Rigoletto Some Observations

Rigoletto – Some Observations Rigoletto is one of the most popular of Verdi’s operas. Its hero is viewed as being tragic. He is a single parent who struggles to raise his teenage daughter under daunting circumstances. Rigoletto is a concerned parent, perhaps even overprotective. He is a warm, loving father who would shelter his only child from all evil. What a pity that he is ugly and deformed and can obtain employment only as a court jester in the employ of a bon vivant Duke, who is wantonly depraved and egocentric, thinking only of himself and of his needs. So have we been taught to regard him; our heart goes out to him and the terrible tragedy that befalls him and his unfortunate daughter. Poor thing; she was betrayed by a knave of a Duke and committed suicide in order to spare his life. Several issues are raised by Verdi himself throughout the opera that call into question our initial impression. How would you feel if you ask someone: What is your name”? And he responded: “What does it matter”? Would you feel comfortable or feel put off by the response? Most of us would not feel warmth toward such a person. Yet this is the response Rigoletto gives Gilda in Scene 2 of Act I. And when Gilda asks her father to tell her about her mother, Rigoletto launches into a sentimental account of how his wife (Gilda’s mother) was kind to him and took care of him. [ https://youtu.be/F6DkgfMcXdw] (27:40 – 29:04) How is that for consideration? In Act III, after Rigoletto reveals the Duke’s duplicity to Gilda, Rigoletto instructs Gilda to return home, change into men’s clothing, and ride to Verona on horseback to await his arrival the next day. It is nearly midnight, in mid-sixteenth century Italy, and the distance from Mantua to Verona is twenty-nine kilometers. Gilda has not stepped out of her walled house/fortress for months and has no knowledge of her surroundings. Would you send your teen-aged daughter to get a container of milk at the local all-night supermarket under these circumstances - alone? One wonders about Rigoletto’s concern for the safety of his beloved daughter. More such observations will be made in the future.