The Utah Opera Presents Verdi's RIGOLETTO

Revenge and tragedy strike onstage with Verdi's Rigoletto. Dark and brooding, this opera classic brings dramatic storytelling front and center at the Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre.

Guided by the seasoned vision of Director Stephanie Havey (who has previously directed 10 productions of this very opera), this performance brings together remarkable talent and new vision for the popular tragedy. Scott Hendricks returns to the role of Rigoletto (having received praise from Opera News for his "rich baritone and energetic stage presence"), Jasmine Habersham reprises the role of Gilda (having made her company debut with Opera North as Gilda during the 2021-22 season), and Kevin Thompson will again take up the mantle of Sparafucile (having performed this role with the Shreveport Opera). Matthew White (praised by New York Classical Review for his "dark and powerful lyric sound") will also return to play the flirtatious Duke of Mantua, and Hannah Ludwig (commended by The New York Times for her "large, yet focused tone and agility") will once again portray the sultry Maddalena.

With five performances between March 11 and 19, audiences have the opportunity to experience Stephanie Havey's clever and introspective take on this stunning tragic opera.

Verdi's Rigoletto tells the story of a resounding curse that follows a vengeful father seeking to protect the one thing he cares deeply about-his beloved daughter. The tale begins with Rigoletto, a hunchbacked jester at the court of the Duke of Mantua. Wielding unlimited power as befits his status, the Duke of Mantua does what he pleases- including seducing any and all woman who catch his fancy, much to the chagrin of their fathers and husbands. (The Duke of Mantua-played by Matthew White in his Utah Opera debut-expresses his royal authority in the opera's most famous aria, "La donna è mobile.")

With crackling wit and sharp jibes, Rigoletto amuses the Duke with his cruel jokes, but provokes the anger of fathers and husbands present at court. When one of them, Count Monterone, confronts the Duke for seducing his daughter, Rigoletto answers only with malice. In response, Count Monterone curses the Duke and Rigoletto to know the extent of a "father's pain." Disturbed by the curse, Rigoletto quickly returns home to his beloved daughter Gilda. Though he entreats her to stay safe at home, she is lonely and seeks companionship-even love-a desire that the flirtatious Duke overhears and intends to act upon.

Almost inevitably, the curse begins to descend on Rigoletto as he unknowingly aids in the kidnapping of his daughter, delivering her into the hands of the one person he tried to protect her from-the Duke. Additional actions are set into a dark spiral as this desperate father seeks to not only save his daughter, but enact revenge. In doing so, however, he only succeeds in solidifying his fate and the assured nature of the curse itself.

Though many might believe revenge to be the theme of this opera, Director Stephanie Havey sees a different side. She asserts that the actual theme is much softer-a theme of forgiveness. Throughout the course of the story, individuals are constantly exposed to the abuse of power due to the caste system- with the Duke heading the top of the hierarchy and each tier pushing negative emotions on to classes lower than them. With Rigoletto being at the bottom of this tier, he struggles to protect his daughter from a similar pattern of abuse while also shouldering the pain himself. This eventually builds to his need for revenge, not only on the Duke, but on the broken system society has placed him in-however, his attempt at revenge only exacerbates the pattern of abuse. "Things would have gone differently for Rigoletto if he employed forgiveness at any time," says Havey. "In fact, his daughter Gilda begs for him to forgive even up to her death.

With her immense experience directing this opera, Havey also recognizes that the abuse of power is what leads to the eventual tragedy. As such, she made the decision to maintain the 16th century setting for this production rather than opting to modernize it for audiences. "I realized that this setting clearly showed this power structure through the natural class systems of the time," says Havey. "Finding equivalent class categories that held the same weight and power would be challenging, and modernizing the opera would result in a loss of that inherent audience understanding."

The 16th-century setting wasn't the only thing that inspired Havey; the original name of the opera played a significant role in her direction for the production. Originally titled "The Curse," Havey recognized the vast impact that this aspect had on the storyline. In fact, the director saw the curse as almost a tangible character within the story, shaping each of the different characters as the narrative progresses. "The curse sets the parameters for each of the characters in this story," states Havey. "But they each have their own way of interacting with it and in doing so, they're able to almost determine their fate-or lack thereof-based on this half-real half-imaginative relationship." Havey aims to showcase this clearly, and developed unique staging and lighting effects that bring the curse to life-as seen through a recurring idea of boxes. From the boxes used in the set designs to the positioning of the lighting, Havey visually shows how the curse traps each of the various individuals within its influence.

Audiences can expect to enjoy all the clever visual hints used to foreshadow the story. Paired with the stunning costumes and epic music-performed live by the cast, the Utah Opera Chorus, and the Utah Symphony-audiences are in for a dramatically deadly night with this epic opera tragedy about family, revenge, and the grace that can, or could, be found through forgiveness.

Season Sponsor for Utah Symphony | Utah Opera is the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation. Utah Opera expresses its gratitude to Production Sponsor Zions Bank, Opera Artistic Director Sponsor Emma Eccles Jones Foundation, Conductor Sponsor Utah Division of Arts & Museums, and Director Sponsor Frederick Q. Lawson Foundation.

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