In many ways Lucia di Lammermoor is typical of the lively, tuneful, vigorous and dramatic creations that Italy spawned throughout the 19th century. The best of them are wonderful indeed, and many of the B-List are well worth dusting down for the occasional revival. They are, of course, in a style of their own, and it’s a good idea to get used to its conventions. Even so, this was essentially a popular form, and not the sophisticated “art music” that came to dominate opera in a later period.
Perspectives on this opera, however, have shifted since its original composition. In its day it was considered a story of a wife who killed her husband, an almost unforgivable crime as few things were as threatening to the social order. But Scott and Donizetti’s librettist show the extenuating circumstances, and so to an extent challenge traditional assumptions. Today, by contrast, the story seems little different from Romeo and Juliet, presenting the fate of two tragic lovers from opposing families.
Occupying the National Theater during the New Year long weekend, this should prove a popular presentation, equally attractive to newcomers to the genre and connoisseurs who will welcome it as the first production of Donizetti’s masterpiece in Taiwan. Some of the ticket prices may come as a shock, however.
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