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Rappaccini's Daughter
Opera by Margaret Garwood
Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1846
Librettist	Margaret Garwood
Language	English
Based on	"Rappaccini's Daughter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne (1844)
Premiere	23 November 1980 (1980-11-23) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Rappaccini's Daughter is an English-language American opera in two acts first presented in 1980. The composer and librettist was Margaret Garwood, who based it on Nathaniel Hawthorne's 1844 short story of the same name. The opera is a Gothic story about a doctor whose work with poisons has made his daughter's touch deadly.

The Pennsylvania Opera Theater gave the world premiere in a concert version at the Philadelphia College of the Performing Arts's Theatre 313 on November 19, 1980. The same company presented the first staged version at Philadelphia's Trocadero Theatre on May 6, 1983.

Plot

The opera is set in Padua. Giovanni is warned by his friend Baglioni to avoid Beata, the daughter of Dr. Rappacini. Rappacini has been experimenting with poisonous plants and his daughter. The landlady, Lisabetta, is comic relief to the story. Giovanni pursues Beata despite his friend's warnung. anyway and falls in love. He falls ill. Baglioni gives Giovanni a potion to cure himself and Beata. Beata takes the cure, knowing it will kill her. She dies as her father returns.

Composition and premiere

Garwood published an article on difficulties she encountered in composing the opera. "One such problem was how to retain the color of Hawthorne's language without making it sound stilted. Consequently, words such as 'whence,' 'thou,' 'would'st,' and so forth, though beautiful when spoken, could tend to sound archaic when sung."Garwood also observed "the problem of how to bring out certain twentieth-century psychological insights implicit in the story without ruining the particular nineteenth-century flavor of the work. The solution, I think, lies in a deep concern for the dramatic and musical integration of the text."

Rappaccini's Daughter was commissioned by the Pennsylvania Opera Theater as the first world premiere presented by the company. Barbara Silverstein, artistic director of the company, found Garwood's music to be "passionately lyrical, melodic, and accessible.". The opera was initially presented in 1980 at Philadelphia's Theater 313 with only a piano accompaniment by Judith Large. In lieu of sets, the production economized by using dancers to evoke the plants of Dr. Rappaccini's garden. Kay Walker directed Cary Michaels as Giovanni, Heather McCormick as Beata, James Butler as Dr. Rappaccini, Harriet Harris as Lisabetta the landlady, and Gregory Powell as Professor Baglione. After the premiere on November 19, two more performances followed on November 21 and 23. In the concert version, Garwood's work was praised in Opera, Max De Schauensee writing of "fluently melodic" music in a "colorful evening" with "fresh voices."

Only after funding was secured did the Pennsylvania Opera Theater commission Garwood to compose the orchestration. Grants came from the National Opera Institute and the National Endowment for the Arts. Silverstein, who conducted both the concert and stage versions, described the form of the opera in the completed form: "through-composed with arias, duets, and a trio. There is no chorus, and the orchestration is strings, pairs of winds (including some interesting color instruments such as a contrabassoon and bass clarinet), percussion, and harp." The staged version was presented in 1983 at the Trocadero Theatre in Philadelphia to a sold-out run.

William Ashbrook in Opera gave a mixed review, praising Garwood's "gift for . . . atmospheric orchestration and . . . lyrical vocal lines," but overall calling it "an opera of authentic promise rather than assured fulfillment." Ashbrook faulted Garwood for not cutting through more of Hawthorne's "tangled allegory with its cumbersome symbolism and ornate 19th century diction," while praising the singers and the production design. The review in The New York Times was more favorable, observing "the composer has captured the lure of the garden in her music and tamed the dangers of the subject with an intelligently made libretto." Garwood wrote a "conservative, lyrical score approached its themes in the style of both DeBussy and Berg." The Times also praise the conducting, the singing, and the production itself.

There were five performances beginning on May 6; the others were May 8, 10, 13, and 15. Maggie L. Harrer directed and choreographed with sets and lighting by Quentin Thomas, and costumes by Laura Drawbaugh. The cast was Michael Ballam as Giovanni, Jean Bradel as Beata, Ralph Bassett as Dr. Rappaccini, Jeanne Haughn as Lisabetta, and Barry Ellison as Professor Baglione.

Roles

See also

• The Garden of Mystery, 1925 opera by Charles Wakefield Cadman based on the same source material.
• The Poisoned Kiss, or The Empress and the Necromancer, 1936 opera by Ralph Vaughn Williams based on the same source material.
• La hija de Rappaccini, 1991 opera by Daniel Catán.
• Rappaccini's Daughter, a list of other operas based on the same source material.

Notes

1. Giffel states it is three acts but the contemporaneous review in Opera states it is two acts.
2. This was located at 313 South Broad Street, Philadelphia.
3. In Hawthorne's story, the character is named Beatrice.

References

1. Hamilton, Frank (2011). "Opera in Philadelphia Performance Chronology, 1975–1999" (PDF). Opera in Philadelphia. Philadelphia: Frank Hamilton. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 17, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
2. ^ Hamilton 2011, p. 138.
3. Griffel, Margaret Ross (2013). Operas in English: A Dictionary. Vol. 1. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. p. 300. ISBN 9780810883253.
4. Garwood, Margaret (June 1997). "In Search of a Libretto" (PDF). IAWM Journal. 3 (2). Wynnewood, Pa.: International Alliance for Women in Music: 14–15. ISSN 1082-1872.
5. ^ Garwood 1997, p. 15.
6. Silverstein, Barbara (October 1995). "The Pennsylvania Opera Theatre and the Birth of an Opera: Margaret Garwood's Rappaccini's Daughter" (PDF). IAWM Journal. 1 (2). Wynnewood, Pa.: International Alliance for Women in Music: 12–14. ISSN 1082-1872.
7. ^ Silverstein 1997, p. 12. sfn error: no target: CITEREFSilverstein1997 (help)
8. ^ Hamilton 2011, p. 94.
9. ^ Silverstein 1997, p. 13. sfn error: no target: CITEREFSilverstein1997 (help)
10. De Schauensee, Max (February 1981). "Philadelphia". Opera. Vol. 32, no. 2. London: Opera Magazine, Ltd. pp. 162–163. ISSN 0030-3526.
11. Ashbrook, William (October 1983). "Philadelphia". Opera. Vol. 34, no. 10. London: Opera Magazine, Ltd. pp. 1122–24. ISSN 0030-3526.
12. Ashbrook 1983, p. 1122.
13. Rothstein, Edward (May 14, 1983). "Opera: Rappaccini Opens". The New York Times. New York, N.Y. p. 1:17.
14. ^ Rothstein 1983, p. 17.

• Opera

• Operas
• 1980 operas
• English-language operas
• Operas by women composers
• Operas set in Italy
• Operas based on works by Nathaniel Hawthorne