Organization

Singer

Baritone

Ambrogio Maestri

Sir John Falstaff

Markus Brück

Ford

Tenor

Oleksiy Palchykov

Fenton

Jürgen Sacher

Doctor Caius

Daniel Kluge

Bardolph

Bass

Tigran Martirossian

Pistol

Soprano

Maija Kovalevska

Mrs. Alice Ford

Elbenita Kajtazi

Nannette

Contralto

Nadezhda Karyazina

Mrs. Quickly

Mezzo-soprano

Ida Aldrian

Mrs. Meg Page

Conductor

Axel Kober

Stage director

Calixto Bieito

Set designer

Susanne Gschwender

Costume designer

Anja Rabes

Lighting designer

Michael Bauer

Chorus master

Eberhard Friedrich

Dramaturge

Bettina Auer

Silent

Orchidee Bromme

Mine Host of the Garter Inn

Staatsoper Hamburg

Others

Hamburg State Opera Choir

Orchestra

Philharmonic State Orchestra Hamburg

Italian

Falstaff

Hamburg

Germany

Staatsoper

Falstaff by Giuseppe Verdi, from Staatsoper Hamburg, 2020. Directed by Henning Kasten, conductor Axel Kober. Starring Chor der Hamburgischen Staatsoper, Ambrogio Maestri, Falstaff; Markus Brück, Ford; Oleksiy Palchykov, Fenton; Jürgen Sacher, Dr. Cajus; Daniel

Sir John Falstaff is an anarchist who obeys only the reign of his own enjoyment, an egoist who feeds only his power-hunger and his own flesh, and who would prefer to raze the small-minded morals of his contemporaries like the walls of a fortress – by seducing two women at the same time. Needless to say, his plan is thwarted, but those trying to expose him also fail to emerge unruffled from the confusion they unleash around him – which only the audience can keep track of, barely. "Tutto nel mondo è burla," but these jokes are only funny because falling into the abyss actually does pose quite a serious risk. Arrigo Boito, the librettist of "Otello", distilled a sophisticated, ingenious libretto from Shakespeare's original, driving Verdi to highly complex compositional heights.

Recording of the premiere on January 19, 2020

Staging: Calixto Bieito
Stage design: Susanne Gschwender
Costumes: Anja Rabes
Dramaturgy: Bettina Auer
Light: Michael Bauer

Musical director: Axel Kober
Falstaff: Ambrogio Maestri
Ford: Markus Brück
Fenton: Oleksiy Palchykov
Dr. Cajus: Jürgen Sacher
Bardolfo: Daniel Kluge
Pistola: Tigran Martirossian
Alice Ford: Maija Kovalevska
Nannetta: Elbenita Kajtazi
Mrs. Quickly: Nadezhda Karyazina
Meg Page: Ida Aldrian
Orchestra: Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg
Chorus: Chor der Hamburgischen Staatsoper

The new production of Verdi's opera is the Hamburg State Opera's contribution to the ARTE Opera Season. With the ARTE Opera Season, ARTE Concert accompanies the European opera season and presents outstanding productions from the most important opera stages in Europe.

Sir John Falstaff is vain and narcissistic,cowardly and cunning,in this opera by Giuseppe Verdi after Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor and adapted by Arrigo Boito.This black comedy performance,filmed at The Hamburg State Opera,follows Falstaff as he arrives in Windsor and sets out to obtain financial advantage by courting two wealthy married women.His opportunistic and comically unsuccessful seduction ploy begins to unfold,and even those trying to expose him fail to emerge unruffled from all the confusion.This play compels the audience to keep track of all events,as chaos ensues.

Falstaff Verdi

German

English

Approved

Production booklet

Further reading