Giuseppe Verdi Simon Boccanegra CONDUCTOR Opera in a prologue and three acts James Levine Libretto by Francesco Maria Piave and Arrigo PRODUCTION Boito after the play by Antonio García Gutiérrez Giancarlo del Monaco Saturday, February 6, 2010, 1:00–4:20 pm SET AND COSTUME DESIGNER Michael Scott Last time this season LIGHTING DESIGNER Wayne Chouinard STAGE DIRECTOR The production of Simon Boccanegra is made Peter McClintock possible by a generous gift from the estate of Anna Case Mackay. Additional funding was received from the Metropolitan Opera Club, the Annie Laurie Aitken Charitable Trust, The Eleanor Naylor Dana Charitable Trust, and Mr. and Mrs. Paul M. Montrone. The revival of this production was made possible by a gift from Barbara Augusta Teichert. GENERAL MANAGER Peter Gelb MUSIC DIRECTOR James Levine 2009–10 Season The 134th Metropolitan Opera performance of Giuseppe Verdi’s Simon This performance is being broadcast Boccanegra live over The Toll Brothers– Metropolitan Opera Conductor International James Levine Radio Network, sponsored by in o r d e r o f v o c a l a p p e a r a n c e Toll Brothers, America’s luxury Paolo Albiani Gabriele Adorno ® homebuilder , Stephen Gaertner Marcello Giordani with generous long-term Pietro Amelia’s lady-in-waiting support from Richard Bernstein Joyce El-Khoury* The Annenberg Foundation, the Simon Boccanegra A captain Vincent A. Stabile Plácido Domingo Adam Laurence Endowment for Herskowitz Broadcast Media, Jacopo Fiesco, also and contributions known as Andrea from listeners James Morris worldwide. Maria, daughter of Simon Boccanegra, This performance also known as Amelia is also being Grimaldi broadcast live Adrianne Pieczonka on Metropolitan Opera Radio on SIRIUS channel 78 and XM channel 79. Saturday, February 6, 2010, 1:00–4:20 pm This performance is dedicated to Dr. Agnes Varis in grateful recognition of her generosity to the Metropolitan Opera as a member of the Council for Artistic Excellence. This afternoon’s performance is being transmitted live in high definition to movie theaters worldwide. The Met: Live in HD series is made possible by a generous grant from its founding sponsor, the Neubauer Family Foundation. Bloomberg is the global corporate sponsor of The Met: Live in HD. Marty Sohl/Metropolitan Opera Plácido Domingo Chorus Master Donald Palumbo (center) in the title Fight Director B.H. Barry role of Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra Musical Preparation Dennis Giauque, Jane Klaviter, Linda Hall, J. David Jackson, Carol Isaac, and Hemdi Kfir Assistant Stage Director Eric Einhorn Stage Band Conductor Roger Malouf Prompter Jane Klaviter Met Titles Sonya Haddad Assistant to the Costume Designer Anna Klein Scenery, properties, and electrical props constructed and painted in Metropolitan Opera Shops Costumes executed by Metropolitan Opera Costume Department Wigs executed by Metropolitan Opera Wig Department and Atelier Staatz, Cologne This performance is made possible in part by public funds from Yamaha is the official piano the New York State Council on the Arts. of the Metropolitan Opera. Before the performance begins, please switch off cell phones Latecomers will not be admitted during the and other electronic devices. performance. * Member of the Lindemann Young Artist Met Titles Development Program To activate Met Titles, press the red button to the right of the screen in front of your seat. To turn off the display, press the red button once again. If you have questions please ask Visit metopera.org an usher at intermission. On Stage at the Met Ariadne auf Naxos, Strauss’s marriage of comedy and myth, stars Nina Stemme in the title role. Juan Diego Flórez reprises his headline grabbing performance in the comic hit La Fille du Régiment alongside Diana Damrau. Anna Netrebko stars as Mimì in Franco Zeffirelli’s legendary production of La Bohème. Riccardo Muti makes his Met debut with Verdi’s rousing opera Attila in a new production by director Pierre Audi. Fashion designer Miuccia Prada and the architecture team of Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron create the costumes and scenery with Ildar Abdrazakov singing the title role. Richard Strauss ARIADNE AUF NAXOS &%"¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬¬MAT Gaetano Donizetti LA FILLE DU RÉGIMENT &%"¬¬EVE ¬ ¬¬MAT ¬ ¬ ¬ Giacomo Puccini LA BOHÈME &%"¬¬EVE ¬ ¬¬MAT¬ -!2¬ ¬¬EVE ¬ ¬¬EVE ¬ ¬¬MAT Giuseppe Verdi ATTILA .%7¬02/$5#4)/. &%"¬ ¬¬EVE¬ -!2¬ ¬¬MAT ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬ ¬¬EVE 6ISIT¬METOPERAORG¬FOR¬FULL¬CASTING¬INFORMATION¬AND¬TICKET¬AVAILABILITY¬ ONStagePlaybillAd.JAN.indd 1 1/15/10 5:28:24 PM Synopsis Genoa, 14th century Prologue A square outside the church of San Lorenzo and the Fieschi palace Intermission Act I s c e n e 1 In the seaside garden of the Grimaldi palace s c e n e 2 The council chamber of the doge’s palace Intermission Act II The doge’s palace Act III The council chamber of the doge’s palace Prologue Paolo and Pietro, leaders of the plebeian party, conspire to overthrow the aristocracy. They name the popular former pirate Simon Boccanegra as their candidate for the office of doge, the chief magistrate of the republic. Boccanegra accepts, hoping that his position will enable him to marry Maria. Her father, the patrician Fiesco, keeps her prisoner because she bore Boccanegra an illegitimate child. Fiesco appears alone, mourning Maria’s sudden death (“Il lacerato spirito”). Unaware she has died, Boccanegra tries to make peace with the patrician. Fiesco demands that he first be given his granddaughter, but Boccanegra explains that the infant has disappeared (Duet: “Del mar sul lido”). Entering the palace, Boccanegra discovers Maria’s body. The crowd proclaims him doge. Act I Twenty-five years have passed. Boccanegra has exiled many of his political opponents and Fiesco lives outside Genoa under the assumed name of Andrea Grimaldi. He is the guardian of a certain Amelia Grimaldi. Abandoned as an orphan, she has been brought up in place of the real Grimaldi daughter, who died at a young age, in order to provide the family with an heiress. Amelia is in reality Maria Boccanegra, the doge’s daughter and Fiesco’s granddaughter, but neither man knows her true identity. Amelia’s lover is the patrician Gabriele Adorno. Together with Fiesco, whom he knows only under his assumed name, Gabriele has been plotting against Boccanegra. 31 Synopsis continued s c e n e 1 Amelia waits for Gabriele (“Come in quest’ora bruna”). She warns him against the dangers of his political activities and tells him that the doge wants her to marry his courtier Paolo. Gabriele hopes to marry her himself and is undeterred by her revelation that she is not a Grimaldi but an orphan of unknown background. He leaves, determined to overthrow the doge. Boccanegra arrives to tell Amelia he has pardoned her foster brothers. Impressed by his generosity, she admits her love for Gabriele and talks about her lonely past (Duet: “Orfanella il tetto umile”). From the matching portraits they have of Amelia’s mother, Boccanegra realizes that Amelia is his long-lost daughter and they embrace. When he tells Paolo to forget his dream of marrying Amelia, Paolo plots with Pietro to kidnap her. s c e n e 2 Boccanegra urges the city council to preserve peace with Venice. Gabriele runs in, chased by a mob for killing a man who was attempting to abduct Amelia. He accuses Boccanegra of plotting the abduction and tries to stab him. Amelia intervenes. She describes her abduction and escape, hinting at Paolo’s complicity. A new argument erupts and Boccanegra again urges peace (Ensemble: “Plebe! Patrizi!”). He commands Paolo to curse the man behind the kidnapping. The terrified Paolo is forced to obey, even though he is cursing himself. Act II Paolo reflects on the curse and pours poison into Boccanegra’s drink (“Me stesso, ho maledetto!”). Fiesco and Gabriele are led in, and Paolo tries to convince the old man to assassinate the doge, while inciting Gabriele with insinuations about Boccanegra’s relationship with Amelia. Gabriele breaks into a fit of jealousy (“Sento avvampar nell’anima”). Amelia enters, but before she can explain, Boccanegra appears. Gabriele hides while Amelia asks her father to pardon her lover. Boccanegra agrees. Left alone, he drinks the poisoned water and falls asleep. Gabriele, who has heard nothing of the preceding conversation, enters and is about to stab Boccanegra when Amelia rushes in. The doge reveals that he is Amelia’s father and forgives the repentant Gabriele. A rebellious mob gathers outside, and Gabriele vows to fight at Boccanegra’s side. Act III Genoa is celebrating Boccanegra’s victory over the rebels. Fiesco, set free, encounters Paolo on his way to execution. Paolo admits that he poisoned the doge. Boccanegra enters, mortally ill, thinking about his beloved Genoese sea (“Oh refrigerio! la marina brezza!”). Fiesco reveals his identity and learns from the doge that Amelia is his granddaughter. The old man breaks into tears and tells Boccanegra of the poison. Dying, the doge blesses the young couple and names Gabriele as his successor (Ensemble: “Gran Dio, li benedici”). 32 Visit metopera.org in Focus Giuseppe Verdi Simon Boccanegra Premiere: La Fenice, Venice, 1857; revised La Scala, Milan, 1881 Simon Boccanegra is Verdi’s compelling portrayal of a man who is both a leader and an outsider, set against one of the most incisive depictions of politics ever put on the stage. The title character, with his complex relationships with rivals and his long-lost daughter, is one of the summits of the baritone repertory. Boccanegra flopped at its 1857 premiere, but more than 20 years later Verdi’s publisher convinced him to revise the work in collaboration with librettist Arrigo Boito, a younger and controversial musician/poet. Boito made the story more compact and added the thrilling Act I, Scene 2 council chamber scene.