Rigoletto by Verdi

Rigoletto is a tragic story based on a Victor Hugo’s novel ‘’Le Roi S’amuse’’.  Rigoletto as a fool, makes jokes about people’s daughters and wives who are being used by the Duke. In a way, he is a lickspittle of the Duke. And he has a daughter that he tries to protect her from everything, she is so innocent because she has no knowledge of the world, even her family. Why Rigoletto is that over-protected? He tries to protect her from everything he does to the others, he is a part of that ugly world and even his name will contaminate her. He has a only one good thing, and rather than changing himself, or disapprove the Duke, he just covering it by not allowing Gilda to do anything.  That leads Gilda to love anything she discovers. She is attracted by anything different. This love or neediness continues when she finds out about the Duke’s other lovers. Is she sacrificing herself at the end due to the her love to Duke or is she refuse to find out that her father has no mercy ?


There are a lot beautiful arias in the opera. In ‘’Questa o quella’’ Duke express his admiration to Countess Ceprano. He has power and he can say anything to any woman even if the husband is present. In ‘’Gualder Malde… Caro nome che il mio cor’’ Gilda express her love to the Duke who gave her a fake name. In contrast, for Gilda, names are very important, since she requested to know her father’s and mother’s name. Now, she has a knowledge of the ‘’name’’. In ‘’Povero Rigoletto’’, Rigoletto finds out about her daughter but he has to play carefully. He acts like he doesn’t care about the girl, and sings a melody that is playful, careless but in fact it is nervous, afraid.  When he sings ‘’lala lala’’, the poses creates tension. In ‘’Cortigiani, vil razza dannata’’, he switched strategies, first he acts like he doesn’t care, then he becomes angry, then he started to beg. ‘’La donna e mobile’’ is the most known aria of the opera. Although it has a happy, playful melody, actually it is used in the most critical scene of the opera when Rigoletta find out he paid and help to murder her own daughter. In ‘’Ah, piu non ragiono! ‘’, there is a great thunderstorm effect, the choir sings chromatic notes to imitate the wind.  In the finale, ‘’Chi e mai, chi e qui in sua vece?... V ho ingannato’’, Gilda say goodbye, and she dies in the middle of her sentence. That is unusual, it is natural and real. 

If we compare the death of Gilda, Violetta and Mimi, we can say that it started with gorgeous deaths like Violetta, giving the high notes whiles saying ‘’oh, joy’’.  Gilda, it is more natural, dying in the middle of the sentence. Mimi, died without any notice. 

 Ece DEMİREL