Don Carlo, quarantined
Need To know
Don Carlo, or Don Carlos in its original French version, is Verdi’s longest opera. The original version was composed for the Paris Opéra in 1867 during the Napoléon III’s Universal Exhibition.
There are 4 versions of Don Carlo, but today the French version from 1867 and the Italian version from 1884 are most commonly performed.
The opera is Verdi’s version of French grand opera in the Meyerbeerian style. He wanted to add elements of spectacle and like most French grand opera, he wrote the opera in five acts. Here is a clip from the coronation scene in Don Carlo, it doesn’t get much grander then this, big chorus, big sets, just big!
The opera’s libretto is based on Friedrich von Schiller’s play Don Karlos, Infant von Spanien, set in 16th Century Spain during the Spanish Inquisition. The opera is mostly fiction, but the characters, Don Carlos, Philip of Spain, Elisabeth da Valois, Princess Eboli, are real figures from this time. Verdi wrote to Giulio Ricordi, “In short, nothing in the drama is historical, but it contains a Shakespearean truth and profundity of characterizations.”
Historian Stephen Weber writes, “Typical Verdian themes that are found in Don Carlo are the depiction and criticism of ecclesiastical narrowness and cruelty and the destruction of personal lives against the background of larger forces: religious, political, and dynastic… thus Don Carlo is revelatory of personal happiness destroyed by exigencies of public duty.”
What’s so Grand?
Grand opera is a term that has less meaning in our 21st Century sensibility, pretty much any classic opera, Carmen, La Bohème, La Traviata, are considered grand in our eyes. However, “Grand Opera” is actually a specialized type of opera that dates back to Louis XIV. This French genre is usually a lyrical tragedy with 5 acts and elaborate costumes and sets. If you’ve ever watched the musical Phantom of the Opera, its setting is a Grand Opera theatre.
German composer Giacomo Meyerbeer, who settled in Paris in 1825, is the composer we most associate 19th century grand opera. Read more about him and grand opera from the Opéra National De Paris.
Family Drama… pass the gin!
In honor of Verdi's grand opera set in Spain, you pre-opera drink is a spin on the classic gin and tonic. This Spanish Gin and Tonic is as refreshing as the original and even more aromatic with the added garnishes. Watch John create the cocktail here.
Ingredients: 2 oz Gin, 4 oz Tonic, Lemon Wheel, Juniper Berries, and Mint Sprig for garnish. Directions: Add Gin and Tonic to a glass with ice, stir gently. Insert Lemon wheels into the glass, top with Juniper Berries and Mint Sprig. Enjoy!
Synopsis
Don Carlo is the simple story of boy goes to meet the girl he is betrothed in France during a war, they fall instantly and madly in love. Moments later, the canon sounds the end of the war, but part of the peace treaty is girl is to marry the boy’s father, thus becoming his stepmother. Ok, so it’s not so simple, but this historical fiction grand opera has it all, exploring the conflicts of love, betrayal, friendship, idealism, and duty.
Here is a great 3 minute video from LA Opera explaining the plot.
Read the full synopsis from the Met.
Stream the show
Rent this 2010 production from the Met starring Poplavskaya and Alagna.
Here is a French production at Opéra National de Paris.
More Listening
Don Carlo has no shortage of great musical moments. Each of its main characters have their own aria as well as amazing duets, trios, and choruses. Below are a few of the amazing moments from Don Carlo, in addition, visit Opera-Inside.com for additional insight and more clips.
Don Carlo’s aria “Io l’ho perduta” sung by Jussi Björling.
King Phillip II aria “Ella giammai m’amò” sung by Samuel Ramey.
Quartet from Act IV “Ah! si maledetto, sospetto fatale...”
Princess Eboli’s aria “O don fatale” sung by Grace Bumbry
Duet from Act IV “Il Grand Inquisitor!”
Elisabeth’s Act V aria “Tu che le vanita” sung by Montserrat Caballe