Opera Plots I - MDC Faculty Home Pages

his suspicions thus confirmed, and is about to kill her, even going so far as to wound her; but the
love he has already conceived for her, and his realisation of the helplessness of her former life,
gets the better of his jealousy and wounded pride, and he embraces her passionately, declaring his
forgiveness and entreating her to leave the Lowland village, with its vices and lower instincts, and
retire with him to the mountain heights, where, though the life is poor and hard, they may yet live
in purity and simple-minded happiness. Their declaration of love is, however, interrupted by the
entrance of Sebastiano, who, disappointed of the pleasure of the night before, now comes boldly to
enjoy the company of Marta; and on learning from his terrified wife that this is the tyrant who has
ruined her early life, Pedro rushes upon him in a fury. The rich man's followers are at hand,
however, and at the command of their master they seize Pedro, and take him away; and being left
with Marta, Sebastiano first taunts her, and then endeavours to carry her away with him. Marta, in
despair, calls on her husband, who, having managed to break away from his captors, dashes back
to the room at this moment, and struggles with Sebastiano; and during the encounter which
follows the tyrant is slain. Pedro then snatches up his hard-won bride and makes his escape to the
moun-tains, there to dwell with her in pure content, away from the sordid, disturbing passions of
the Lowlands.
5. THE BLACK DOMINO
Opera Comique in Three Acts By Daniel François Esprit Auber
Libretto By Scribe
First Produced Paris, 1837
Chief Characters Angela, Brigitta, Claudia, Ursula, Horatio di Masserena, Count Juliano, Gil-
Perez
THE scene is laid in Madrid. Angela, the beautiful daughter of a noble, has been placed in a
convent, being destined by the Queen of Spain to be Abbess; but not yet having taken the vows,
she attends in secret a masked ball given at the Court, disguised in a Black Mask and Domino,
attended by her companion, Brigitta. Here she meets a young noble named Horatio di Masserena,
whom she has met before on a similar occasion, the pair having mutually fallen in love. On
Masserena declaring his love, however, Angela declares she cannot listen to him; and when her
lover detains her beyond mid-night, having managed to entice Brigitta to leave the ball earlier, the
truant pleasure-seeker is terrified for the consequences of her bold deed, since the convent will be
now locked up for the night. She refuses to allow Masserena to help her in this dilemma; and,
escaping from him, she wanders forth alone on her return journey. Coming to the house of Count
Juliano, a reputed roué, she craves shelter for the night from his housekeeper, Claudia, who agrees
to take her in, if she will dress as a serving-maid and wait on her master's late supper-guests. This
Angela consents to; and on dressing-up in the servant-maid's clothes produced by Claudia, she
enters into the plan with zest, and is declared to be a most charming acquisition to the domestics of
the household. Amongst the guests is Masserena, who, however, recognises her as his beloved
Black Domino, and is upset at finding her in such doubtful company; and Angela, not daring to
remain longer, is glad to come across the convent hall-porter, Gil-Perez, who has also stolen out
for a frolic, and come to flirt with Claudia. She obtains the Convent keys from him, and hurries
away; and thus she gains entrance into the convent, her absence not having been discovered,
owing to the vigilance of Brigitta. In the third act Angela, greatly against her will, is about to be