UN BALLO IN MASCHERA – VERDI
Presented on May 3, 5, 7 at the Gaiety Theatre Dublin as part of the Dublin Grand Opera Society’s Spring Season
Ken Neate – Riccardo
Audrey Bowman – Amelia
Melvin Bartell – Renato
Patricia Black – Ulrica
Barbara Lane – Oscar
Martin Dempsey – Samuel
Jack Harte – Tom
Joseph Flood – Silvano
Vilem Tausky – Conductor
Vere Laurie – Producer
The choice of “A Masked Ball” was generally welcomed, even if its music, apart from the baritone aria “Eri tu” was not well known to the public. Verdi’s name was enough to guarantee extra box-office sales. The work itself had a troubled history and due to political pressure the locale was transferred from Sweden to Boston, USA. In the original libretto, Scribe’s story told of the assassination of Gustave III, King of Sweden, but the Italian censor of the day had an objection to royal assassinations so Gustave became Riccardo, governor of Boston and the conspirators were re-named Samuel and Tom, names which seemed incongruous in so Italian an opera. Despite the place and name changes, the music remained untouched and contains some of the composer’s finest melodies, in addition to a greater variety and flexibility of orchestral colour. The premiere was scheduled for Rome in February 1859. Verdi attended rehearsals and expressed satisfaction with the principals. Once again he was to experience the thrill of a brilliant first night and the ringing shouts of “Viva Verdi!” He could not have anticipated however the passionate anti-Austrian feeling his opera stirred up and he was genuinely puzzled. No such feverish reaction was expected at the Gaiety Theatre opening that May. The society had made it a gala occasion with president Sean T O’Kelly and his wife in attendance. Behind the scenes, however, there
was a crisis. For most of that day, May 3, soprano Audrey Bowman, who was singing the role of Amelia, was feeling ill and receiving medical attention. It was feared in the afternoon that with her rising temperature she would not respond, and since it was too late to fly in a replacement, the society was forced to think about cancelling the opening night’s performance. To everybody’s relief, however, Miss Bowman rallied and by late afternoon felt she would be able to go on. The decision was left entirely to herself. It says much for her determination and professionalism that the audience did not suspect she was unwell. At the final curtain Dr Larchet came on stage and explained the soprano’s ordeal and thanked her for her courage. ‘I must pay tribute to her,’ he said, for without her bravery we would most certainly have had to cancel the performance.’ The society’s president was joined on stage by Comdt. O’Kelly who also commended the soprano and said that as a mark of their appreciation he was delighted to present to her a memento of the occasion – a landscape painting by an Irish artist. It was considered a successful performance, thanks not only to Audrey Bowman but to Kenneth Neate’s splendid singing as Riccardo and Melvin Bartell’s portrayal of Renato. The majority of the critics praised Vilem Tausky’s handling of the score and the skilful response he drew from the Radio Eireann Symphony Orchestra. ‘The conductor brought to Verdi’s rich musical score that keen ear for detail and instinct that is his hallmark,’ observed the Evening Herald.
(Extracted from “Love and Music: The Glorious History of the Dublin Grand Opera Society” by Gus Smith, 1998)
Opera in Ireland 