A Night at the Opera
By Awake! correspondent in Italy
THE typical discordant sound of an orchestra warming up suddenly ceases, and the lights dim. The conductor, welcomed by brief applause, makes his way to the podium, acknowledging the audience with a bow. Then, in the most complete silence, he raises his arms and with an imperious gesture leads the orchestra into the opening notes of the overture. Have you ever experienced such an exciting moment, the start of an opera? Would you like to? What exactly is an opera, and what are its origins?
Opera is the theatrical performance of a drama (opera seria) or of a comedy (opera buffa) set to music and divided into one or more parts, or acts; the characters present their parts in song. Opera is made up of various elements: the text of the drama, or libretto, (the work of a writer or poet); music written by a composer; singing; dancing; scenery; and costumes. Musicals are similar to operas but are much lighter in style. Perhaps you have seen films, such as West Side Story or Oklahoma, in which the actors sometimes sing instead of speaking.
There is a very wide variety of operas: Those of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Gioacchino Rossini have been described as brilliant; those of Giuseppe Verdi, as vigorous and moving; Richard Wagner’s, complex, slow, and austere; Georges Bizet’s, colorful and lively; Giacomo Puccini’s, sentimental.
The origin of music and song more or less coincides with the beginning of human history. (Genesis 4:21; 31:27) Numerous musical instruments have been made throughout mankind’s existence, and about the 11th century, a system of writing music was adopted. Reference works say that opera had its origin in Florence, Italy, at the end of the 16th century. Numerous Italian words are used in many other languages to describe aspects of this form of composition (opera, libretto, soprano, tenor), attesting to opera’s origins. As opera spread to various parts of Europe, it underwent many changes. Today, opera houses are found the whole world over.
To learn more, let us listen in on a conversation between Antonello, who lives in Milan, and his friend Max, who is visiting from Switzerland. Antonello and Max are passing an unusual and stirring evening at La Scala, Milan, one of the most famous of all opera houses.
At the Opera
Max: I read in the guidebook you gave me that La Scala was inaugurated in 1778, and after being badly damaged by bombing in World War II, it was rebuilt and inaugurated again in 1946. The book also says it can hold an audience of more than 2,000.
Antonello: That’s right. As you can see, it was built in the classic horseshoe shape adopted by most 17th- to 19th-century opera houses. There are six tiers of boxes all the way around; the orchestra pit is there in front of the stage. La Scala is neither the oldest nor the biggest opera house in the world. Its fame derives from the fact that the first performances of several operas were presented here, and many famous conductors and singers have performed here. Among them was the famous conductor Arturo Toscanini, who could conduct without the score. They say that the acoustics of La Scala are perfect, which is fundamental for an opera house, where neither the music nor the voices are amplified by microphones and loudspeakers.
Max: Can you tell me something about opera singers?
Antonello: There are six types of voice. Three male—bass, baritone, and tenor—and three corresponding female voices—contralto, mezzo-soprano, and soprano. The bass and the contralto are the deepest, while the tenor and the soprano are the highest in each group. Baritone and mezzo-soprano are the intermediate voices.
To become a good opera singer, a person must first be gifted with a fine voice and then study for many years at a special school. Without such schooling, which teaches the student how to use the qualities of his voice to the full, no one could become an opera singer. Soon you will see the soloists. You will notice that even though they sometimes play the roles of idealized young men and women in love, all of them, with few exceptions, are mature, quite robust people. Do you know why?
Max: No, I’m curious to hear the reason.
Antonello: Because they reach the height of their career in maturity and have to have a strong physique to sing opera. It’s no joke to have to hit powerful high notes repeatedly over a long period of time. It has been said that the famous soprano Maria Callas, who often sang here at La Scala during the ’50’s, began to decline after undergoing rigid dieting to slim down. So, Max, rather than being distracted by the outward appearance of the soloists, you should appreciate their voices. Look! The conductor is coming out. Take the opera glasses so that you can see the singers and the whole performance better. Just one piece of advice, though: To get the best out of the opera, concentrate on the music and the song as we did for the first act.
What Happens Backstage?
Max: What long applause! The singers really have beautiful voices. Now how long is the interval?
Antonello: About 20 minutes. But do you know what is going on behind the curtain during the interval?
Max: I can’t imagine.
Antonello: Frenzied activity! Guided by a stage manager, specialized stagehands, machine operators, electricians, carpenters, and other workers dismantle the stage decoration in perfect synchronization and install the new scenery. Today, opera houses are equipped with modern technology to change scenery quickly, sometimes even while the performance is underway. Hydraulic platforms, mechanical lifts, and other machinery are used to raise and lower parts of the stage. All opera houses are equipped for special tricks or scenic surprises—equipment that produces vapor to simulate clouds or mist, smoke effects, the sound of rain or wind, or even the crack of a bolt of lightning. A system of spotlights of different power can create scenic effects and shafts of colored light that never fail to amaze.
Max: Sitting here, we see and hear the opera. But what is going on backstage during the performance?
Antonello: That’s an interesting point, Max. While we are comfortably enjoying the performance, a small army is working behind the scenes and in the wings. Imagine what would happen if a singer, the chorus, or the dancers did not move at the right moment. Backstage, the stage manager’s assistant or assistants follow the orchestra with the score and give the singers their cue to go on stage at the right moment. The choirmaster does the same thing with the chorus.
There’s the prompter at the center of the stage, hidden from the audience in that box. He (or she) follows the orchestra conductor’s movements over closed-circuit television, and from the libretto, the prompter speaks the lines, keeping slightly ahead of the soloists, in case a singer forgets a line.
Finally, the director oversees scenery changes and mass entrances onstage of large numbers of actors and also keeps an eye on the electricians so that the beams of colored light are directed at the appropriate sections of the stage at the right moment. Plans have been made to equip La Scala with two rotating or elevating stages like other opera houses to facilitate scenery preparation and to make it possible to work on more than one show at a time.
Max: All those people and all that work to stage an opera! I’m amazed!
Antonello: Oh yes! Large opera houses have a permanent orchestra, choir, and dance troupe—hundreds of artists. Then there are scores of others if you count all the craftsmen, tailors, shoemakers, carpenters, makeup artists, electricians, and one or more scenographers to produce and paint the scenery. Besides these, personnel are needed for security, administration, and other services.
Bible-Based Operas
Max: Are any operas derived from the Bible?
Antonello: Yes, many. Opera has drawn on a large field of subjects—history of ancient peoples, mythology, medieval legends, the works of William Shakespeare and other writers. Nabucco, an abbreviation of “Nebuchadnezzar,” by the Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi, speaks about the Jews deported as slaves from Jerusalem to Babylon. Gioacchino Rossini, another Italian composer, set Mosè (Moses) to music and the French musician Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns composed Samson et Dalila (Samson and Delilah). The story lines of these dramas do not stick strictly to the Bible, but it’s interesting to know that these three operas contain God’s name, Jehovah.
Max: Really? I know that it’s mentioned in the works of Handel and Bach, but I didn’t know that it’s in lyric opera too.
Antonello: At the end of Nabucco, the chorus sings about ‘Great Jehovah,’ and the high priest Zechariah mentions God’s name. In Rossini’s opera, Moses invokes ‘Iehova,’ while in Samson et Dalila, ‘Iehova’ or ‘Jehova’ is mentioned a number of times.
Max: Very interesting.
Antonello: Then there are several other Bible-derived operas. Among them are Salome, by Richard Strauss; Moses und Aron (Moses and Aaron), by Arnold Schönberg; and Debora e Jaele (Deborah and Jael), by Ildebrando Pizzetti. But look! The last act is about to start.
A Fascinating Evening
Antonello: Did you enjoy the opera?
Max: I did, especially because, thanks to your suggestion, I had already read the libretto and so I could follow the plot. Otherwise it might have been difficult to follow.
Antonello: It is, in effect, impossible to understand all the words sung by the soloists and the chorus, since at times the music overpowers the voices, and in the high notes the words are sometimes hard to pick out. In many opera houses now, they supply translated subtitles or superscriptions so that the audience can better follow the plot.
Max: It was an excellent performance, Antonello. Fine music and singing really make us appreciate the Creator, who gave man the gift of voice and the ability to compose, play, and appreciate music. Thank you for treating me to such an enjoyable and thrilling evening.
[Picture on page 24]
La Scala auditorium
[Credit Line]
Lelli & Masotti/Teatro alla Scala
[Picture on page 25]
La Scala, Milan, Italy
[Credit Line]
Lelli & Masotti/Teatro alla Scala
[Pictures on page 26]
Above: Scene from the opera “Samson et Dalila”
[Credit Line]
Winnie Klotz