Elektra, Opera by R. Strauss
Full of taut and emotional orchestration, the Teatro Filarmonico di Verona stages Elektra, a one-act opera by Richard Strauss. Based on Sophocles' tragic play set during the Trojan War, Strauss' version was developed from Hugo von Hofmannsthal's play of the same name. An Austrian, von Hofmannsthal's reworking of the ancient Greek play had been highly influential after it was first staged in 1903. The writer and dramatist produced a libretto for Strauss which was the first of many such collaborations the two would enter into thereafter. Strauss' Elektra went on to debut at the Saxon State Opera, the Semperoper, in Dresden on 25 January 1909.
An exhilarating opera, Elektra begins with an aria that is all about the title character, the daughter of Agamemnon, the King of Mycenae. Servants sing Wo bleibt Elektra? – Where is Elektra? – as she emerges from the shadows. Taunts and recrimination follow only for Elektra eventually to be taken away to be flogged in punishment. This sets the tone for much of the rest of the drama. How can such a high personage have fallen so low? As the story unfolds, it becomes clear that Agamemnon has been murdered and that Klytaemnestra, Elektra's mother, and the queen's lover, Aegisthus, have taken over. Essentially, Elektra is a story of revenge with the title character making her mind up to avenge the injustice her father faced. Unfortunately for Elektra, her sister, Chrysothemis, is not supportive of the vengeance she seeks. When their brother, Orestes, unexpectedly turns up, will this make Elektra's quest for justice any more viable?
Elektra was written early in Strauss' career as an operatic composer. And yet, it contains many flourishes and musical passages that hint at a much more experienced master of his craft. For example, the work is full of leitmotifs which had been used frequently by Richard Wagner in his grand operatic productions. One such instance is Strauss' use of a so-called polychord – two or more related chords played at the same time. In Elektra, Strauss arranges an E major with a C-sharp major to represent the title character herself with much aplomb, hinting at the complex nature of her psyche. Similar, but simpler, leitmotifs are used to represent other key characters including Agamemnon and Klytaemnestra.
This production of Elektra at Verona's premier indoor venue will provide a huge amount of dramatic and musical entertainment with typically Straussian verve.