Summary: "Love for three oranges". Artistic features of the libretto

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

The opera "The Love for Three Oranges", a summary of which will be presented in this article, was written by a Russian composer based on a fairy tale by an Italian playwright. It plays in musical theaters around the world.

About the production

This is an opera about adventure. It has four actions. The author of the music is S. S. Prokofiev. The composer himself wrote the libretto "Love for Three Oranges". A brief summary of it will give an idea of the plot as a whole. The opera differs from the original text of the fairy tale, changes have been made to the work for the convenience of embodiment on stage.

The first show of the performance took place in Chicago in 1921, since the opera was written by S. Prokofiev in the USA. The composer also acted as a conductor. In our country, the premiere took place in 1926 in Leningrad. A year later, the opera was staged at the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow.

The author of the fairy tale

Sergey Sergeevich wrote the libretto based on the tale of the Italian playwright and writer Carlo Gozzi "Love for threeoranges". The summary of the work is easy to state. The action begins very normally: there once lived an enchanted prince, on him lay a spell that could only be removed with the help of three oranges. They were kept by an evil sorceress. And inside them were enchanted princesses.

Carlo Gozzi was a master of comedy and fairy tales. The writer was born in 1720 in Venice and lived for 86 years. He began writing satirical works at the age of 19. Almost immediately became famous. The tale "The Love for Three Oranges" was written by Carlo especially for the theater troupe of Antonio Sacchi.

The works of K. Gozzi were highly appreciated by A. N. Ostrovsky, Goethe, the Schlegel brothers and many others. The plays of this writer are still on all world theatrical stages.

The most famous works of C. Gozzi:

• "The Deer King".
• "Love for three oranges".
• "Green bird".
• "Turandot".
• "Zobeida".

Composer

One of the most famous operas written by Sergei Prokofiev is The Love for Three Oranges. A summary of all four of her actions will be presented in this article.

S. Prokofiev was not only a composer. He is a pianist, writer, teacher and conductor. In 1947 he was awarded the title of People's Artist of the RSFSR. During his life, Sergei Sergeevich wrote only eleven operas, seven symphonies, the same number of ballets, eight concertos, as well as oratorios, music for films and theater productions, vocal andinstrumental works. S. Prokofiev was an innovator. His music had a peculiar style and recognizable rhythm. However, it was not always clear to the listeners. Many critics spoke negatively about him.

The most famous works of Sergei Prokofiev:

• "Romeo and Juliet" (ballet).
• "Betrothal in a Monastery" (opera).
• Symphony 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.
• "A Tale of a Real Man" (opera).
• "Ala and Lolly" (suite).
• "Steel lope" (ballet).
• "Semyon Kotko" (opera).
• "Peter and the Wolf" (fairy tale).
• "Cinderella" (ballet).
• "Alexander Nevsky" (cantata).
• "The Tale of the Stone Flower" (ballet).
• "War and Peace" (opera).

History of the creation of the opera

Opera is very unusual for its genre, rarely found in productions of this musical form of a fairy tale. You can evaluate the originality of the plot by reading its summary. "Love for Three Oranges", the history of which is not a secret, was written practically on the train. Sergei Prokofiev was leaving for America and took a theater magazine on the road.

There he read the script written by V. Meyerhold, which had a fantastic plot and was filled with jokes and satire. He brought in a composer. As a result, in a very shortterm, literally during his journeys in trains, S. Prokofiev wrote a libretto according to this scenario. Sergey Sergeevich also created music very quickly. The plot inspired him so much that he worked tirelessly. The musical parts turned out to be very original.

Characters

Opera characters:

• King of Clubs
• Prince.
• Clarice (Princess).
• Fata Morgana (evil witch).
• Truffaldino (jester of the king).
• Lynetta.
• Leandre (Minister).
• Mage Chelius.
• Smeraldina.
• Ninetta.
• Pantalon.
• Herold.
• Farfarello (devil).
• Nicoletta.

Also: lyricists, trumpeters, cook, courtiers, comedians, eccentrics, soldiers, tragedians, servants, master of ceremonies, guards and others.

Storyline

Opera "The Love for Three Oranges", a brief summary of which is very interesting, begins with the fact that in a fairy-tale kingdom that does not really exist, there once lived a prince. He was very sick, and only one medicine could cure him - laughter. One day his father the king was giving a ball. The evil witch Morgana appeared on him. She cast a spell on the young prince, saying that he could only become happy if he could find three oranges, which are in her possession and are well guarded. The magician Chelius and the jester Truffaldino come to the aid of the royal son. But the prince has a sister - Princess Clarice. She seeks to take the throne and tries with all her might to preventbrother's happiness. Despite the intrigues of enemies, the prince manages to find magic oranges. Three princesses are imprisoned inside them. Only one of them can be saved - Ninetta. The prince falls in love with her at first sight. Morgana turns Ninetta into a rat. Magician Chelius removes the spell.

First and second steps

What happens in the first act? What is its summary? "The Love for Three Oranges" begins with an argument between lyricists, comedians, emptyheads and tragedians. The skirmish takes place with the curtain closed. They argue about which theatrical genre is better. They fail to reach a consensus, and a fight breaks out. Eccentrics appear and separate the arguing.

The curtain opens. The King of Clubs appears on the scene with his adviser. He is very worried about the he alth of his offspring. Doctors pass their verdict: the prince can be cured only with the help of laughter. Jester Truffaldino is assigned to organize a big party to cheer the heir to the throne.

King's daughter Clarice hates her brother and wants to take the throne. She and her supporter, Minister Leandre, who is in love with her, decide that the prince should be killed.

Second act summary

"Love for Three Oranges" takes place in the prince's bedroom. Here the jester Truffaldino is trying to make the royal son laugh and persuade him to go to the ball, which was organized in his honor. The prince doesn't want to go to the party. Then the jester puts him on his shoulders and forcibly drags him to the celebration.

At the celebration, the heir to the throne remains completely indifferent to everything that happens. The witch Morgana comes to the ball in the form of an old woman to prevent the prince from recovering. She tries to get to the king's son, but the jester pushes her away. The sorceress falls with her legs up, and the prince begins to laugh. The witch is angry that he is healed. She put a curse on the heir - the love of three oranges. He literally went crazy looking for them.

Third and fourth acts

Further events will reveal the third act. Here is its summary. "Love for Three Oranges" continues with the prince going on a long journey. Along with him is a faithful jester. The magician Chelius reports the whereabouts of the magical oranges, but warns that they can only be opened where there is water. Truffaldino distracts the Cook, who is guarding them. In this way, the prince manages to steal the oranges.

The heir and the jester end up in the desert. The prince falls asleep, and Truffaldino, who is tormented by thirst, decides to open two oranges. They make princesses. They ask for a drink. But there is no water, and the girls are dying of thirst. Truffaldino is shocked by what happened. He runs away in fear. Waking up, the prince opens the third orange. Ninetta comes out of it. The heir and the princess fall in love with each other. The eccentrics take out a bucket of water to give the girl a drink. The prince offers her hand and heart. Morgana turns Ninetta into a rat.

The fourth act will tell how the fairy tale ends. Consider itsummary. "The Love for Three Oranges" is a story with a happy ending. The magician Chelius disenchants Princess Ninetta. The prince marries his beloved. Clarice, Leandre and Morgana are sentenced to death. But they manage to escape.

Interesting facts

The opera "The Love for Three Oranges" is the first opera written by the composer in the comic genre. It was created by order of the Chicago theater. When preparations were underway for the premiere in America, the owner of an orange plantation approached the composer. He wanted to time the performance with an advertisement for his products.

Sergey Sergeevich had a friend - the composer M. Ippolitov-Ivanov. When the premiere of the opera took place, S. Prokofiev asked his friend if he liked his new work. M. Ippolitov-Ivanov instead of an answer sent the next morning to Sergei Sergeevich a still life of P. Konchalovsky. A note was attached to it, in which the composer said that he loves oranges in the form as in the picture.