Cast
Won Whi Choi
The Duke of Mantua
George Gagnidze
Rigoletto
Jasmine Habersham
Gilda
Rigoletto
Creative
Roberto Kalb
Conductor
Tomer Zvulun
Director
Erhard Rom
Set Designer
Jessica Jahn
Costume Designer
Robert Wierzel
Lighting Designer
Composer: Giuseppe Verdi
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave
Premiere Performance: March 11, 1851, La Fenice, Venice
A lecherous playboy. A vengeful father. A tragic love affair. Giuseppe Verdi’s definitive tragic opera comes to Atlanta as a co-production with the Houston Grand Opera and the Dallas Opera. Rigoletto is a master of the tongue, a wily wordsmith with a malicious edge. But as he finds himself cursed by an affronted courtier, Rigoletto will discover the true consequences of his words will have an indelible impact on that which he holds most dear. Jasmine Habersham returns home to perform the role of Gilda in The Atlanta Opera’s production of Rigoletto.
Sung in Italian with English Supertitles
Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre
Rigoletto is a co-production of The Atlanta Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and The Dallas Opera
Composer: Giuseppe Verdi
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave
Premiere Performance: March 11, 1851, La Fenice, Venice
A lecherous playboy. A vengeful father. A tragic love affair. Giuseppe Verdi’s definitive tragic opera comes to Atlanta as a co-production with the Houston Grand Opera and the Dallas Opera. Rigoletto is a master of the tongue, a wily wordsmith with a malicious edge. But as he finds himself cursed by an affronted courtier, Rigoletto will discover the true consequences of his words will have an indelible impact on that which he holds most dear. Jasmine Habersham returns home to perform the role of Gilda in The Atlanta Opera’s production of Rigoletto.
Sung in Italian with English Supertitles
Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre
Rigoletto is a co-production of The Atlanta Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and The Dallas Opera
Cast
George Gagnidze
Rigoletto
Jasmine Habersham
Gilda
Won Whi Choi
The Duke
Creative
Roberto Kalb
Conductor
Tomer Zvulun
Director
Erhard Rom
Set Designer
Jessica Jahn
Costume Designer
Robert Wierzel
Lighting Designer
Synopsis
ACT I
The Duke’s Palace, Mantua, mid-16th century
While at a party at his palace, the Duke of Mantua expresses his desire for an assignation with a young woman he has recently seen at church, but soon afterward he sets his romantic sights on seducing the Countess Ceprano. As the Duke and the Countess leave together, her husband is mocked and humiliated by Rigoletto, the Duke’s jester. Pondering revenge on Rigoletto, Count Ceprano is interested to learn from the nobleman Marullo that Rigoletto keeps a woman in his home. The elderly nobleman Count Monterone interrupts the party to defend the honor of his daughter, who has been ravished by the Duke. Rigoletto mocks Monterone’s anger, and the enraged father responds by cursing the Duke and his jester.
Outside the palace later that night, the assassin Sparafucile confronts Rigoletto. Rigoletto sends him away, but compares his own biting tongue to an assassin’s sword. When he arrives home, he is greeted by his daughter, Gilda, whom he has kept secluded there since the death of her mother. Rigoletto leaves Gilda in the care of her maid, Giovanna. Soon afterward, the Duke, disguised as a student, sneaks into the house and tells Gilda that he loves her. Gilda, who has noticed the disguised Duke following her home from church, returns his affections, and they bid each other farewell.
Outside, Ceprano and a group of the Duke’s courtiers are gathering to abduct Gilda – whom they believe to be Rigoletto’s mistress – in order to gain revenge on the jester. The courtiers blindfold Rigoletto and fool him into letting them into his own house. They depart with Gilda. Rigoletto hears her cries and removes the blindfold, but he is too late to save her, and he is left alone to remember Monterone’s curse.
Read moreACT II
The Duke’s Palace
Having discovered that Gilda is missing, the Duke laments losing her. However, he soon learns that she was abducted by his own courtiers, and he excitedly leaves to see her. Rigoletto enters, searching for Gilda, but he is turned away by the unconcerned courtiers. Gilda enters and tearfully tells her father about her flirtation with the Duke and her abduction. As Rigoletto consoles his daughter, he watches as Monterone is led toward his prison cell. Rigoletto swears to Monterone that the Duke’s crimes against both of their daughters will be avenged.
ACT III
Sparafucile’s House, by the Mincio River
Rigoletto brings Gilda to the home of the assassin Sparafucile, whom he has hired to kill the Duke. Gilda is forced to watch from the outside as the Duke, no longer disguised as her lover, seduces Maddalena, the assassin’s sister. After sending Gilda away, Rigoletto finalizes his arrangements with Sparafucile; he will return at midnight to accept the body and dispose of it. Against her father’s wishes, Gilda returns and listens as Maddalena begs her brother not to kill the Duke. Sparafucile initially refuses, but relents and tells his sister that he will kill whoever arrives at the inn before Rigoletto returns. Gilda decides to allow herself be killed in place of her lover, knocks on the door, and is stabbed by Sparafucile.
Rigoletto returns at midnight, and is presented with a body in a sack. As he leaves, he hears the voice of the Duke singing in the distance. He opens the bag to find the dying body of his daughter. She dies in the arms of her father, who cries that Monterone’s curse has been fulfilled.
Courtesy of Opera America
Characters & Cast
A First Timer’s Guide
The Opera Experience
Operas on our mainstage are grand theatrical experiences. You can always expect the unexpected, and for our productions to be presented at the highest quality.
Supertitles
Many operas are in a foreign language. Supertitles are similar to subtitles in a film, except they are projected above the stage. These translations will help you follow what’s happening on stage.
What to Wear
There is no dress code at The Opera and you will see everything from jeans to evening gowns and formal suits. Most people use it as a chance to enjoy dressing up in their own style.
Arriving in Good Time
If you are late, you will be escorted to the nearest late seating area. At intermission ushers will show you to your seat. Plan ahead to arrive with extra time.
Enhance Your Visit
Pre-Performance Talk
Learn about the history of the opera, the composer, and more from artists and opera aficionados. One hour prior to curtain. Free with your ticket!
Familiarizing Yourself with the Story
Because of the foreign languages, classical music, and often complex plots, you will very likely enjoy the performance better if you spend a few minutes familiarizing yourself with the story and characters in advance. Some people even like to listen to the music in advance and others prefer to let it wash over them during the show and perhaps look it up afterwards.
How is an Opera Staged?
Auditions
Actors first audition for roles up to a year in advance, or for more experienced artists, directors also invite them to play a role.
Rehearsals
Most of the rehearsals are held in our rehearsal hall, and not the actual theatre. The conductor begins orchestra rehearsals about a week and half before opening night. They have four rehearsals with the conductor, and then the singers are added into the mix.
Sets & Costumes
The Atlanta Opera Costume Shop alters the costumes to fit our singers. Sometimes they do have to make costumes if there aren’t enough, or if there is nothing that fits, etc. Once the sets are in place, the cast begins rehearsing at the theatre. The Opera production staff works with staff at the theatre to get all of the lighting and technical aspects of the production together.
Sitzprobe & Dress Rehearsal
The orchestra comes together with the singers in a special rehearsal called sitzprobe. There are no costumes during the sitzprobe, this is mainly to hear the voices with the orchestra. There is a piano dress rehearsal, when the singers rehearse in full costume for the first time so they can get used to wearing them. Finally, all of the pieces are put together for two full dress rehearsals leading up to opening night.
Composer
Giuseppe Verdi
(1813-1901)
Famed composer Giuseppe Verdi was born Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi on October 9 or 10, 1813, in the community of Le Roncole, near Busseto in the province of Parma, Italy. His mother, Luigia Uttini, worked as a spinner, and his father, Carlo Giuseppe Verdi, made a living as a local inkeeper.
Verdi first developed musical talents at a young age, after moving with his family from Le Roncole to the neighboring town of Busseto. There, he began studying musical composition. In 1832, Verdi applied for admission at the Milan Conservatory, but was rejected due to his age. Subsequently, he began studying under Vincenzo Lavigna, a famous composer from Milan.
Verdi got his start in Italy’s music industry in 1833, when he was hired as a conductor at the Philharmonic Society in Busseto. In addition to composing, he made a living as an organist around this time. Three years later, in 1836, Verdi wed Margherita Barezzi, the daughter of a friend, Antonio Barezzi.
In 1838, at age 25, Verdi returned to Milan, where he completed his first opera, Oberto, in 1839, with the help of fellow musician Giulio Ricordi; the opera’s debut production was held at La Scala, an opera house in Milan. While working on Oberto, the composer suffered what would be the first of many personal tragedies: His and Margherita’s first child, daughter Virginia Maria Luigia Verdi (born in March 1837), died in infancy on August 12, 1838; just one year later, in October 1839, the couple’s second child, son Verdi Icilio Romano Verdi (born in July 1838), died, also as an infant.
Verdi followed Oberto with the comic opera Un giorno di regno, which premiered in Milan in September 1840, at Teatro alla Scala. Unlike Oberto, Verdi’s second opera was not well-received by audiences or critics. Making the experience worse for the young musician, Un giorno di regno‘s debut was painfully overshadowed by the death of his wife, Margherita, on June 18, 1840, at age 26.
Read moreDispirited by the loss of his family, Verdi entered the 1840s disheartened, struggling to find inspiration to continue creating music. He soon found solace in his work, however, by composing two new, fourt-part operas in 1842 and ’43, Nabucco and I Lombardi alla Prima Crociata (best known simply as I Lombardi), respectively. Both pieces earned the composer a great amount of success. Subsequently, Verdi held a prominent reputation in Italy’s operatic theater scene and, later, in the country’s political scene as well. He became known for his skill in creating melody and his profound use of theatrical effect. His rejection of the traditional Italian opera for integrated scenes and unified acts only added to his fame.
For the rest of the 1840s, and through the 1850s, ’60s and ’70s, Verdi continued to garner success and fame. Comprising a popular operatic series throughout the decades were Rigoletto (1851), Il trovatore (1853), La traviata (1853), Don Carlos (1867) and Aida, which premiered at the Cairo Opera House in 1871. Four years later, in 1874, Verdi completed Messa da Requiem (best known simply as Requiem), which was meant to be his final composition. He retired shortly thereafter.
Despite his retirement plans, in the mid-1880s, through a connection initiated by longtime friend Giulio Ricordi, Verdi collaborated with composer and novelist Arrigo Boito (also known as Enrico Giuseppe Giovanni Boito) to complete Otello. Completed in 1886, the four-act opera was performed for the first time at Milan’s Teatro alla Scala on February 5, 1887. Initially meeting with incredible acclaim throughout Europe, the opera—based on William Shakespeare’s play Othello—continues to be regarded as one of the greatest operas of all time.
Never one to rest on his laurels, even in his old age, Verdi followed Otello‘s success with Falstaff, another collaboration with Boito. Completed in 1890, when Verdi was in his late 70s, Falstaff—a comedic adaptation of the Shakespearean plays The Merry Wives of Windsor and Henry IV, and consisting of three acts—debuted at Milan’s La Scala on February 9, 1893. Like Othello, early reactions to Falstaff were, by and large, tremendously positive, and the opera continues to earn great renown today.
Courtesy of Biography.com
Conductor
Roberto Kalb
Mexican-born conductor Roberto Kalb makes multiple debuts in the 2022-23 season, including with the San Francisco Opera, Compañía Nacional de Ópera at the Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City, and the San Diego Opera. The 2021-22 season marked a debut with the Opéra Orchestre National Montpellier, as well as return collaborations with Detroit Opera for Yuval Sharon’s production of La bohème, Wolf Trap Opera and the National Symphony Orchestra for La traviata, and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, for the world premiere of Tobias Picker’s Awakenings.
In 2019, Kalb concluded his five season tenure as resident conductor and head of music at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis with a critically acclaimed run of Rigoletto in collaboration with the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, which Opera News lauded: “The orchestra sounded sublime under the baton of Roberto Kalb, whose buoyant conducting simultaneously led and followed the singers.”
Additional highlights include productions at the Michigan Opera Theatre, Florida Grand Opera, Tulsa Opera, Kentucky Opera, Opera Maine, as well as performances with the Orquesta Carlos Chavez in Mexico City, and the Orquestra Sinfonica da USP in São Paulo. Previously, Kalb also worked as cover/assistant conductor for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and the Canadian Opera Company in Toronto. Kalb is one of the recipients of the 2021 Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Awards.
Director
Tomer Zvulun
General and Artistic Director of The Atlanta Opera since 2013, Israeli born Tomer Zvulun is also one of leading stage director of his generation, earning consistent praise for his creative vision and innovative interpretations. His work has been presented by prestigious opera houses in Europe, South and Central America, Israel and the US, including The Metropolitan Opera, Washington National Opera, Seattle Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Dallas, San Diego, Boston, Pittsburgh, Minnesota, Montreal, Buenos Aires, Israeli Opera, and the festivals of Wexford, Glimmerglass and Wolf Trap, as well as leading educational institutes and universities such as The Juilliard School, Indiana University, and Boston University.
Tomer spent seven seasons on the directing staff of the Metropolitan Opera where he directed revivals of Carmen and Tosca and was involved with more than a dozen new productions. He is a frequent guest director in companies such as Seattle Opera (Semele, La Bohème, Eugene Onegin, Lucia di Lammermoor), Dallas Opera (Die Fledermaus, La Bohème), Houston (Flying Dutchman, Rigoletto), Wexford Festival (Silent Night, Dinner at Eight), Cincinnati Opera (Magic Flute, Don Giovanni, Flying Dutchman), Wolf Trap (Falstaff, Don Giovanni), Israeli Opera (Dead Man Walking, Giulio Cesare) among others. His European premiere of Silent Night at the Wexford Festival received two Irish Times Awards and traveled from Ireland to Washington National Opera, The Glimmerglass Festival and the opera companies of Atlanta, Austin and Salt Lake City.
Read MoreZvulun directed over 15 new productions in his home company in Atlanta, including Dead Man Walking, Flying Dutchman, Soldier Songs, Silent Night, Maria de Buenos Aires, La Boheme, Madama Butterfly, Lucia di Lammermoor, Magic Flute, and Eugene Onegin to name but a few. During Tomer’s tenure, the company’s fundraising has tripled, resulting in twice the number of productions presented annually. His focus on innovation has garnered national attention and resulted in a Harvard Business School case study chronicling The Atlanta Opera’s turnaround, an International Opera Awards nomination, an ArtsATL Luminary Award, and an invitation to deliver a TEDx Talk about innovation in opera.
His upcoming projects include a new Rigoletto in Houston; a new Salome in Atlanta and Kansas City; revivals of his acclaimed production of Eugene Onegin in Montreal, Seattle and Palm Beach; Silent Night at Utah Opera; and Madama Butterfly and Glory Denied in Atlanta. He is currently working on developing a world premiere based on Anne Frank’s Diary and Sensorium Ex, a world premiere based on a story about artificial intelligence.
Tomer’s recent shows have traveled across continents, receiving critical acclaim for their striking visuals and cinematic quality. Some of them included The Flying Dutchman (Houston, Cincinnati, Atlanta), Dinner at Eight (Wexford Festival, Minnesota Opera), Eugene Onegin (Seattle, Atlanta, Detroit, Kansas City), Lucia di Lammermoor (Seattle, Atlanta, Cleveland) Silent Night (Wexford, Atlanta, Glimmerglass, Washington, Austin), Soldier Songs (Atlanta, San Diego), Dead Man Walking (New Orleans, Atlanta), La Bohème (Seattle, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Atlanta, Dallas), Lucrezia Borgia (Buenos Aires), Gianni Schicchi (Juilliard, IVAI Tel Aviv), L’heaure Espagnole (Juilliard), Magic Flute (Cincinnati, Atlanta, Indiana University), Don Giovanni (Wolf Trap, Cincinnati), Die Fledermaus (Dallas, Kansas City), Falstaff (Wolf Trap, Des Moines), Rigoletto (Boston, Atlanta, Omaha, Charlotte), Madama Butterfly (Atlanta, Castleton Festival, New Orleans), Tosca (National Theatre Panama, Atlanta) and Semele (Seattle).
Tomer Zvulun was born and raised in Israel, attended the open University in Tel Aviv and Harvard Business School and makes his home in Atlanta.
