“Falstaff” is a lyric comedy, it’s score sparkles with humour, while a dynamic plot and tender love scenes make a perfect representation of Verdi’s talent.
Giuseppe Verdi’s “Falstaff” is a lush and sunny opera based on Shakespeare’s comedy “The Merry Wives of Winsdor” and historical play “Henry IV”. “Finally I have a right to laugh a bit after killing so many characters”, said Verdi about this opera. Throughout his life Verdi had pursued the dream of writing a comic opera without ever finding the appropriate subject. Excluding “Un Giorno di Regno”, a sensational youth fiasco of 1840, “Falstaff” is the only comic opera, as well as the last opera, of Verdi’s production.
Sir John Falstaff is an experienced swindler, has no sense of responsibility, permanently undermines moral values, and is loved by everyone for his primal life force. He is planning on solving his financial problems using two married women, Alice and Meg. He writes two identical love letters to both, considering the deal to be almost done. However, his “victims” are not that stupid: they discover that the letters are identical and decide to teach Falstaff a lesson.
