Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, December 26, 1709 (Conductor: - ) |
|---|---|---|
| Agrippina | soprano | Margherita Durastanti [31] |
| Nero | soprano castrato | Valeriano Pellegrini |
| Pallas | bass | Giuseppe Maria Boschi [32] |
| Narcissus | alto castrato | Giuliano Albertini |
| Lesbus | bass | Nicola Pasini [33] |
| Otho | contralto | Francesca Vanini-Boschi |
| Poppea | soprano | Diamante Maria Scarabelli |
| Claudius | bass | Antonio Francesco Carli [34] |
| Juno | contralto |
Synopsis
Act 1
Agrippina, wife of Claudius, has received news that her husband has died at sea. Immediately her mind turns to the problem of securing the throne for Nero, her son by a previous marriage. She summons him and commands him to go and give grain to the people in order to buy popular support. After he leaves to carry out his instructions, she summons in turn her two freemen, Pallas and Narcissus, neither of whom knows that the other loves her, though she is aware of their affections. She promises each her love if Nero becomes Emperor, and they leave for the Capitol to acclaim Nero as the new ruler. Agrippina summons the Senate to inform them of Claudius's death and asks them to choose a new Emperor. Pallas and Narcissus immediately cry out Nero's name.
Agrippina and Nero ascend the throne, but, after a flourish of trumpets, Claudius's servant Lesbus arrives to announce that his master is not dead after all but was saved from death at sea by Otho, the commander of the army. Otho then himself arrives to declare that, out of gratitude, Claudius has promised him the throne. The conspirators are dismayed, but Otho then confides to Agrippina that he loves the Roman beauty Poppea far more than the throne. Agrippina knows that Claudius also loves Poppea, and realises that her schemes have not been entirely defeated.
Agrippina goes to Poppea's dwelling, and, after confirming that Poppea does truly love Otho, tells her that Otho has struck a bargain with Claudius: he can have the throne only if he yields Poppea to the current Emperor. She suggests that Poppea should therefore punish Otho by telling Claudius that he has ordered Poppea to refuse Claudius's attentions and give herself to him (Otho) alone. Agrippina claims that this will make Claudius so angry he will strip Otho of his claim to the throne. Poppea is deceived, and when Claudius duly arrives, all proceeds exactly as Agrippina has planned. Poppea is rescued from Claudius's amatory demands by Agrippina's planned return, and Claudius is forced to flee.
Act 2
Meanwhile, Pallas and Narcissus have discovered that Agrippina has tricked them both, and decide to band together to escape the treacheries in which they are embroiled. Otho arrives, nervous about his forthcoming coronation, followed by Claudius riding on a triumphal chariot. Britain has just been conquered, and his subjects all acclaim his glory. However, when Otho goes up to him to claim his promised reward, Claudius brutally repulses him, calling him a traitor. Otho is dumbfounded, and in turn appeals to Agrippina, Poppea, and Nero for support, but they all scorn him, plunging him into despair and the lament "Voi che udite".
However, seeing her beloved's genuine grief, Poppea wonders whether he might not be innocent after all, and lies down in her garden as if in sleep, recounting in "sleep" what Agrippina has told her earlier as Otho approaches. Seeing her then "wake", Otho cannot restrain himself and furiously protests his innocence. Poppea realises how Agrippina has tricked her and swears revenge. Meanwhile, Agrippina has ordered Pallas to kill first Narcissus and then Otho, and Narcissus to kill Pallas and Otho, plotting the scheme in her scena "Pensieri, voi mi tormentate". This time the freemen are not fooled. Agrippina is more successful when it comes to Claudius, telling him that Otho is still plotting to take the throne. She advises him that to stifle his ambitions Claudius should abdicate in favour of Nero. Claudius agrees, eager to be with Poppea again.
Act 3
In the meantime, Poppea has devised a plan. She instructs Otho to hide behind a curtain in her bedroom and to remain silent no matter what he hears. Nero arrives: he also loves Poppea, but she tells him that his mother is coming and persuades him to hide as well. Claudius enters, but Poppea complains that he does not really love her. Claudius reminds her that he punished Otho for her sake, but Poppea suddenly announces that he misheard her: it was not Otho but Nero who insulted her. To prove it, she calls Nero out of hiding, but Claudius interrupts his ardent wooing and contemptuously sends him packing. Poppea then gets rid of Claudius by telling him that he cannot give him her love while Agrippina holds such anger towards her. She brings Otho out of hiding, and the two swear everlasting love to each other, Otho in his aria "Pur ch'io ti stringa" and Poppea with "Bel piacere". Originally Handel had the two sing a duet, "No, no, ch'io non apprezzo", but he was dissatisfied with the music and replaced the duet with the two solo arias before the first performance.[35]
Meanwhile the opera moves to its climax. Nero tells his mother of his sudden fall from grace and asks her to protect him. He renounces love in favour of political ambition in the virtuosic aria "Come nubbe che fugge dal vento", of which the A section is borrowed from Piacere's "Come nube che fugge col vento" in his earlier oratorio, Il trionfo del tempo.[36] Simultaneously, Pallas and Narcissus have told Claudius of the original plot to gain the throne for Nero, so when Agrippina urges Claudius to render the throne to Nero, he accuses her of attempting to rob him of it. She admits she sought the throne for Nero but claims that this was only to prevent intrigues among the people and Senate and that therefore she was safeguarding the throne for Claudius. Claudius is convinced, and Agrippina further tells him to abandon Poppea as she is Otho's lover, but Claudius contradicts her, informing her that it was, in fact, Nero. When Poppea, Otho, and Nero arrive, Claudius accuses Nero of having hidden himself in Poppea's apartment, which Nero cannot and does not deny. Suddenly, the Emperor announces that Otho shall have the throne after all, and that Nero shall marry Poppea. But this solution pleases nobody, so Claudius gives Poppea to Otho, and, wishing to see peace at last, gives up the throne to Nero. Finally he summons the goddess Juno to bless the empire and the betrothed.[37]
No comments:
Post a Comment