L'occasione fa il ladro
Encyclopedia
L’occasione fa il ladro, ossia Il cambio della valigia (Opportunity Makes a Thief, or The Exchanged Suitcase) is an opera
(burletta per musica or farsa
) in one act by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian
libretto
by Luigi Prividali, based on Le prétendu sans le savoir, ou L’occasion fait le larron, a play by Eugène Scribe
.
, Venice
, on 24 November 1812. Of the five one-act operas that he wrote for the theatre, this was the one performed most often during the composer’s lifetime, but, as with most of his operas, it was neglected after his death. There was, however, a revival at Pesaro
in 1892, with Alessandro Bonci
.
In more recent times, the opera was performed at the Rossini Opera Festival
(director: Jean-Pierre Ponnelle
) and at the Buxton Festival
in 1987 and subsequently recorded. In addition it was "revived in Macerta, Paris, Cologne and in the Schlosstheater Schwetzingen
".
In Britain, Opera North
presented a number of English-language performances in 2004 as part of their Eight Little Greats season. The opera was entitled Love’s Luggage Lost, and the production was directed by Christopher Alden
and conducted by David Parry
.
During a storm, three travellers take refuge in an inn in the country. Alberto has been betrothed to a woman whom he has never met, and is on his way to meet her. Don Parmenione, accompanied by Martino, is trying to trace a friend’s sister, who has disappeared. When the storm is over, Alberto leaves, accidentally taking Parmenione’s luggage with him instead of his own. Martino opens Alberto’s suitcase and discovers, among his papers, a portrait, presumably of the bride-to-be. Parmenione decides to masquerade as Albert and claim the bride for himself.
At Don Eusebio’s house, Ernestina, who has fallen on hard times, agrees to extend her stay and take on the role of Berenice’s companion. Berenice, worried about marrying a man whom she has never met, asks Ernestina to pretend to be her. She herself will meanwhile play the role of a maid, so that she can observe Alberto and decide whether she is prepared to marry him. Parmenione, accompanied by Martino, now announces himself as Alberto and pays court to the disguised Ernestina, notwithstanding that she is not the lady in the portrait. The two are attracted to each other.
Alberto himself arrives, and meets the pretended maid, Berenice. A mutual attraction also springs up between these two, but Berenice is disconcerted to learn that Alberto has apparently already arrived and can prove who he is, whereas this man has no papers to identify him. The real Alberto and the imposter each try to convince Eusebio that they are who they say they are, and Berenice, who knows which one she would rather marry, subjects Parmenione to a severe cross-examination. He is eventually forced to admit his deception. Berenice can now marry Alberto and Parmenione can marry Ernestina – who turns out to the woman he was trying to trace, the sister of his friend. And the portrait in Alberto’s luggage? It was of his own sister, to be given to Berenice as a wedding-present.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
(burletta per musica or farsa
Farsa
Farsa is a genre of opera, associated with Venice in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It is also sometimes called farsetta....
) in one act by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
by Luigi Prividali, based on Le prétendu sans le savoir, ou L’occasion fait le larron, a play by Eugène Scribe
Eugène Scribe
Augustin Eugène Scribe , was a French dramatist and librettist. He is best known for the perfection of the so-called "well-made play" . This dramatic formula was a mainstay of popular theater for over 100 years.-Biography:...
.
Performance history
L’occasione fa il ladro was first performed at the Teatro San MoisèTeatro San Moisè
The Teatro San Moisè was an opera house in Venice, active from 1640 to 1818. It was in a prominent location near the Palazzo Giustinian and the church of San Moisè at the entrance to the Grand Canal....
, Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, on 24 November 1812. Of the five one-act operas that he wrote for the theatre, this was the one performed most often during the composer’s lifetime, but, as with most of his operas, it was neglected after his death. There was, however, a revival at Pesaro
Pesaro
Pesaro is a town and comune in the Italian region of the Marche, capital of the Pesaro e Urbino province, on the Adriatic. According to the 2007 census, its population was 92,206....
in 1892, with Alessandro Bonci
Alessandro Bonci
Alessandro Bonci was an Italian lyric tenor known internationally for his association with the bel canto repertoire. He sang at many famous theatres, including New York's Metropolitan Opera, Milan's La Scala and London's Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.-Career:A native of Cesena, Romagna, Bonci...
.
In more recent times, the opera was performed at the Rossini Opera Festival
Rossini Opera Festival
The Rossini Opera Festival is an opera festival held in August of each year in Pesaro, Italy, the birthplace of the opera composer Gioachino Rossini....
(director: Jean-Pierre Ponnelle
Jean-Pierre Ponnelle
Jean-Pierre Ponnelle was a noted French opera director.-Biography:Ponnelle was born in Paris. He studied philosophy, art, and history there and, in 1952, began his career in Germany as a theatre designer for Hans Werner Henze's opera Boulevard Solitude...
) and at the Buxton Festival
Buxton Festival
The Buxton Festival is an annual summer festival of opera, music, and a literary series, held in Buxton, Derbyshire in England since it began in July 1979.-History:...
in 1987 and subsequently recorded. In addition it was "revived in Macerta, Paris, Cologne and in the Schlosstheater Schwetzingen
Schlosstheater Schwetzingen
Schlosstheater Schwetzingen is a theater in Schwetzingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The historic building, opened in 1753, is part of the Schwetzingen Castle and since 1952 the principal venue of the Schwetzingen Festival. It is also called Hoftheater , Hofoper , and Comoedienhaus...
".
In Britain, Opera North
Opera North
Opera North is an English opera company based in Leeds. The company's home theatre is the Leeds Grand Theatre, but it also presents regular seasons in several other cities, at the Theatre Royal, Nottingham, the Lowry Centre, Salford Quays and the Theatre Royal, Newcastle...
presented a number of English-language performances in 2004 as part of their Eight Little Greats season. The opera was entitled Love’s Luggage Lost, and the production was directed by Christopher Alden
Christopher Alden (director)
Christopher Alden is a radical theater director known for staging revisionist productions of opera. He is the twin brother of David Alden, also an opera director, and belongs to a generation of modernist directors that includes Robert Wilson and Peter Sellars, though Alden retains his own personal...
and conducted by David Parry
David Parry (conductor)
David Parry is an English conductor who is particularly known for his work within the field of opera. Described as "a man of the theatre with whom directors love to work; he is good with singers; he knows the British opera world like the back of his hand...
.
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, November 24, 1812 (Conductor: ) |
|---|---|---|
| Don Parmenione | baritone Baritone Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or... |
Luigi Pacini |
| Martino, his servant | bass | Filippo Spada |
| Count Alberto | tenor Tenor The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2... |
Tommaso Berti |
| Don Eusebio | tenor | Gaetano Dal Monte |
| Berenice, his niece and ward Ward (law) In law, a ward is someone placed under the protection of a legal guardian. A court may take responsibility for the legal protection of an individual, usually either a child or incapacitated person, in which case the ward is known as a ward of the court, or a ward of the state, in the United States,... |
soprano Soprano A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody... |
Giacinta Canonici |
| Ernestina, her friend | soprano | Carolina Nagher |
Synopsis
- Time: 18th Century
- Place: In and near Naples
During a storm, three travellers take refuge in an inn in the country. Alberto has been betrothed to a woman whom he has never met, and is on his way to meet her. Don Parmenione, accompanied by Martino, is trying to trace a friend’s sister, who has disappeared. When the storm is over, Alberto leaves, accidentally taking Parmenione’s luggage with him instead of his own. Martino opens Alberto’s suitcase and discovers, among his papers, a portrait, presumably of the bride-to-be. Parmenione decides to masquerade as Albert and claim the bride for himself.
At Don Eusebio’s house, Ernestina, who has fallen on hard times, agrees to extend her stay and take on the role of Berenice’s companion. Berenice, worried about marrying a man whom she has never met, asks Ernestina to pretend to be her. She herself will meanwhile play the role of a maid, so that she can observe Alberto and decide whether she is prepared to marry him. Parmenione, accompanied by Martino, now announces himself as Alberto and pays court to the disguised Ernestina, notwithstanding that she is not the lady in the portrait. The two are attracted to each other.
Alberto himself arrives, and meets the pretended maid, Berenice. A mutual attraction also springs up between these two, but Berenice is disconcerted to learn that Alberto has apparently already arrived and can prove who he is, whereas this man has no papers to identify him. The real Alberto and the imposter each try to convince Eusebio that they are who they say they are, and Berenice, who knows which one she would rather marry, subjects Parmenione to a severe cross-examination. He is eventually forced to admit his deception. Berenice can now marry Alberto and Parmenione can marry Ernestina – who turns out to the woman he was trying to trace, the sister of his friend. And the portrait in Alberto’s luggage? It was of his own sister, to be given to Berenice as a wedding-present.
Recordings
| Year | Cast: |
Conductor, Opera House and Orchestra |
Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Luciana Serra Luciana Serra Luciana Serra is an Italian soprano.-Debuts:Serra made her international debut in 1966 at the Hungarian State Opera House in Budapest, but did not achieve general acclaim until the late 1970s, when she took on coloratura roles in Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor and Bellini's La sonnambula... , Luciana D’Intino, Raúl Giménez Raúl Giménez Raúl Giménez , is an operatic tenor, particularly associated with the Italian bel canto repertory, in which he is considered one of the best exponent in recent years.Giménez was born in the small town of Carlos Pellegrini, Argentina... , J Patrick Raftery |
Salvatore Accardo Salvatore Accardo Salvatore Accardo is an Italian violin virtuoso and conductor.He is highly regarded for his interpretations of Paganini, J. S. Bach, Antonio Vivaldi, contemporary works, chamber music, and opera conducting.... , Orchestra Giovanile Italiana (Audio and video recordings of a performance (or of performances) at the Rossini Opera Festival Rossini Opera Festival The Rossini Opera Festival is an opera festival held in August of each year in Pesaro, Italy, the birthplace of the opera composer Gioachino Rossini.... , Pesaro) |
Audio CD: Ricordi Fonit Cetra Cat: RFCD 2001; DVD: House of Opera Cat: DVDCC 983 |
| 1992 | Maria Bayo, Francesca Provvisionato, Iorio Zennaro, Natale de Carolis Natale de Carolis Natale de Carolis is an Italian operatic baritone who has had an active career in major opera houses internationally since the early 1980s. He is particularly associated with the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Gioachino Rossini. He is married to soprano Barbara Frittoli.Born in Anagni,... |
Marcello Viotti Marcello Viotti Marcello Viotti was a Swiss classical music conductor, best known for opera.Viotti was born in Vallorbe, in the French-speaking region of Switzerland, to Italian parents. He studied cello, piano and singing at the Conservatory of Lausanne. Wolfgang Sawallisch was a mentor to Viotti and encouraged... , English Chamber Orchestra English Chamber Orchestra The English Chamber Orchestra is a British chamber orchestra based in London. The full orchestra regularly plays concerts at Cadogan Hall, and the ECO Ensemble performs at Wigmore Hall... |
Audio CD: Claves Cat: 50-9208-9 |