Pagliacci / Cavalleria rusticana
Florence’s Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino stages a twin production of two fine Italian operas from the late nineteenth century: Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo and Cavalleria rusticana by Pietro Mascagni. This operatic pairing is often performed on the same bill not only because the works suit one another stylistically and musically but because Leoncavallo was inspired to write Pagliacci after he saw Cavalleria rusticana and decided to pen his own opera in response. The result is two wonderful operatic gems written in the so-called verismo style, a kind of truthful depiction of events on stage which was also popularised by none other than Giacomo Puccini.
The performance begins with Pagliacci, which is the Italian word for clowns, specifically denoting the clown stock character from commedia dell’arte. Leoncavallo's opera, for which he wrote both the libretto and the music, opens with a prologue followed by two relatively short acts. The action represents the dramatic form of storytelling that he soon became synonymous with. Pagliacci premiered at the Teatro Dal Verme in Milan on 21 May 1892 with Arturo Toscanini conducting. It was a big hit with audiences who enjoyed the way the story unfolded in twin ways. The opera's characters are touring stage artistes. Their real lives, jealousies and passions are mirrored in the play they perform in front of an audience of local villagers as they attempt to disentangle lies, deceit and infidelities both in their real lives and on stage.
Mascagni's Cavalleria rusticana follows, an opera that premiered two years before Pagliacci at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 17 May 1890. The composer wrote it as a one-act opera after entering a competition, which had been organised by the publisher Sonzogno, calling for such operatic works. At just 26 years of age, Mascagni took first prize. The libretto was written by Guido Menasci and Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti, who based their work on a contemporary novella of the same name by Giovanni Verga. Set at Easter, the story conveys deeply held passion, jealousy and, perhaps more than anything else, tormented love. Will the characters find the redemption and forgiveness inherent in Christian belief during Holy Week, or will they descend into recrimination, anger and violence?
The Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino offers an enticing chance to witness a pair of much-loved operas being performed together with a running time that is unquestionably suited to this double-bill format.