Margarita la tornera
Encyclopedia
Margarita la tornera is an opera in three acts composed by Ruperto Chapí
to a libretto
by Carlos Fernández Shaw
, based on a dramatic poem by José Zorrilla. It premiered on February 24, 1909 at the Teatro Real
in Madrid
in a performance conducted by the composer.
, who starred in the new production, it was revived in Spain
in 1999. This production was subsequently videotape
d and shown on Spanish television. A CD of this revival, recorded live, was nominated for the 2003 Latin Grammy Award for Best Classical Album
.
's Das Mirakel and Maurice Maeterlinck
's Soeur Beatrice, and in the films Das Mirakel (1912), Milagro de amor (1946), and The Miracle
(1959). Margarita is a nun, and the gatekeeper at her convent. Don Juan Alarcon, an unscrupulous adventurer, persuades her to run away with him and seduces her. Margarita eventually discovers that she is only one in a series of sexual conquests by Don Juan, and returns to the convent to find that her absence has not been noticed at all. The statue of the Virgin Mary in the convent chapel has come to life and has been taking her place. As Margarita prays for forgiveness, the statue returns to its pedestal. Meanwhile, Don Juan follows, and is miraculously struck down by heavenly lightning.
Ruperto Chapí
Ruperto Chapí y Lorente was a Spanish composer, and co-founder of the Sociedad General de Autores y Editores.Chapí was born at Villena, the son of a Valencian barber. He trained in his home town and Madrid...
to a 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 Carlos Fernández Shaw
Carlos Fernández Shaw
Insert non-formatted text hereCarlos Fernández Shaw was a Spanish poet and playwright. He wrote the libretti for the operas Margarita la tornera by Ruperto Chapí and La vida breve by Manuel de Falla.Fernández Shaw was the son of a Spanish father and an English mother...
, based on a dramatic poem by José Zorrilla. It premiered on February 24, 1909 at the Teatro Real
Teatro Real
The Teatro Real or simply El Real , is a major opera house located in Madrid, Spain.-History:...
in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
in a performance conducted by the composer.
Background and performance history
Following its initial staging, the opera languished in obscurity for many years. Finally, through the efforts of tenor Plácido DomingoPlácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
, who starred in the new production, it was revived in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
in 1999. This production was subsequently videotape
Videotape
A videotape is a recording of images and sounds on to magnetic tape as opposed to film stock or random access digital media. Videotapes are also used for storing scientific or medical data, such as the data produced by an electrocardiogram...
d and shown on Spanish television. A CD of this revival, recorded live, was nominated for the 2003 Latin Grammy Award for Best Classical Album
Latin Grammy Award for Best Classical Album
The Latin Grammy Award for Best Classical Album is given every year since the 1st Latin Grammy Awards ceremony which took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.-2010s:-2000s:...
.
Synopsis
The plot is based on an old legend, retold with variations in such plays as Karl VollmollerKarl Vollmöller
Karl Gustav Vollmöller, usually written Vollmoeller was a German playwright and screenwriter.He is most famous for two works, the screenplay for the celebrated 1930 German film Der Blaue Engel , which made a star of Marlene Dietrich, and the elaborate religious spectacle-pantomime Das Mirakel ,...
's Das Mirakel and Maurice Maeterlinck
Maurice Maeterlinck
Maurice Polydore Marie Bernard Maeterlinck, also called Comte Maeterlinck from 1932, was a Belgian playwright, poet, and essayist who wrote in French. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1911. The main themes in his work are death and the meaning of life...
's Soeur Beatrice, and in the films Das Mirakel (1912), Milagro de amor (1946), and The Miracle
The Miracle (1959 film)
The Miracle is a 1959 remake of a 1912 German film Das Mirakel directed by Cherry Kearton and Max Reinhardt which in turn was based on a 1911 pantomime play of the same name by Karl Vollmöller.-Production history and reception:...
(1959). Margarita is a nun, and the gatekeeper at her convent. Don Juan Alarcon, an unscrupulous adventurer, persuades her to run away with him and seduces her. Margarita eventually discovers that she is only one in a series of sexual conquests by Don Juan, and returns to the convent to find that her absence has not been noticed at all. The statue of the Virgin Mary in the convent chapel has come to life and has been taking her place. As Margarita prays for forgiveness, the statue returns to its pedestal. Meanwhile, Don Juan follows, and is miraculously struck down by heavenly lightning.
Recordings
- Chapí: Margarita la tornera – Elisabete MatosElisabete MatosElisabete Matos is a Portuguese soprano.- Biography :Elisabete Matos was born in Caldas da Taipas, Guimarães , Portugal and she began her first musical studies in at the Conservatório de Música Calouste Gulbenkian de Braga....
(Margarita), Plácido DomingoPlácido DomingoPlácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
(Don Juan), Stefano PalatchiStefano PalatchiStefano Palatchi is a Spanish opera singer who has sung leading bass roles in both Spain and internationally where he is known for his stage skills, timbre and expressive singing...
(Gavilán), Àngel ÒdenaÀngel Òdena- Biography :Born in Tarragona, Spain he has a degree in Geography and History. He started studying singing and piano in his native town with Mercè Obiol and Dolors Aldea, and continued his studies in L’Accademia Lirica di Mantova with Katia Ricciarelli and later with Eduardo Giménez...
(Don Lope), Ángeles Blancas (Sirena), María Rey-Joly ("La tornera"). Madrid Symphony Orchestra and ChorusMadrid Symphony OrchestraThe Madrid Symphony Orchestra , founded in 1903, is the oldest existing Spanish symphony orchestra not linked to an opera house in Spain.-History:...
conducted by Garcia Navarro. Label: RTVERTVEThe Corporación de Radio y Televisión Española, S.A. or Corporación Radiotelevisión Española is the state-owned public corporation that assumed the indirect management of the Spanish public radio and television service from Ente Público Radiotelevisión Española in 2007...
Música CD 65169
Sources
- Casaglia, Gherardo (2005). "24 Febbraio 1909". Almanacco Amadeus. Accessed 28 April 2011 .
- Domingo, Plácido and Matheopoulos, Helena (2000). Plácido Domingo: My Operatic Roles. Baskerville Publishers. ISBN 1880909618
- Iberni, Luis G. (1995). Ruperto Chapí. Editorial Complutense. ISBN 8489365032
- Webber, ChristopherChristopher WebberChristopher Webber is an English actor, dramatist, theatre director, writer and music critic.-Biography :Webber was born in Cheshire and educated at The Manchester Grammar School and the University of Kent at Canterbury...
(September 2003). Recording Review: Margarita la tornera, RTVE Música 65169. MusicWeb International. Accessed 28 April 2011.