NOSPR / Lawrence Foster / Verdi - Falstaff - NOSPR

The last opera by Giuseppe Verdi is a sumptuous musical comedy. The libretto, based on motifs from Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor and Henry IV, presents the story of a gruff old sybaritic nobleman embroiled in intricate plots of love and jealousy. Sir John Falstaff gets as much out of life as he can. Verdi brought all his theatrical experience to this tale, adhering to the tradition of Italian opera buffa. Every now and then the music brings to mind the sparkling humour of operas by Mozart and Rossini. Opera connoisseurs will also find here Verdi’s dialogue with his own oeuvre. The composer of Falstaff identified with the titular hero. In the finale of his phenomenal score, we hear the message that the whole world is but a joke. Will we believe the old Italian master?

[Adam Suprynowicz, translated by John Comber]

Duration of the concert: approx. 110 minutes