Rigoletto
Author(s):
Giuseppe Verdi, libretto by Francesco Maria Piave
Company:
English National Opera
Jonathan Miller’s retelling of Giuseppe Verdi’s story of jealousy, love and betrayal is played out against the backdrop of New York’s Little Italy in the 1950s.
The tragic story revolves around the licentious Duke of Mantua, his court jester Rigoletto, and Rigoletto’s beautiful daughter Gilda.
The opera’s original title, La maledizione (The Curse), refers to the curse placed on both the Duke and Rigoletto by a courtier whose daughter had been seduced by the Duke with Rigoletto’s encouragement.
The curse comes to fruition when Gilda likewise falls in love with the Duke with catastrophic consequences.
