Opera "Midsummer Night's Dream": content, video, interesting facts, history

B. Britten opera "Midsummer Night's Dream"

It would not be an exaggeration to say that the opera “A Midsummer Night's Dream” is the very work that can be safely called the apex of the creation. Benjamin brittena. Based on the plot of Shakespeare's work, which in itself is a bold step, the composer managed to find that middle ground through which a combination of comedy and tragedy, farce and grief, fantastic and real, survived so accurately that it remains only to admire the talent and skill of the person who managed to convey all this naturally and without the slightest falsehood.

Summary of the opera Brittena "A dream in a summer night"and many interesting facts about this work read on our page.

Summary of Midsummer Night Sleep

In the fairy-tale forest, a quarrel occurs between the Oberon elf king and his wife, Titania. The reason is Titania’s reluctance to give the husband of an Indian boy, which means a lot to her. Frustrated, Oberon orders Elf Pak to get a magic flower. Using the juice of the flower, he wants to take revenge on his wife, so that she falls in love with the first comer.

At this time in the forest there are lovers who escaped from Athens: Hermia and Lysander. Another pair appears - Helen and Demetri. The girl selflessly in love with a young man, but he does not reciprocate her, because he wants to be only with Hermiya. Watching them, Oberon decides to help Elena and tells Pak to use the enchantment of a magical flower.

Walking through the woods, Lysander and Hermia accidentally move away from each other, and at this time Pak appears. Because of the rush, he is mistaken and instead of Demetrius he is bewitched by Lysander. Seeing Elena, Lysander immediately falls in love with a girl who cannot help wondering at what is happening. At this time, Titania falls asleep, and Oberon safely bewitches her.

During sleep Titania reigns a magical night. At this time, artisans rehearse the upcoming wedding presentation. Observing him, Puck cannot resist the fun and enchants one of them from the bottom - Basis, turning his head into an ass. In this form, the Basis appears in front of Titania, who, being dominated by the spell of a flower, immediately falls in love with him. Demetrius appears, pursuing Hermia and Lysander, who confesses his love to Elena. Finally, entangled in their relationship, all four enter into a fierce altercation. Oberon, who is watching this, tells Pak to end the confusion. Using his talent as a copycat, Puck leads all four away from each other and plunges into sleep.

Just before dawn, Titania, enchanted by her husband, wakes up, recalling with horror her love for a donkey. Both couples wake up and this time everything is in order - Demetri falls in love with Elena, and Lysander loves Hermia. The artisan Basis takes on a human form and remembers its transformation as a nightmare.

The wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta begins, to which Lysander with Hermiya and Lemetrius with Elena come with the request that they be allowed to marry. Delighted with their feelings, Theseus blesses all four. Craftsmen show Theseus his play, after which the couples disagree.

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Interesting Facts

• When working on the libretto, Britten together with Pierce did a truly titanic work. From the original Shakespeare's five-act comedy, they made a three-act, while clearly concentrating all the action in one place - the fairy forest.
• Britten removed some of the characters from the opera, and the rest, after compiling the libretto, divided into three distinct groups: elves, beloved couples and artisans.
• As in his other operas, as well as in some vocal cycles, Britten dilutes "A Midsummer Night's Dream" with orchestral interludes, thus obtaining a kind of division into paintings and scenes.
• Intervalwhich became the symbol of tragedy in the music of Britten, is the triton. It is the use of this interval that the main characters express their grief and the tragedy of the situation at the highest point.
• Despite the fact that the opera was originally conceived as a chamber, for a small group of soloists and an orchestra, the dramaturgy and beauty embodied in it made it much larger. In the editorship of Britten for the Royal Opera House, it is clearly visible that "A Midsummer Night's Dream" is much more than an essay for chamber composition.

• The performance, shown by artisans during the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta, parodies the Italian opera.
• Opera accepted to perform in English, with synchronous subtitles.
• Wonderful music for the opera Britten wrote inspired by "Fairy Queen" Henry Purcell.
• All the music in the opera has the bright features of the English people, ranging from rhythms to solo numbers.
• Conductor James Conlon was personally acquainted with Britten, and it was he who conducted his "Midsummer Night's Dream" at the Metropolitan Opera in honor of the author's 100th birthday.

The best numbers from the opera "Midsummer Night's Dream"

Recitative and Oberon's aria "Flower of this purple dye" is a beautiful music with a bright and unusual melody that perfectly conveys the spirit of the magic of opera. (listen)

Aria of the Basis "When my cue comes, call me" - Britten perfectly conveys through music the confusion and uncertainty that engulfed the craftsman's Basis. (listen)

The story of the creation of "Midsummer Night's Sleep"

Despite the fact that Britten usually created his operas for several years, "Midsummer Night's Dream" was written by him in just one year. By the opening of his festival, the composer urgently needed a new opera, so the schedule for writing "Sleep ..." was extremely tight. Taking up the job with Pierce, they chose Shakespeare's comedy, since the plot was perfect for their purposes.

Quite quickly writing a libretto, Britten set about writing music. Despite the difficult state of health, he worked on the work every day, without giving himself any indulgence, and managed to write an opera on time. The first performance was preceded by some difficulties associated with the uncertainty in their abilities of the performer of the role of Oberon, as well as very little experience of the opera choreographer. Nevertheless, the performance went brilliantly and provoked enthusiastic responses from the press and ordinary viewers.

Productions

For the first time the opera was released in 1960 and since then has been repeatedly staged in various theaters of the world. In Russia, the first production took place in 1965 on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater. In the twentieth century, film directors fell in love with “Midsummer Night's Dream,” significantly changing both the plot and the scene.

For example, in 2011, "Midsummer Night's Dream" was shown in London, with the events taking place in an English school, during the reign of the young Queen Elizabeth II. Unfortunately, all the magic of Shakespeare was removed and replaced with the use of drugs. Such a freestyle interpretation of the work earned numerous negative feedback from viewers. June 10, 2012, director Christopher Olden, who came to Russia with the same production, showed it in the Musical Theater named after him. Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko. The interpretation of the opera caused a huge public response, including angry reviews in the media and the creation of a special commission to assess the moral component of the performance.

In the same 2011, “Dream ...” was presented at the Mariinsky Theater by the young director Claudia Solti. The opera is full of virtuoso acrobatics and flights. The performance was warmly received by the audience, largely due to the skill of the singers and the talent of Valery Gergiev.

In honor of Britten’s 100th birthday, director Tim Albery showed “Sleep…” in the Metropolitan Opera. Bright costumes, colorful decorations and magnificent voices perfectly conveyed the atmosphere conceived by Britten. Music critics very warmly accepted this production.

January 4, 2018 was staged in the Israeli Opera under the direction of Ido Riklin. This time the action was transferred to Hollywood, on the set. Only those who know the original work of Shakespeare can draw analogies in this performance and correctly relate the original characters of the comedy to the new actors.

"A dream in a summer night"is one of the best writings Benjamin brittenawhich is not surprising, because by the time of its writing the composer had more than 20 years of musical experience. Having invested in the opera the bright features of original England, Britten managed to create such beautiful music that to this day it is not perceived as something outdated. Until now, Midsummer Night's Dream rightfully occupies a worthy place among other operatic works, proving that the wonderful Shakespearean plot, multiplied by the talent of the composer, can work wonders.