LA FANCIULLA DEL WEST (THE GIRL OF THE GOLDEN WEST)
contemporary
opera
16
Opera in three parts, in three acts, in Italian, with Hungarian and English surtitles
After watching David Belasco's play The Girl of the Golden West on his 1907 visit to New York, Puccini resolved to set this somewhat unusual love story of the Wild West to music on the opera stage. The dramatic material proved to be a good choice, with an effectively moving plot that takes viewers to the denouement with a sure hand. The character of Minnie is also a highly suitable addition to Puccini's ranks of heroines: driven by love and passion, she thus has no fear of risking even her own life.
The piece is staged at the Opera House in a production directed by Vasily Barkhatov, who is regularly engaged to work all over Russia and Europe.
Conductor
Minnie
Jack Rance, sheriff
Dick Johnson (Ramerrez), a bandit
Nick, bartender
Ashby, a Wells Fargo agent
Sonora, a miner
Trin, a miner
Sid, a miner
Bello, a miner
Harry, a miner
Joe, a miner
Happy, a miner
Jim Larkens, a miner
Billy Jackrabbit, a Red Indian
Wowkle, his wife
Jake Wallace, a traveling camp minstrel
José Castro, a mestizo
Events
Premiere: Dec. 1, 2018
Reviews
“I’ve always felt that what kills this work is having paunchy Caruso-type Western characters with big moustaches and revolvers at their sides being forced to sing, ‘Hello, hello, buona sera, ragazzi.’ (…) This time, however, there is no need to believe this. And what remains is the regular opera set-up: the soprano and tenor are in love with each other, but then along comes the baritone.” (Miklós Fáy, Élet és Irodalom)