Falstaff ossia Le tre burle, Opera by A. Salieri
The Teatro Filarmonico di Verona stages a production of Falstaff ossia Le tre burle by the Italian classical composer, Antonio Salieri. Based on The Merry Wives of Windsor, a comedy written by William Shakespeare, the opera features one of Shakespeare's most appealing and enduring characters, Sir John Falstaff. In fact, Falstaff ossia Le tre burle translates into English as Falstaff, or the Three Jokes, a reference to the humour in this dramma giocoso. With a libretto by Carlo Prospero Defranceschi, the opera was first performed at the Kärntnertortheater in Vienna on 3 January 1799.
The two-act opera opens with Sir John gatecrashing a party in Windsor. A retired soldier, he is indebted and decides to attempt to seduce two women he encounters there. From his lodgings at a local inn, he later sends the same love letter to each of the married women, Mrs Slender and Mrs Ford. The latter visits Falstaff in disguise but so, too, does her husband who has growing suspicions. The old soldier arranges to call upon Mrs Ford while her husband is supposed to be out. At this point, the two women decide that they want to teach Falstaff a lesson and plan to trick him. In the first act, Falstaff ends up hiding in a laundry basket which, when Mr Ford returns home, ends up being thrown into the River Thames.
The second act continues in much the same vein with Mrs Slender and Mrs Ford coming up with further tricks to outwit their suitor. Various disguises and pretences are used to joke with Falstaff in increasingly bizarre and comedic ways. Will the old rogue win over one of the two merry wives he wants to woo, or will he learn to behave himself in a more becoming fashion? Salieri's score keeps the pace of this opera high with entertaining and light touches throughout. At the time he orchestrated it, Mozart's style was gaining popularity and being revived in Vienna. As a result, for many, Salieri's music sounds influenced by his Austrian counterpart in this fun, energetic and charming opera. Fans of Salieri will certainly enjoy the opera's tremendous overture which sets just the right tone for the rest of the proceedings.
Falstaff ossia Le tre burle at the Teatro Filarmonico di Verona offers a delightful version of one of Shakespeare's best-loved comedies in a musical format that innovated the use of the English dramatist's plays in opera.