Don Pasquale
Opera by Gaetano Donizetti
Libretto by Giovanni Domenico Ruffini and Gaetano Donizetti
German textversion by Bettina Bartz und Werner Hintze
2 hours 15 minutes
Introduction ... 30 minutes before the beginning of the performance, Foyer
Debut performance 1843 - Premiere on 31 January 2010
Don Pasquale, the old bachelor, wants his nephew to marry well, but Ernesto has set his mind on the young and beautiful – but poor – widow Norina. As Ernesto stands firm, Pasquale decides to marry and by doing this, to punish his nephew with disinheritance. Understandably, the young people are not impressed at all and play a bad joke on the old man: Norina volunteers to play the ideal spouse, Pasquale is overwhelmed with that late, unexpected bliss of love and walks right into the trap. Just after the marriage, the seemingly gentle bride transforms into an insolent shopping addict, always in need for amusement – mainly with other men. Instead of the imagined heaven on earth, Pasquale finds himself in hell and finally is overjoyed, that his unreflecting wedding turns out to be a comedy. He surrenders unconditionally, allows Norina and Ernesto to marry and returns – with this new experience – back to his solitary life.
Proudly, Donizetti wrote a friend, »Don Pasquale« took him »more than ten days of work«. The audience will not notice that the composer needed such a short time for creating his work. Its simple but hilarious plot, above all the music, exuberant with Donizetti's wit and irony, have made the opera the most popular work of the composer. In a very subtle way, Donizetti has given really touching characteristics to the old bachelor, who is looking for a wife, and despite all the fun, in the end a little bitterness remains.
Many questions wait for an answer: What does Norina actually plan, and why does the dubious doctor Malatesta support so over-altruistically the young people? However, until the premiere, the surprising solution to the problem will be kept a secret.