A nymph, a shepherd, and a cyclops.
And you thought your love life was complicated.
Charming and deceptively sweet, this two-hour English pastorale tells of a demigod in love with a mortal— and what happens when another demigod gets jealous.
Using a libretto by John Gay, composer of The Beggar's Opera, Handel wove some of his most beautiful melodies into the story of Galatea, her beloved Acis, and the sinister Polyphemus.
Join Madison Opera for our first-ever Handel opera, in a new production in the intimate Playhouse at Overture Center— the perfect venue for an opera originally performed on the terrace of the Earl of Carnarvon's home (now the setting for the critically-acclaimed TV series Downton Abbey).
Cast
Production
Conductor: John DeMain
Director: David Lefkowich
Sung in English with projected text
Run time: approx. 2 hours, including one intermission
Related Events
Opera Up Close: Acis and Galatea preview / January 6, 2013
The Story of the Opera
Act I
A group of townspeople revel in their natural surroundings in the middle of a forest. Only the lovesick water-nymph Galatea is unhappy, trying to silence the birds whose beautiful song reminds her of her love for Acis. Elsewhere, Acis has returned from battle for Galatea, ignoring his friend Damon’s warnings not to neglect his duties. The lovers find each other and pour out their feelings of joy.
~ Intermission ~
Act II
The ensemble warns
the lovers of the sad fate that is awaits them, in the form of the monster
Polyphemus. The giant, stabbed in the heart by Cupid, describes his unrequited
love for Galatea. When he sings her praises, she is not won over, and he
threatens her with force. Damon advises him to try more gentle tactics first.
Acis, enraged at the scene, prepares to do battle with the giant and Galatea
tells her lover to trust her to be faithful. While Acis and Galatea pledge
eternal devotion to one another, Polyphemus bursts on the scene, ultimately
crushing Acis with an avalanche.
The ensemble and Galatea mourn the demise of Acis. The ensemble remind Galatea
of her divine powers, suggesting she make him immortal, which she does: Acis
now appears as a fountain. The ensemble tells Galatea to dry her tears and
greet his murmuring stream, an eternal reminder of their love.
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Recommended recording of Handel's Acis and Galatea.
Recommended DVD of Handel's Acis and Galatea.
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John DeMain
Conductor, Madison Opera Artistic Director
Recently with Madison Opera: A Masked Ball, Cinderella, Eugene Onegin, La Traviata, The Marriage of Figaro
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Upcoming: La Bohème (Fort Worth Opera Festival); Simon Boccanegra (Kentucky Opera)
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Recently with Madison Opera: A Masked Ball, Galileo Galilei
Recently: Count de Horn, Un Ballo in Maschera (Madison Opera); Angelotti, Tosca and The Father, The Prodigal Son(Kentucky Opera); Bob Beckett, H.M.S. Pinafore (Opera New Jersey); Leporello, Don Giovanni and Schaunard, La Bohème (UW-Madison)
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