Do you know Rossini in his buffo operas as a master of confusion, surprise and absurd situations? Nino Rota matches him by far! Il cappello di paglia di Firenze is a hilarious opera with here and there a nod to the ensembles and virtuoso coloraturas of bel canto.
We associate the name Nino Rota immediately with the films of Federico Fellini. But Nino Rota did not only compose for cinema. It is therefore a good idea of the Opéra Royal de Wallonie to bring his opera into the spotlight.
Who is Nino Rota?
Nino Rota (3 December 1911 – 10 April 1979) studied composition with, among others, Ildebrando Pizzetti and Alfredo Casella but was certainly influenced by pioneering composers from the early twentieth century such as Igor Stravinsky and Manuel de Falla. The harmonic sounds of Debussy and Ravel were also familiar to him, and when Toscanini recommended him to the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia in 1931, he stands as a colleague alongside Gian Carlo Menotti and Samuel Barber. In the United States he also gets to know Gershwin, Copland and the jazz scene. Back in Italy, Nino Rota establishes himself primarily as a composer of film music for Fellini, Visconti and Zeffirelli, to name but the most important.
He becomes professor at the Conservatory Piccinni in Bari, where he counts among his students none other than conductor Riccardo Muti, who praises him in his biography for his advice and affection. Muti testifies that Nino Rota does not pin himself to one style, his technique is versatile and is not limited to avant-garde.
Il Cappello di paglia di Firenze was created at the Teatro Massimo in Palermo on 21 April 1955. The composer based himself on the comedy of Eugène Labiche Un chapeau de paille d'Italie and wrote the libretto together with his mother Ernesta Rota Rinaldo. René Clair had already made a silent film of it in 1927. In the 1950s, the opera was successful at the Piccola Scala in Milan in the production of the famous director Giorgio Strehler.
La Folle journée de Fadinard
The story of "Il cappello di paglia di Firenze" is simply hilarious. A bridegroom, Fadinard, is on his way to his wedding, but the horse of the carriage eats the straw hat of a lady in the company. The opera then spends four acts on: getting the bridegroom to his wedding on time, keeping the prospective father-in-law calm, getting hold of a straw hat "from Firenze" to prevent the husband of Anaide, the lady of the hat, from suspecting her of infidelity. We dive from one surprise and confusion into another, secondary characters (milliner, soldiers) and absurd situations (tight shoes) ultimately drive the story towards the happy ending: bride and bridegroom are united!Damiano Michieletto rightly interprets Il Cappello di paglia di Firenze as a "folle journée" à la Nozze di Figaro by Mozart. In his production he ensures surprise and momentum and the set is perfectly adapted to this. The story is colorful enough in itself to tolerate the stark white decor. The most important feature is the flexibility and mobility of the walls and the many doors. Sometimes the piece takes on the style of a bedroom farce. The characters behave very smoothly and lively. However torn Fadinard is by some events, he does not lose heart and keeps cherishing a naive hope that with the little piece of the hat, he will ultimately find the correct straw hat "from Firenze"!
We know Michieletto as a master of comedy on the opera stage and here too he manages to let the characters experience their foolishness as real and to make the stupid details (the orange tree that goes as a symbol of marital love from scene to scene, the too small shoes, the soldiers) seem acceptably comic and never as unbelievably ridiculous. The singers certainly contribute to the success of the whole: it is a total team that realizes both the singing parts and the acting with verve and in the right style. Perhaps Pietro Spagnoli as a father-in-law brought the right "spirit" into the cast. The young conductor Leonardo Sini feels at home in the flowing and colorful score and places the ironic accents subtly in the vocal lines where "Firenze" is mentioned. A subtle reference by Nino Rota to Puccini's Gianni Schicchi?
The audience certainly appreciated making the acquaintance of this charming comic opera!
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpbsg9mdCg4[/embed]