LUCREZIA BORGIA " Lucrezia Borgia," a tragic opera in three acts with text by Felice Romani and music by Gaetano Donizetti, was first presented to the public in 1834, at La Scala, Milan. It is taken from a work of the same name by Victor Hugo, who sued the author for damages under the copyright law. The opera was thereupon greatly changed and mutilated, but later on, indemnity having been paid, it was restored to its original form.
Don Alfonso, Duke of Ferrara.
Lucrezia Borgia, Duchess of Ferrara.
Gennaro, son of the Duchess.
Maffio Orsini, a friend to Gennaro.
Astolfo, an agent of the Duchess.
Ascanio Petrucci.
Don Apostolo Gazella.
Rustighello, an agent of the Duke.
Jeppo Liverotto.
Oloferno Vitellozzo.
Gubetta, a Spaniard, an agent of the Duchess. The Princess Negroni.
Knights, squires, ladies, pages, masks, soldiers, sheriffs, cup-bearers, gondoliers.
The story of the opera revolves about the person of Lucrezia Borgia of unpleasant fame, the natural daughter of Cardinal Borgia, afterwards Pope Alexander VI. Its hero, her illegitimate son Gennaro, brought up by a fisher man as his own child, rises in young manhood to high rank in the Venetian army. At a festival at Barberigo Palace, which is attended by Gennaro and his friends, the youth falls asleep and is discovered by his mother. Lucrezia has come to the festival on a secret mission and masked, for she is hated by most of the guests, both for her own wicked deeds and for those of her family. Gennaro's beauty and the honor to which he has arrived touch her. She is, indeed, overwhelmed with motherly pride. When he awakes he finds himself strangely drawn toward the beautiful woman, but his friends warn him that she is the hated Borgia and the attraction vanishes. The youths re mind her of their murdered relatives whose blood is on her hands, and hurl at her such envenomed accusations that she falls senseless.
Lucrezia's husband, Don Alfonso, who is ignorant of the existence of such a son, notices her interest in Gennaro and becomes jealous of him. When the young man muti lates the Borgia escutcheon on the gates to show his loath ing for the family, the Don brings about his imprisonment.
T,ucrezia orders the offender's death, but when he is brought before her, to her horror, she recognizes her own son. The Duke believes the youth to be her paramour and commands her to give him with her own hand a draught of poisoned wine in a golden chalice. She does so, but a few minutes later finds an opportunity to give him an antidote and his death is averted.
Lucrezia advises him to fly from Ferrara, and hopes that he has well made his escape, but unfortunately he joins his comrades at a carousal at the Castle of the Princess Negroni. The comrades have been brought together by the machination of Lucrezia who, consistent with her charac ter, designs revenge for their insult to her in the presence of her son. They have drunk the poisoned wine and she has come personally to gloat over their end. " Yes, I am the Borgia! " she laughs as they start in consternation when she appears. "A fete, a sorry fete you gave me in Venice. I return you a supper in Ferrara." But now to her horror she sees her own son in the company and finds that he too has partaken of the poison and must die. Again she thrusts the antidote upon him. As there is not enough for his friends, he refuses and threatens to kill her. It is then that she tells him the secret of his birth, but this makes him the more unhappy and again he puts aside the antidote and dies in agony. At this moment the Duke arrives to find his wife slain by her own conscience and lying among the victims of her cruelty.
Among the best numbers are Lucrezia's arias sung over the form of the sleeping Gennaro, " Com'e bello quale in canto " ("Ah, how fair is he ") ; the duet of Gennaro and Lucrezia, " De pescatore ignobile " (" With fisher folk of lowly birth ") ; the trio of Lucrezia, Alfonso and Gennaro beginning " Se ti tradisce " (" If he betray thee ") ; and Or sini's drinking song, the famous " Brindisi," " Il segreto per esser felice " ("Ah! 'tis better to laugh than be sighing ").