One of the best known farces in opera literature, Don Pasquale puts even the funniest films to shame with its situational comedy, colourful characters and sparkling humour. Its music is particular virtuosic: the famous duet between Doctor Malatesta and Don Pasquale makes for a perennial gala-night favourite. At the same time, delving a bit deeper into the story reveals that it is really about timeless human problems and desires, disappointments and disillusionments: an elderly gent longing for a mate, lovers yearning for a decent life, mistrustful kinsfolk, a money-hungry friend.
Csaba Káel's direction emphasises the eternal validity of the themes, showing the spectacular dramatic content at the heart of the situations, the fear of loneliness, the many faces of love, the tragedy which came within a hair's breadth of a happy ending. With nuanced devices of stylization, the production now debuting at the Erkel Theater focuses on the timeless tale and its eternal relevance.
Cast and Creative team for Don Pasquale at Hungarian State Opera, Erkel Theatre
Cast
Don Pasquale László Szvétek Ernesto István Horváth Dottor Malatesta András Káldi Kiss Norina Orsolya Sáfár Carlotto László Beöthy-Kiss
Creators
Composer Gaetano Donizetti Director Csaba Káel Set Designer Éva Szendrényi Costume Designer Anikó Németh