Lecture: Physical and Psychological Aging In The Operas of Giuseppe Verdi

A lecture by Francesco Izzo, University of Southampton, co-director of the American Institute for Verdi Studies at NYU

In early nineteenth-century Italian opera, characters explicitly described as old are mostly a prerogative of comedy. In serious melodramma, the advanced age of some characters may be inferred by virtue of their role (father and grandfather, pastor), but only rarely is it explicitly stated, verbally or visually. In Verdi’s operas, conversely, old age emerges as a fundamental concern—one that is referred to explicitly and frequently in passages of poetry and other verbal indicators (such as cast pages and stage directions).

In this lecture, Francesco Izzo explores the theme of old age in Verdi’s operas from 1839 to 1867, drawing in particular on Oberto, conte di San Bonifacio, Nabucco, I lombardi alla prima crociata, Ernani, I due Foscari, Rigoletto, La traviata, and Don Carlos. In so doing, he identifies instances where the depiction of old age seems to express a continuum with established topoi and stereotypes (such as fatherhood and metaphors of family honor), and others where age is treated more subtly—its physical connotations reflecting psychological developments in response to external circumstances. The discussion draws on close reading of verbal and musical texts, as well as on visual evidence and other materials.

In closing, Izzo will map the depiction of aging characters in Verdi’s work onto changing constructions of old age in the mid-nineteenth century. The use and treatment of subject matter involving old age reveals a novel centrality of this theme from the outset of Verdi’s career, calling for a careful consideration of age as a topic of great importance in mid-nineteenth-century opera.

This lecture is being given in memory of Casa Italiana founder Baroness Mariuccia Zerilli-Marimò.

Reserve a seat here.