''Betrothal in a Monastery'' (

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

title ''Обручение в монастыре'') is an

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

in nine scenes (four acts) by

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''. , group=n ( – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who l ...

to a Russian

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

by the composer and

Mira Mendelson Mariya-Cecilia Abramovna Mendelson-Prokofieva (), typically referred to as Mira Mendelson (), ( – June 8, 1968) was a Russian poet, writer, and translator who was the second wife of the composer Sergei Prokofiev. She was the co-librettist of h ...

after Sheridan's '' The Duenna''. Prokofiev began the work in 1940, and it was in rehearsal that year, but

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

halted production of the opera. The composer revised the score in

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in 1943. The first performance did not occur until 3 November 1946 at the

Kirov Theatre The Mariinsky Theatre (, also transcribed as Maryinsky or Mariyinsky) is a historic opera house in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Opened in 1860, it became the preeminent music theatre of late 19th-century Russia, where many of the stage masterpieces ...

with Boris Khaikin conducting. The producer was I. Shlepianov. Commentators have noted that, given the context of its creation in the 1940s in the Soviet Union, this opera lacks any particular political or social comment, except perhaps for a scene involving drunken monks.

Performance history

The opera was first performed in the

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(in English) in

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on June 1, 1948. The opera was first performed in the

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(in Russian) in

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on May 5, 1963. In recent years, the opera has been performed in 1989 at the

Wexford Festival Wexford Festival Opera () is an opera festival that takes place in the town of Wexford in south-eastern Ireland during the months of October and November. Festival origins, growth and development Tom Walsh, 1951 to 1966 Tom Walsh, an avid o ...

, in 2006 at the

Glyndebourne Festival Glyndebourne Festival Opera is an annual opera festival held at Glyndebourne, an English country house near Lewes, in East Sussex, England. History Under the supervision of the Christie family, the festival has been held annually since 1934, e ...

and at the

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in 2008, at Staatsoper Berlin, in 2019.

Roles

Synopsis

Act 1

Don Jerome intends his daughter Louisa to marry the vain, wealthy and ugly fish merchant Mendoza. However, she loves instead Antonio, who is poor, though noble in spirit. Furthermore, Don Ferdinand, son of Don Jerome and prone to fits of jealousy, wants to marry Clara d'Almanza, who is a virtual prisoner of her stepmother.

Act 2

Don Jerome locks up Louisa in her room to force her to marry Mendoza. Louisa's nurse (the Duenna) provokes the fury of Don Jerome by pretending to be a messenger between Antonio and Louisa. Jerome dismisses her - but the Duenna exchanges clothes with Louisa who makes her escape in this disguise. By the quayside - where fisherwomen are praising the quality of the fish caught in Mendoza's boats - Louisa encounters her friend Clara, who has also run away from home and intends to seek sanctuary at the nunnery. Louisa asks to borrow Clara's name for a day - Clara assents. Enter Mendoza and his courtly friend Don Carlos. Mendoza is recognized by Louisa but he has never seen her. She therefore approaches Mendoza claiming to be Clara and asks him to take her under his protection and find Antonio with whom she is in love. Mendoza is attracted by this idea as a means to rid himself of his rival Antonio by marrying him off to 'Clara'. Don Carlos escorts 'Clara' to Mendoza's house. Mendoza visits the house of Don Jerome to meet 'Louisa' (the Duenna in disguise); whilst 'Louisa' is not as young and beautiful as Mendoza had been led to believe, her dowry is sufficient attraction. they agree to elope that evening.

Act 3

The mystified Antonio arrives at Mendoza's house; while he is offstage meeting 'Clara', Mendoza and don Carlos congratulate themselves on their cunning. Still unwitting, they agree to help the pair get married. Don Jerome is rehearsing some amateur musicians (A trio of trumpet, clarinet and bass drum). He receives two messages- one from Mendoza saying he has eloped with Louisa, which delights him, and another from the real Louisa who asks for his blessing on her marriage, which he neglects to read carefully. He sends back his consent with both messengers and arranges for a great feast later that evening to celebrate. At the monastery, Clara meets with Antonio and Luisa and laments her apparent loss of Ferdinand. Enter Ferdinand, who mistaking Clara for a nun exclaims that he is chasing his false friend Antonio who has run off with his beloved Clara. Clara is secretly overjoyed at this demonstration of Ferdinand's passion.

Act 4

The act opens with a drinking song for the monks in the monastery where the marriages are to be performed. The monks then switch to a hymn that extols fasting and abstinence, to a tune that is a slower variant of the earlier drinking song. Enter Mendoza and Antonio who by lavish bribery gain the monks consent to marry them to their loves. Enter Ferdinand who challenges Antonio to a duel, but the genuine Clara arrives and Ferdinand now understands the true situation. The three marriages are agreed. At Don Jerome's feast, the host is increasingly amazed, exasperated and infuriated as the successive arrival of the newly-weds makes it clear that his plans have gone completely awry. He is slightly compensated by the likely size of Clara's dowry. He sings a drinking song, accompanying himself on a set of tuned glasses.

Recordings

Recordings include: *

Stanislavsky Musical Theatre The Stanislavski and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre () is a music theatre in Moscow. The Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre was founded in 1941 when two companies directed by the legendary ...

. With N. Korshunov (Don Jerome), Y. Kratov (Ferdinand), V. Kayevchenko (Louise), T. Yanko (Louise's Duenna), N. Issakova (Clara), E. Bulavin (Mendoza), S. Ilyinsky (Don Carlos), I. Petrov (Padre Augustin) cond. K. Abdullayev ( Melodyia, 1963) * Orchestra and chorus of the

Bolshoi Theatre The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈat(ə)r, t=Grand Theater) is a historic opera house in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové. Before the October Revolutio ...

cond. Alexander Lazarev, ( BMG Classics, 1990)Recordings of ''Betrothal in a Monastery'' on operadis-opera-discography.org.uk
/ref> *

Kirov Orchestra The Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra or just the Mariinsky Orchestra (formerly known as the Kirov Orchestra) is located in the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia. The orchestra was founded in 1783 during the reign of Catherine the Great, it ...

and

Kirov Opera The Mariinsky Theatre (, also transcribed as Maryinsky or Mariyinsky) is a historic opera house in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Opened in 1860, it became the preeminent music theatre of late 19th-century Russia, where many of the stage masterpieces ...

. With Evgeny Akimov, Marianna Tarassova,

Anna Netrebko Anna Yuryevna Netrebko (; born 18 September 1971) is a Russian and Austrian operatic soprano who has performed at the Salzburg Festival, Metropolitan Opera, Vienna State Opera, the Royal Opera and La Scala. Netrebko is one of the few Russian p ...

, Alexandr Gergalov, Nikolai Gassiev,

Larissa Diadkova Larissa Ivanovna Diadkova (; born 1954 in Zelenodolsk) is a Russian mezzo-soprano. Career For her musical education, she studied at Kazan Conservatory before moving on to the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. In 1978, she became a member of the Kir ...

, Sergey Aleksashkin, Yury Shkliar. Chorus cond.

Valery Gergiev Valery Abisalovich Gergiev (, ; ; born 2 May 1953) is a Russian conducting, conductor and opera company director. He is currently general director and artistic director of the Mariinsky Theatre and of the Bolshoi Theatre and artistic director o ...

(

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), simply branded Philips, is a Dutch multinational health technology company that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, its world headquarters have been situated in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarter ...

, 1998)

''Summer Night''

''Summer Night'' (Op. 123) is an orchestral suite with music drawn from ''Betrothal in a Monastery''.

Movements

The suite, lasting around 20 minutes, consists of five movements: #Introduction: Moderato, ma con brio #Serenade: Adagio #Minuet #Dreams (Nocturne): Andante tranquillo #Dance: Allegretto

Recordings

Recent recordings include: *

Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra The Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra ( Finnish:''Tampere Filharmonia'') is a Finnish orchestra based in Tampere. Founded in 1930, and maintained by the municipality of Tampere since 1947, the orchestra is currently based in the Tampere Hall. The o ...

conductor

Leonid Grin Leonid Gavrilovich Grin (Russian: Леонид Гаврилович Грин, IPA: ʲɪɐˈnʲid ɡrʲin (born ) is a Soviet-born American conductor. Biography Grin was born in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukrainian SSR (today part of Ukraine). From early c ...

(Ondine, 1991) *

London Philharmonic Orchestra The London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) is a British orchestra based in London. One of five permanent symphony orchestras in London, the LPO was founded by the conductors Thomas Beecham, Sir Thomas Beecham and Malcolm Sargent in 1932 as a riv ...

conductor

Vladimir Jurowski Vladimir Mikhailovich Jurowski (;() born 4 April 1972) is a Russian conducting, conductor resident in Germany. He is the son of conductor Michail Jurowski, and grandson of Soviet film music composer Vladimir Michailovich Jurowski. Early life B ...

''Glyndebourne CD Label''
2008) *

Russian National Orchestra The Russian National Orchestra () was founded in Moscow in 1990 by pianist and conductor Mikhail Pletnev. It was the first Russian orchestra to perform at the Apostolic Palace, Vatican City and in Israel. History The RNO's first recording (1991 ...

conductor

Mikhail Pletnev Mikhail Vasilievich Pletnev (, ''Mikha'il Vas'ilevič Plet'nëv''; born 14 April 1957) is a Russian pianist, conductor and composer. Life and career Pletnev was born into a musical family in Arkhangelsk, then part of the Soviet Union. His fath ...

(

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

, 1994) * St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra conductor

Vladimir Ashkenazy Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazy (, ''Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazi''; born 6 July 1937) is a Soviet-born Icelandic pianist, chamber music performer, and conductor. Ashkenazy has collaborated with well-known orchestras and soloists. In addition, ...

(Exton, 2002)

References

External links

''Betrothal in a Monastery'' at prokofiev.org''Summer Night'' at prokofiev.orgSynopsis
from the

Mariinsky Theatre The Mariinsky Theatre (, also transcribed as Maryinsky or Mariyinsky) is a historic opera house in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Opened in 1860, it became the preeminent music theatre of late 19th-century Russia, where many of the stage masterpieces ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Betrothal In A Monastery Operas by Sergei Prokofiev Russian-language operas Operas 1940 operas Operas set in Spain Operas based on plays Adaptations of works by Richard Brinsley Sheridan