DON PASQUALE By Gaetano Donizetti

Sung in Italian with English supertitles. Run time approximately 3 hrs.

A sly and sophisticated comedy, this cheeky tale of romantic bliss and marital "diss" continues to delight and amaze!

The great Italian character bass Donato DiStefano ("If there’s a funnier opera singer on the face of the planet, I’d like to see him." – The Star-Telegram) returns to The Dallas Opera stage in the title role after triumphant turns in Cinderella and The Barber of Seville.

Aided and abetted by baritone Nathan Gunn (Guglielmo in our 2003 production of Così fan tutte and one of the most in-demand singers working today) as the manipulative Doctor Malatesta, this production, designed by the legendary Jean-Pierre Ponnelle, marks the American debut of Slovakian soprano Adriana Kucerova as Norina. Company debuts include internationally renowned Italian conductor Stefano Ranzani and American tenor Norman Shankle as the love-struck Ernesto.

Staged by Director/Choreographer Candace Evans, who earned a local following—and critical acclaim—for her work on The Merry Widow, audiences can expect to be amused and charmed by this object lesson about the dangers of unlimited lines of credit – and the risk of mixing nimble young women with amorous old men.

Lighting design for this production (as well as for Così fan tutte) is by Duane Schuler.

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Although we are always happy to support the careers of local artists, The Dallas Opera attracts international casts from as far away as Russia and China in order to bring North Texas audiences the very best the world has to offer. This is the place where opera legend Plácido Domingo made his U.S. debut. Opera’s greatest stars are always shining at The Dallas Opera!

			Don Pasquale: Donato DiStefano
			Norina: Adriana Kucerova**
			Ernesto: Norman Shankle*
			Dr. Malatesta: Nathan Gunn
Conductor: Stefano Ranzani*
	A Notary: John Sauvey		Stage Director: Candace Evans
	Lighting Designer: Duane Schuler		Chorus Master: Alexander Rom

*Dallas Opera Debut
**American Debut

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DON PASQUALE by Gaetano Donizetti

ACT I. The old bachelor Don Pasquale wants to marry in order to punish his rebellious nephew, Ernesto, by providing himself with an heir and cutting the young man off without a penny. Dr. Malatesta, calling on Pasquale in his sunny morning room, suggests as a bride his own beautiful younger sister, whom he compares to an angel. Delighted, Pasquale tells him to arrange a meeting at once and pushes Malatesta from the room; even now the old man feels his youth returning. When Ernesto comes from his room, he again refuses to marry a woman of his uncle’s choice, saying he loves the widow Norina; the old man tells Ernesto he will have to leave the house. Pasquale then announces his own marriage plans to his astonished nephew. With no inheritance in the offing, Ernesto sees his dreams evaporating. To add insult to injury, he learns that his friend Malatesta has arranged the marriage of Pasquale, who gloats over Ernesto’s discouragement.

On her terrace Norina reads a romance, laughing at the feminine wiles it describes and taking stock of her own caprices. Suddenly depressed by a farewell note from Ernesto, she is cheered by the arrival of Malatesta, who is plotting on the lovers’ behalf. He suggests she impersonate his sister, marry Pasquale in a mock ceremony and drive him to such desperation that he will be at their mercy. Norina declares her willingness to play her role as a convent-bred country girl and goes about rehearsing gestures.

ACT II. In Pasquale’s living room, Ernesto, ignorant of Malatesta’s scheme, bewails the prospective loss of Norina. He leaves at the arrival of his uncle, who is presenting himself for an interview with the bride-to-be. Pasquale is enchanted when Malatesta introduces the timid “Sofronia” and resolves to marry at once. At the wedding ceremony that follows, Ernesto bursts in and denounces Norina’s faithlessness; Malatesta, aside, quickly informs him of the ruse, lest he ruin it, so Ernesto plays witness to the contract. No sooner has the Notary sealed the document and Pasquale bequeathed his fortune to his bride than Norina turns from demure ingenue to extravagant hussy. While Pasquale protests, Norina, Malatesta and the now convinced Ernesto delight in their success.

ACT III. In the redecorated living room, Pasquale is confronted by the stack of bills his new “wife” has amassed. When the servants arrive laden with more purchases, the furious old man resolves to assert his rights as husband. Elegantly dressed, Norina sweeps through the room on her way to the theater, giving Pasquale a slap when he tries to bar her way. As she leaves, airily saying she will return in time to wake him the next morning, she drops a letter from an unknown suitor appointing a rendezvous in the garden that night. The desperate Pasquale sends for Malatesta, then leaves the servants to comment on the advantages of working in a household fraught with such confusion. Later, Ernesto promises Malatesta to be in the garden that evening. Alone with Pasquale, Malatesta assures the old man they will trap “Sofronia” in a compromising situation. The vengeful Pasquale agrees to leave everything to Malatesta.

In the starlit garden, Ernesto serenades Norina, who responds rapturously. Their idyll is interrupted by Pasquale and Malatesta – too late to catch the young man, who slips into the house while Norina plays the innocent wife. Malatesta now announces that Ernesto is about to introduce his own bride, Norina, into the house. Norina, still playing her part, huffily exclaims she will never share the roof with another woman. She threatens to leave, at which Pasquale cannot contain his joy. Ernesto appears, and over “Sofronia”s mock protests Pasquale grants permission for Ernesto to marry Norina, with his inheritance. Dumbfounded to discover Norina is none other than “Sofronia,” Pasquale gives the couple his blessing and joins in observing that marriage is not for an old man.

--Courtesy of Opera News

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Insider's Guide Facts

CONVERSATION STARTER:
Donizetti died in Bergamo in 1848 while Italy was in the throes of violent revolution. During the official autopsy, an artillery shell exploded nearby, scattering the doctors. When the composer’s body was moved a couple years later, it was discovered that his head was conspicuously missing. A public appeal was made and a man stepped forward to confess that Donizetti’s skull was on his desk. He had kept it filled with sand, to blot the ink on his correspondence. Macabre, yes, but it is a conversation starter.

DID YOU KNOW?
That the famed 1957 inaugural concert of Dallas Civic Opera, starring Maria Callas, opened with the overture to Don Pasquale. Maestro Nicola Rescigno conducted.

RECOMMENDED LISTENING:
Artistic Director Jonathan Pell: “There are surprisingly few good recordings of this charming comic opera, and the best recording still in print is probably the one with Beverly Sills, Alfredo Kraus and Donald Gramm, on EMI, #66030.”

RECOMMENDED READING:
Philip Gossett’s “Divas and Scholars: Performing Italian Opera,” “The Inner Voice: The Making of a Singer” by Renée Fleming and “Bel Canto,” a novel by Ann Patchett.

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