you want to
stay near the person you love, or would you choose to part?
#6 Could this opera be successful with a happier ending? Extension: Why does so much famous
art explore difficult situations like love and loss?
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Sources and Resources
Websites
www.arizonaopera.com
Online Encyclopedia Britannica
www.metropolitanopera.com
www.virginiaopera.com
www.wikipedia.org
Books
Forman, Denis Sir. A Night at the Opera. New York: Modern Library, 1998.
Grout, Donald Jay. A Short History of Opera. New York: Columbia UP, 1988.
Hutcheon, Linda and Michael Hutcheon. Opera: Desire, Disease, Death. Lincoln: Nebraska UP,
1996.
Phillips-Matz, Mary Jane. Puccini: A Biography. Boston: Northeastern UP, 2002.
Plotkin, Fred. Opera 101: A Complete Guide to Learning and Loving Opera. New York:
Hyperion, 1994.
Sadie, Stanley. The Billboard Illustrated Encyclopedia of Opera. New York: Billboard Books,
2004.
Wilson, Alexandra. The Puccini Problem: Opera, Nationalism, and Modernity. New York:
Cambridge UP, 2007.
Please don’t hesitate to contact Edmonton Opera for more resources or
for help with specific questions or topics.
We will do our best to help!
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