Synopsis of Falstaff
Act I
Relaxing and thinking at an Inn, Sir John Falstaff is interrupted when Dr. Caius bursts into the room and accuses Falstaff of robbing him. Falstaff quickly dismisses the accusations, but realizes that he is surprisingly low on funds. Not to be deterred, Falstaff swiftly thinks of a plan that he believes cannot fail.
Falstaff decides that he will woo the two wealthy, but married wives of Windsor Alice Ford and Meg Page. Falstaff writes two identical letters professing his love to both women and asks two servants to deliver the letters on his behalf. However, the servants know that this is
slightly funny, the ladies decide that Falstaff must be punished and made into an example for any other mischievous gentlemen. Alice and Meg devise a plan to meet Falstaff and trick him, and they call Mistress Quickly to help pull off their scheme. After the plans have been set in motion, the women depart. In the distance, Alice and Ford’s daughter Nannetta steals a few moments with her boyfriend Fenton, who works for her father.
Falstaff’s servants know of his intentions and quickly alert Ford. Ford wants to beat Falstaff at his own game and agrees to meet him under disguise and a different name.
Act II
Characters:
Falstaff- baritone (a mischievous, but wealthy person)
Ford- baritone (wealthy townsperson)
Alice Ford- soprano (Ford’s wife and recipient of Falstaff’s advances)
Meg Page- mezzo soprano (recipient of Falstaff’s advances)
Nannetta- soprano (Ford’s daughter)
Fenton- tenor (Nanetta’s suitor and Ford’s employee)
parents aren’t looking. With one kiss too many, Ford signals for the screen to come down and to his amazement, finds his daughter with Fenton.
Furious at not finding Falstaff, Ford takes out his anger on Fenton and then quickly leaves to search for Falstaff. Alice orders the servants to toss the hamper of dirty laundry (with Falstaff in it!) out the window into the Thames River below!
Act III
Mistress Quickly greets Falstaff at his residence with news that both Alice and Meg have written a response to Falstaff’s letters. Mistress Quickly assures Falstaff that neither Alice nor Meg know of the identical letters and that both have agreed to meet him. Falstaff is surprised and gleeful with his plan, but is interrupted by his servant who ushers in Ford in disguise. Ford introduces himself as Master Brook and asks for Falstaff’s help in wooing Alice. Laughing with delight, Falstaff boasts that nothing could be easier as he already has an appointment to meet her while her husband is away. Not knowing that his wife is playing a trick on Falstaff and raging with anger, Ford promises to catch Falstaff and punish Alice.
Later, Meg, Alice, and Mistress Quickly learn Ford’s plan to marry Nannetta to Dr. Caius. The women calmly assure Nannetta that the ridiculous plan will never work out. As the women are chatting, Falstaff arrives and tries to catch Alice’s attention with tales from his youthful days. However, the two are soon interrupted with news from Mistress Quickly that Ford is on his way home. Unsure of what to do, Falstaff leaps into a laundry basket to hide from view. In the commotion, Nannetta and Fenton rush behind a screen and secretly kiss while her
With Falstaff floating below in the Thames River, what do you think happens next in Act III?
Mistress Alice plots to meet Falstaff at midnight in Windsor Park. While in the park, Falstaff’s attempts to win over Alice go completely awry when Falstaff believes that he is being chased by fairies and elves. Meanwhile, Ford, Fenton, Alice, Meg, and Dr. Caius are in the woods masquerading as supernatural beings. Everyone is demanding that Falstaff change his ways when he finally pleads to be forgiven for his bad deeds. However, before everyone reveals who they are, two couples are presented to be married. Unbeknownst to Ford, he gives his blessing to Nannetta and Fenton’s marriage, while the disguised Dr. Caius receives a blessing to marry Falstaff’s male servant! In the end, everyone realizes that everything in the world is just a huge joke.
I Didn’t Know Opera Could Be So Funny!!
Many people believe that opera is always serious and can often be sad, but Falstaff proves that opera can also be lighthearted and funny too! Comedic operas like Falstaff are called opera buffas in Italian. There are other famous opera buffas including La Cenerentola, (Cinderella) Il Barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville) and L’Italiana in Algeri (The Italian Girl in Algeria), just to name a few.
Opera buffa was very popular in the 18th and 19th century. Operas were no longer just about kings, queens, and Greek mythology, but could show everyday people in funny situations.
Composer Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Verdi (Italian for Joe Green) is one of the most well-known Italian composers of opera. Verdi was also a farmer, philanthropist, and one of the founding fathers of a unified Italy. He was born in a small village in 1813 at a time when Italy was divided into city-states. During this time, Italy and Europe were drastically changing. New industries brought greater distribution of wealth and artists were no longer as dependent on royal patronage and could work for themselves. Verdi’s work became immensely popular during this period in which operas were the most accessible form of entertainment, similar to the blockbuster films or Broadway musicals of today. Verdi was also very active politically and held progressive views on the rights of people and freedom of belief.
Falstaff is based on Shakespeare’s play The Merry Wives of Windsor. Verdi had a deep respect for Shakespeare and he thought it was important to stay true to the play. Verdi was extremely specific and was reported to have driven the entire opera house crazy with his demands on lighting, costumes, orchestra, special effects, setting, and even the singers.
Giuseppe Verdi was greatly admired during his lifetime and had a long and established career, composing over 20 operas. When Verdi died in 1901, there were over 28,000 people lining the streets at his funeral.
