LA BOHÈME
OPERA @ A GLANCE
LANGUAGE
Italian with English supertitles
FIRST PERFORMED
February 1 1896
COMPOSER
Giacomo Puccini
Born on December 23, 1858, Puccini grew up in a musical family, learning to play the organ. After years of playing in church, he realized he was more passionate about composing operas than playing his instrument. After studying in Milan, Italy, he wrote 12 operas and was known for his beautiful long melodies and dramatic storylines.
THEMES
LIBRETTO
Luigi Illica and Giusepe Giacosa
based on Scènes de la vie de bohème (1851) by Henri Murger
LENGTH
4 ACTS
SYNOPSIS
Narrated by the Wanderer, this production of La bohème is done in reverse. Starting in Act IV, we witness the death of Mimì, and watch a heartbroken Rodolfo mourn the loss of his love. Three months earlier we see their relationship falter as the news of Mimì’s sickness is made known. We end the opera watching them meet for the first time, overwhelmed with love and hope.
CHARACTERS
SETTING
Latin Quarter of Paris, 1830’s
Mimì (soprano), a seamstress Rodolfo (tenor), a poet Musetta (soprano), a singer and Marcello’s on/off lover Marcello (baritone), a painter
Schaunard (baritone), a musician
Colline (bass), a philosopher
The Wanderer , narrator
SCAN FOR MORE!
love friendship sickness status
LISTENING GUIDE
WRITTEN BY Lily Kass, Scholar in Residence
“Vecchia zimarra, senti”
“Listen, old coat”
Usually, characters in operas sing arias to other characters, to themselves, or directly to the audience. In this unusual case, Colline sings an aria to… his old coat! He is about to sell his coat to help buy some things to make the dying Mimì more comfortable. In this short aria, which almost sounds like a funeral march, he remembers how his coat has kept him warm in better times.
“Dunque è proprio
“Then it’s really over”
This scene begins as a duet, but it becomes a quartet as Marcello and Musetta’s argument interrupts a love duet between Mimì and Rodolfo. Mimì and Rodolfo are deciding that although they know they must split up because Mimì is sick and Rodolfo is too poor to take proper care of her, they will wait until the spring when it feels more manageable to be alone. Meanwhile, Marcello and Musetta are breaking up because Marcello thinks Musetta is cheating on him and Musetta thinks Marcello is too controlling. The scene is both comic and tragic as Marcello and Musetta’s over-the-top name calling is layered over Mimì and Rodolfo’s bittersweet realization that the spring, and their parting, is coming soon.
ACT II
ACT IV DISC 1, TRACK 12
“Sono andati”
“Have they gone?”
ACT III
Mimì has pretended to be asleep so that she would be left alone with Rodolfo. Here, she rouses herself enough to tell Rodolfo how much she loves him. The music accompanying this duet contains fragments of “Sì, Mi chiamano Mimì” and “Che gelida manina,” as the two recall the first day they met, which, in this production, we see play out in the final act.
“Quando m’en vo’ soletta”
“When I walk all alone”
In this famous aria, often referred to simply as “Musetta’s Waltz” because it has the feel of a slow dance, Musetta confidently sings about how much she loves that everyone watches her as she walks down the street because she is so beautiful. She then directs her attention to Marcello, her exboyfriend, saying that she knows that he is dying to get back together with her. Marcello struggles against his desire, but as Musetta suspects, he is powerless in the face of her charms. Musetta’s high and melodramatic musical line allows her to show off with her voice, just as she is bragging with her words. She has the other characters and the audience enthralled with everything she does and says.
DISC 2, TRACK 10
DISC 2, TRACK 12
DISC 2, TRACK 5
finita”
LA BOHÈME
Check out these significant musical moments in La boheme!
“Che gelida manina”
“What a cold little hand”
When Mimì and Rodolfo meet, it is love at first sight. She is his neighbor and comes into his room because her candle has gone out in the hallway. He lights it for her, but then she drops her key. As they search for it together, their hands meet. Here Rodolfo comments on how cold Mimì’s hands are, and how he would like to help keep them warm. Smitten with her, he ends up telling her everything he can think of about himself. Although this declaration of love is beautiful and heartfelt, it is important to note that Mimì’s hands are cold because she has tuberculosis, which Rodolfo does not realize.
“O soave fanciulla”
“Oh sweet girl”
Rodolfo’s friends have been waiting for him, and they are getting impatient. Rodolfo informs them that he’ll be bringing a friend to their gathering. He turns back to Mimì and professes his love, which she immediately returns. The string section, and especially plucking of the harp, creates an almost magical moonlit atmosphere. The last thing we hear as Rololfo and Mimì walk off together into the night, is both of them singing the word “Amor,” “Love,” floated on high C.
ACT I
DISC 1, TRACK 8
“Questo Mar Rosso me ammolisce e assidera”
“This Red Sea soaks me and freezes me”
This is usually the opening scene of the opera, but in this production, it starts the final act. The scene allows us to see the daily life of friends and roommates Rodolfo, Colline, Marcello, and Schaunard, as they try to keep themselves warm and fed despite their lack of money. Rodolfo is a poet, Colline is a philosopher, Marcello is a painter, and Schaunard is a musician. In this scene, they sacrifice their art to stay alive, throwing Rodolfo’s play into the furnace as fuel for their dying fire (listen to the orchestra imitating flames leaping up and then petering out). Despite these difficult circumstances, they interact with one another with good humor and show that they value friendship over all else.
“Sì,
Mi chiamano Mimì”
“Yes, my name is Mimì”
In this aria, Mimì introduces herself to Rodolfo in turn. When she tells him facts about herself, like that she is a seamstress who lives all alone, her musical line sounds very casual, almost like she is talking instead of singing. However, when she starts to talk about the things she loves, like the first sunshine of spring, or the smell of flowers, she gets carried away and forgets to be shy. Her musical line soars, with long, high notes, and the orchestra comes with her. If you listen carefully, you might hear the orchestra imitating birdsong to emphasize the springtime imagery in the text Mimì sings.
Each song helps tell the story and gives us insight into how the characters are feeling. Scan the QR code to listen to each piece as you read.
DISC 1, TRACK 6
DISC 1, TRACK 7
DISC 1, TRACK 1
SPOTLIGHTS
What inspired you to become an opera singer?
I actually got my start in classical piano when I was 3, and I was fully convinced I would make a career as a solo pianist believe it or not! I didn’t fall in love with singing properly until high school when my teacher, the incomparable Mark Myers, introduced me to practically every style of vocal music imaginable throughout my 4 years. Somewhere in my late sophomore, early junior year he introduced me to the late Dr. Jennifer Fitch who would go on to be not only one of my most ardent supporters, but the woman who saw my potential in opera right away and started introducing me to this wild, wild world, but I wasn’t fully sold just yet. We had the privilege to travel and sing in Sydney, Australia my Senior year, and Mark got all of us tickets to see Verdi’s La Traviata performed on a stage floating in the Sydney Harbour. Seeing the costumes, the singing, the acting, the party guests arriving to Flora’s Act II party by illuminated water taxis, it all made me realize that this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Share stories, live different lives, and connect with people in a way that only live theatre can.
What has your favorite role been to sing?
I’ve sung lots of really fantastic roles in my young career, but if I had to pick one that was the most fun and rewarding to play I’d have to go with Harlekin in Viktor Ullmann’s Der Kaiser von Atlantis. I’ve always been drawn to the trickster as both character and archetype, and Harlekin is most certainly one of the oldest examples of this. He represents the everyman, shedding light on the realities of the world for those on stage and in the audience through his relatively dark sense of humor. Plus I got to wear a fun ruffled collar and some denim jodhpurs, what’s not to love!
Opera Philadelphia is lucky to have you as their Chorus Master! Can you tell us what your job entails?
As Chorus Master, I’m responsible for every aspect of the chorus, from auditioning new singers, to deciding how many and which singers will perform in each opera production. I take care of lots of administrative things like making schedules, sending contracts, and planning auditions. But the fun comes when I get to conduct the chorus music rehearsals. I love teaching the chorus the music for a production, and getting to listen and watch as it comes to life. I also get to do backstage conducting–which is when sometimes you hear someone singing or playing from behind the stage. In Bohème, you’ll hear some offstage singing in the beginning of Act 2 (“our” Act 2), and I’ll be back there with the singers, helping them know when to come in on their part.
Rodolfo has a lot of music to sing in La bohème. How do you learn all your notes and words?
Practice makes permanent they say! I approach most of my learning aurally above all else as I have spent a lot of time fine tuning my ear throughout my schooling and career. I always look for a recording of an artist I believe brings a true sense of self to their performance and I listen incessantly to it before learning a single note (for this particular show I’ve been enjoying the Warner Classics Freni/Gedda recording from 1964. It’s a masterpiece!). Having a piece in my ear helps me to then sit at the piano and work through it in my own voice, and having a background in piano helps me play through my music with relative ease. As far as the words are concerned, I like to follow the realtors code tweaked ever so slightly for my purposes. Not Location, location, location, but repetition, repetition, repetition. I like to work backwards in each section of music starting with the last few phrases and going over them until I have them in my head, then I go back a few phrases and do the same thing making my way through to the music I had already memorized. This way each time I learn something new I am also reinforcing what I have already learned, and eventually I’ve somehow memorized an entire opera! However, nothing is really set until we are all together in the rehearsal room. You can memorize hundreds of phrases and beautiful lines on your own, but everything changes when you add your cast, your director, and the musical interpretation of your conductor; it makes every show, even one as beloved and oft-performed as La Boheme, a new experience that you can’t prepare for until you’re actually there in the room.
What is your favorite opera? Why?
I don’t think I can pick just one! I have several favorite ‘chorus operas’ – that is, operas with big chorus parts which are a lot of fun for me in my job. That list includes Carmen, Turandot, and La bohème. I also really love two operas which had their world premieres right here at OP: Breaking the Waves by Missy Mazzoli, and The Wake World by David Hertzberg. One of my favorite productions we ever did was Handel’s Semele, directed by James Darrah. I think it’s one of the most beautiful productions we ever did and everything about the production served the music, which I really loved.
What is on your “recently played” playlist?
My playlist is often a weird combination of pieces I’m working on, pieces I’m considering and would like to work on, and music I listen to just for me. Most recently it’s included (in no particular order):
What is on your “recently played” playlist?
This might come as a shock to some, but there isn’t a single bit of opera on my “recently played” playlist haha. I find myself jumping from genre to genre until I find something to hyper fixate on for a month or so and then I go genre hopping again until I find the next thing I can’t get enough of! Right now my playlist is full of all sorts of different artists like Aurora, Little Simz, Marc Rebillet, Hiatus Kaiyote, Ichiko Aoba, Run the Jewels, Dave, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. I like my playlists like I like my career, chaotic and full of new things!
Lizzo, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Depeche Mode , La bohème, Taylor Swift, J.S. Bach, Samara Joy, and music from Bob’s Burgers.
JOSHUA BLUE Appearing as “Rodolfo”
ELIZABETH BRADEN Chorus Master
