Rigoletto
Words are weapons. Sometimes they misfire.
Full of melodies that are now the musical backdrop of modern life, Verdi’s Rigoletto is one of the world’s best-loved operas. Jonathan Miller’s production is the godfather of the genre. Set in Little Italy in 1950’s New York, it is a terrific night out: a fast-paced gangster saga of jealousy, love and revenge.
Overview
The title character is a wise-cracking mobster who uses words as weapons. But he shoots his mouth off once too often and a misplaced joke sparks a deadly vendetta. Now the joke’s on Rigoletto as the depraved Duke seduces his daughter, Gilda. Rigoletto vows to avenge her honour and his family name.
Discover more about the story of Rigoletto on our dedicated page.
Score
Verdi’s score features some of the most familiar and recognisable music in all opera. ‘La donna è mobile’ – ‘Women abandon us’ – has been taken up by everyone from film producers to Venetian gondoliers, entering the popular imagination. So, as well as the excitement of the gangster staging, expect to be left humming those memorable melodies for the next week or two.
Singers
Internationally renowned conductor and former Music Director of Opera North, Richard Farnes will conduct Verdi’s exciting score. Weston Hurt leads the cast in the title role, alongside Yongzhao Yu as ‘The Duke’ and Robyn Allegra Parton as Rigoletto’s infatuated daughter, Gilda.
ENO Harewood artists are represented by Amy Holyland, singing Maddalena, the assassin’s sister and Patrick Alexander Keefe as Marullo. William Thomas, who will sing Sparafucile, is a former ENO Harewood artist. This revival is directed by Elaine Tyler-Hall.
Jonathan Miller’s iconic New York mafiosi staging is as dramatic and complex as ever
