Rigoletto

RIGOLETTO

The version of Rigoletto put on by ENO (English National Opera) moves the original setting of Manua, Italy to our home country in the city of Little Italy New York. Although we were at first skeptical about this move, this play did an excellent job in adapting Rigoletto to an entirely new setting. The sets constructed by the stage crew, especially the Bar/Club scenes, evoked 1950’s New York so convincingly it felt as though we were there. Honestly, I now cannot picture Rigoletto being set anywhere else. I think I speak for everyone in the group when I say that I was not originally looking forward to seeing a three hour long opera; however, there is something about live orchestra music that never fails to send shivers down the listeners’ spines.

A downside though: hearing every single line sung did get a bit excessive. But at the same time certain dramatics were amplified by the booming voices. In Gilda's death scene at the end of the opera, for example, the powerful singing voices of Rigoletto and his daughter Gilda tapped into a raw emotion that would have been hard to stage otherwise. In all fairness, I don’t think the final scene could have been pulled off in a spoken play, at least not nearly as powerfully as in opera .

At least for me, this was my first introduction to opera. I didn’t expect to like it in any way, shape, or form, but I honestly thoroughly enjoyed my experience watching ENO’s Rigoletto. I encourage anyone who has the opportunity to visit the opera to do so. I believe you will not regret it.