''The Jewel Box'' is a

pasticcio In music, a ''pasticcio'' or ''pastiche'' is an opera or other musical work composed of works by different composers who may or may not have been working together, or an adaptation or localization of an existing work that is loose, unauthorized, o ...

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

constructed by Paul Griffiths out of various pieces by

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

. Its mostly English

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

by Paul Griffiths includes new translations of most of the Italian-language texts of the musical numbers. It was premiered by

Opera North Opera North is an English opera company based in Leeds. The company's home theatre is the Leeds Grand Theatre, but it also presents regular seasons in several other cities, at the Theatre Royal, Nottingham, the Lowry Centre, Salford Quays and ...

at the

Theatre Royal, Nottingham The Theatre Royal in Nottingham, England, is a theatre venue in the heart of Nottingham City Centre and is owned by Nottingham City Council as part of a complex that also includes the city's Royal Concert Hall. The Theatre Royal attracts major ...

, on 19 February 1991. The conductor was

Elgar Howarth Elgar Howarth (born 4 November 1935), is an English conductor, composer and trumpeter. Biography Howarth was born at Cannock, Staffordshire. He was educated in the 1950s at Manchester University and the Royal Manchester College of Music (the ...

, the director was

Francisco Negrin Francisco Negrin (born June 5, 1963)Federico Figueroa (Mexico City, October 2004) "Un mexicano en el mundo and contemporary music and his work in all media is characterised by a highly integrated use of dance and technology as part of the dramat ...

and the designer was Anthony Baker.

Background

Griffiths, realising that

aria In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

s composed by Mozart for insertion in other composers' operas are seldom performed nowadays, worked up what he called "a ''jeu d'esprit''" which also contained music from the composer's unfinished operas ''

Lo sposo deluso ' (''The Deluded Bridegroom, or The Rivalry of Three Women for One Lover'') is a two-act opera buffa, K. 430, composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart between 1783 and 1784. However, the opera was never completed and only a 20-minute fragment from ...

'' and ''

L'oca del Cairo ' (''The Goose of Cairo'' or ''The Cairo Goose'', K. 422) is an incomplete Italian opera buffa in three acts, begun by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in July 1783 but abandoned in October. The complete libretto by Giambattista Varesco remains. Mozart c ...

'' and some of the arias which he had written for concert performances. This came to the attention of Nicholas Payne, General Director of Opera North, who scheduled its première for 1991, the year of the

bicentenary __NOTOC__ A bicentennial or bicentenary is the two-hundredth anniversary of a part, or the celebrations thereof. It may refer to: Europe *French Revolution bicentennial, commemorating the 200th anniversary of 14 July 1789 uprising, celebrated ...

of Mozart's death.

Performance history

After the Nottingham premiere and subsequent performances in Opera North's territory of northern England, the opera was performed in the United States by

Skylight Opera Theatre Skylight Music Theatre, known until January 2012 as Skylight Opera Theatre, is a professional light opera and musical theatre company located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1959, Skylight performs in the 358-seat Cabot Theatre at the Broadway ...

(1993),

Wolf Trap Opera The Wolf Trap Opera Company (sometimes abbreviated WTOC) was founded in 1971 as part of the program of the Wolf Trap Foundation located near the Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts in Fairfax County, Virginia. The company is a residenc ...

(1994),

Chicago Opera Theater The Chicago Opera Theater (COT) is an American opera company based in Chicago, Illinois. COT is a resident company at the Harris Theater (Chicago), Harris Theater for Music and Dance in Chicago's Millennium Park and is currently in residence at th ...

(1996), and

New Jersey State Opera The New Jersey State Opera is an opera company based in Newark, New Jersey. It was established in 1964 as the Opera Theater of Westfield, and shortly after opening Alfredo Silipigni was hired as Artistic Director. The name was changed to the Opera ...

(1996). In England, it was revived by

Bampton Classical Opera Bampton Classical Opera is an opera company based in Bampton, Oxfordshire and founded in 1993. It specialises in the production of lesser known opera from the Classical period. Performances are always sung in English. ''Opera today'' called the c ...

in 2006 for the 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth, with the orchestra conducted by Edward Gardner.

Roles

Synopsis

Four characters from the

commedia dell'arte (; ; ) was an early form of professional theatre, originating from Italian theatre, that was popular throughout Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries. It was formerly called Italian comedy in English and is also known as , , and . Charact ...

(

Dottore Il Dottore (, 'the Doctor'), commonly known in Italian as ''Dottor Balan'' or simply ''Balanzone'' (; Bolognese egl, Dutåur Balanzån) is a '' commedia dell'arte'' stock character, in one scenario being an obstacle to young lovers. Il Dottore ...

Pantalone Pantalone , spelled Pantaloon in English, is one of the most important principal characters found in . With his exceptional greed and status at the top of the social order, Pantalone is "money" in the commedia world. His full name, including fam ...

Colombina Columbina (in Italian Colombina, meaning "little dove"; in French and English Colombine) is a stock character in the ''commedia dell'arte''. She is Harlequin's mistress, a comic servant playing the tricky slave type, and wife of Pierrot. Rudli ...

and

Pedrolino Pedrolino is a ''primo zanni'', or comic servant, of the ''Commedia dell'Arte''; the name is a hypocorism of ''Pedro'' (Peter), via the suffix ''-lino''. The character made its first appearance in the last quarter of the 16th century, apparently ...

) open the opera with a quartet. There is no more music, so the Dottore summons the Composer, who, with the aid of a singer of tragic music and his own father, gradually works out how the opera should go. The opera ends with an epilogue sung by the Composer.This synopsis and the following list of musical numbers are based on information in the programme for two preview performances which took place on 7 and 11 January 1991, at the

Grand Theatre, Leeds The Grand Theatre, also known as Leeds Grand Theatre and Leeds Grand Theatre and Opera House, is a theatre and opera house in Briggate, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It seats approximately 1,500 people. Building It was designed by James Ro ...

Musical numbers

Act 1

Act 2

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jewel Box, The English-language operas Operas 1991 operas Works based on operas by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart