The Merry Widow Study Guide

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TABLE OF CONTENTS Welcome Letter from BLO Manager of Education

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History of Opera: An Overview

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Science of Sound from BLO and Museum of Science, Boston

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The Merry Widow Synopsis

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Characters

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The Making of an Operetta

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Operetta: The European Grandmother of Broadway Musicals

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The Waltz

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Lily Elsie and the Merry Widow Hat

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La Belle Époque—The Golden Age

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Maxim’s

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Listen Up!

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References

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Pre- and Post-Performance Study Guides

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Esther Nelson Stanford Calderwood General & Artistic Director David Angus Music Director John Conklin Artistic Advisor

April 12, 2016 Dear Educator, Boston Lyric Opera is pleased to invite high school and college students to attend Final Dress Rehearsals at the Shubert Theatre throughout the 2015/16 Season. We look forward to seeing you and your students at the theatre for this production of Lehár’s The Merry Widow, performed in a new, riveting production set on the eve of 1914 in Paris.

The experience of seeing and hearing live, professional opera is second to none. And we encourage you to explore the world of the opera in your classroom as well. We are proud to offer this study guide to support your discussions and preparations for The Merry Widow. We’ve included special insights into this particular production, the opera’s history, and pre- and post-performance lesson plans for grades 9-12 with corresponding Massachusetts Curriculum Framework standards.

Boston Lyric Opera’s mission is to build curiosity, enthusiasm, and support for opera. This study guide is one way in which we support the incredible work of educators like you, who are inspired by this beautiful art form and introduce it to your students. As we continue to develop additional study guides this season, we do want your feedback. Please tell us about how you use this guide and how it can best serve your needs by emailing education@blo.org.

If you’re interested in additional opera education opportunities with Boston Lyric Opera, please visit blo.org/education to discover more about our programs.

We look forward to seeing you at the theatre!

Sincerely,

Rebecca Ann S. Kirk Manager of Education Programs Boston Lyric Opera

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Opera was a creation of the Renaissance and its efforts to revive Classical antiquity. A group of Florentine intellectuals called the Camerata wanted to revive the tradition of Ancient Greek theater, particularly its practice of singing the text and using music to heighten the drama. In 1598, Jacopo Peri, one of the members of the Camerata, composed the world's first opera-Dafne, a fitting Renaissance revival of a Classic mythological tale.

Opera quickly became a very popular art form and swiftly spread to other cities in Europe.

The French composer Jean-Baptiste Lully adopted the new art form and produced distinctly French operas in Paris, while George Frideric Handel turned opera into London's most popular and sensational entertainment. The principal genre of opera during the Baroque era was opera seria or "serious opera," which portrayed epic, dramatic stories using a highly embellished style of singing and spectacular staging.

MAJOR COMPOSERS: CLAUDIO MONTEVERDI (1567-1643)

Monteverdi was the first great opera composer, and his operas were incredibly popular in Italy during his lifetime. Monteverdi took opera to the next level by expanding its scope and scale, escalating its drama with more sophisticated characterization, and writing far more complex, ornate music. His opera Orfeo, written in 1607, is often considered the first "great opera," and remains a part of the opera canon today.

GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL (1685-1759)

Handel, the great German-born British composer, was one of the most successful and soughtafter composers in 18th century England. Though Handel is best known for his ever-popular oratorio, Messiah (1742), he was also a prolific and influential opera composer--producing more than forty operas and fostering a love for opera among the English audience. Handel's operas display mature character development and dazzling vocal ornamentation, which are exemplified in his most famous operas, Rinaldo (1711) and Giulio Cesare (1724).

MID- LATE 18TH CENTURY: THE CLASSICAL PERIOD Toward the mid-18th century, composers began to tire of the highly ornamented opera seria and its far-from-real-life stories and characters. Instead, they opted for a simpler, cleaner style of music, opening a new chapter in music history known to us as the Classical Period. It is important to note that the term "Classical Period" is different from "Classical Music"--"Classical Period" or "Classical Era" refers to a particular style and time period within the big umbrella genre of "Classical Music."

MAJOR COMPOSERS: CHRISTOPH WILLIBALD GLUCK (1714-1787)

Gluck was the leader of a major opera reform movement in mid-18th century Europe. He rejected the former superfluously ornamental style of opera, in which music and drama only existed as a vessel for star singers to show off their vocal power and technical agility. Instead, Gluck wrote operas in a non-virtuosic, simple manner, believing that words and music should work together to convey the story. His most famous opera, Orfeo ed Euridice (1762), illustrates Gluck's dedication to simplicity and natural beauty.

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART (1756-1791)

To this day, the name Mozart is synonymous with musical genius. Mozart excelled in any musical genre he touched, whether it was a piano sonata, concerto, symphony or chamber music. Mozart also had a special gift for opera and was commissioned to write his first operatic work at the age of 14. Yet Mozart's brilliant gift was not just in his musical versatility, but also in his deep understanding of the dramatic nature of music. Mozart intuitively knew how to portray moods, situations and personalities through music, and could transport the audience into depths of emotion, moving easily from incredible sadness to overwhelming joy. Mozart's best operatic works include The Marriage of Figaro (1786), The Magic Flute (1791) and Don Giovanni (1787), which are still frequently performed staples of the repertoire.

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Bel Canto literally means "beautiful singing" in Italian. Like Baroque operas, bel canto operas put greater emphasis on the power of the human voice. Amidst stories of passion and romance, bel canto composers wrote incredibly ornate passages that truly showcased a singer's range, power, tone and technical mastery.

MAJOR COMPOSERS: GIOACCHINO ROSSINI (1792-1868)

Rossini was a precocious musical prodigy and became the leading composer in Italy by age 20. He is considered to be one of the most influential figures in opera history as he pioneered the bel canto style, which revolutionized and dictated the Italian operatic scene for the first half of the 19th century. Rossini wrote operas with extraordinary ease and speed, composing 39 operas within 20 years using his signature style--intricate vocal ornamentation with sparkling embellishments. While Rossini wrote everything from tragic to witty operas, he is best known to present-day audiences for his comic operas such as The Barber ofSeville (1816), and La Cenerentola (1817), which is Rossini's version of the classic fairy tale of Cinderella.

GAETANO DONIZETTI (1797-1848) Donizetti was another leading composer during the bel canto era. Unlike his peers, Donizetti was not born into a musical or an affluent family. Yet his evident musical talents did not go unrecognized. The German conductor and composer Simon Mayr took the young Donizetti under his sponsorship and provided the protege a full scholarship for his musical training. Donizetti received training with the same teacher as Rossini, and became one of the most prolific composers in opera history, producing a total of 75 operas. His most famous works include Lucia di Lammermoor (1835) and L'Elisir d'Amore (1832).

VINCENZO BELLINI (1801-1835)

Bellini followed the bel canto tradition of Rossini but also improved the art of beautiful singing by cutting down on some of the excessive ornaments and focusing on simpler but incredibly expressive and emotive singing lines. Many of Bellini's operas, such as I Capuleti e i Montecchi (1830)--the bel canto version of Romeo and Juliet--La Sonnambula (1831), and Norma (1831) are some of his most popular operatic works.

2012 production of The Barber of Seville.

Photo by Eric Antoniou for Boston Lyric Opera.

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The dominant artistic movement in the 19th century was Romanticism, which emphasized the artist's imagination, expression and emotion over structure and convention. Romantic music typically embodies passionate, flowing melodies with complex harmonies, creating a stirring emotional experience for listeners.

The 19th century was also the golden age for opera. More popular than ever, opera was now the primary form of entertainment among not only the aristocracy, but also the growing middle class. Responding to surging public demand, more opera houses opened up, with bigger spaces to accommodate a vast number of opera-goers. Orchestras also became larger as the musical idiom became more dense, rich and "romantic." The change in orchestral texture also resulted in a new kind of opera singer--instead of the light, agile voices that were sought-after in earlier eras, the opera stage now required singers with powerful voices who could project over the thick sound of the orchestra. The plots of operas also became more diverse, as composers conveyed contemporary real-life stories, exotic tales from the East or local folklore.

MAJOR COMPOSERS: GIUSEPPE VERDI (1813-1901)

Verdi was one of most successful composers in the history of opera. Not only are Verdi's operas some of the most performed works today, he was also incredibly popular in his own time--thousands of Italians flooded the streets of Milan at his memorial, singing the famous chorus from his opera Nabucco. Verdi is known for his grand operas with huge casts, stunning sets, elaborate costumes, large orchestras, lush music, and intense drama. Many of Verdi's works also have a strong political undertone, but overall, they explore the timeless themes of passion, betrayal, love, power and death. Some of Verdi's most treasured operas are La Traviata (1853) and Rigoletto (1851).

GIACOMO PUCCINI (1858-1924)

Puccini is undoubtedly one of the most beloved opera composers, producing operas such as La Boheme (1896), Tosca (1900), Madama Butterfly (1904) and Turandot (1926). Puccini's universal appeal lies in his beautiful, lyric melodies with lush, romantic orchestral accompaniment. Puccini is also known For writing in the style of verismo, or "realism"-depicting real-life characters with their everyday struggles. Many of his operas capture the lives of beautiful contemporary heroines who often face tragic deaths in the end. The great theatricality and melodrama of Puccini's operas infused with poignant music emanate incredible emotional power, often bringing the audience members to tears.

RICHARD WAGNER (1813-1883)

Wagner is one of the most influential and controversial composers in music history. His music is deeply associated with German nationalism for his use of Nordic and German mythology.

Wagner also had a new vision For opera, which he called gesamtkunstwerk or "total work of art," one in which music, theater, poetry, and visuals came together with a single purpose of serving the drama of the story. Wagnerian operas are known For being incredibly lengthy (usually 4-5 hours long) and having large, thick, colorful orchestration that only the most powerful voices can cut through. Wagner's most famous operatic work is his epic Ring cycle (1876), which comprises four long and grand operas.

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Richard Wagner's opera, Tristan und Isolde (1865), is generally considered the first step towards Modernism. In its famous opening, the music seems to drift away from tonality--the musical idiom that had dominated the language of music for centuries. Tonality imposes a hierarchical structure on all notes in music with the tonic or the "home note" being the most important, central base. Inspired by Wagner's deviation from the tonal center, the Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg decided to abandon tonality completely, emancipating all notes from their tonal hierarchy and creating a new genre called atonal music.

Alban Berg, one of Schoenberg's pupils, brought the new language of atonality into the world of opera, using a haunting, expressionist sound to depict the deeply disturbed Freudian psyches of his characters. His operatic works, Wozzeck (1925) and Lulu (1935) are the most famous of the genre.

After World War II, the Western classical music world no longer had a prominent, leading musical idiom. Instead, composers sought to explore the boundaries of music and sound in their own unique ways, resulting in numerous avantgarde movements such as serialism, minimalism, electronic music, and chance music.

In America, while certain composers such as John Cage, Phillip Glass and John Adams continued to experiment with European modernism, other composers sought a uniquely American sound. George Gershwin achieved this by incorporating African-American music into his famous opera Porgy and Bess (1935), which is perhaps best known to us for its popular aria, "Summertime." Other composers such as Leonard Bernstein continued to blur the line between opera and popular entertainment, writing the highly entertaining operetta, Candide (1956), as well as one of America's most cherished musical dramas, West Side Story.

OPERA TODAY The culture of opera and its place in society has significantly changed over the past 50 years. Opera is viewed by some as a genre of the past, but it remains a vibrant and evolving art form. Present-day composers, musicians, singers, and directors endeavor to keep opera alive and fresh by producing not only masterworks from the past but also new and contemporary operas that grapple with various political and social issues of modern-day society. Opera companies also now play a central role in determining the trajectory of opera's future by being the prime commissioners of new operas. Many opera companies also make bold artistic choices in their productions of traditional operas, making them not only more interesting but also more relevant and relatable for the modern audience.

Scenes from the 2011 production of The Emperor of Atlantis, or Death Quits, 2012 production of The Lighthouse, 2013 production of The Magic Flute. Photos by Eric Antoniou for Boston Lyric Opera.

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Sound is a form of energy. It can be generated, be moved, do work, dissipate over time and distance, and carry tremendous amounts of energy. Sound will continue only as long as there is energy in the system to keep it going.

Sound is defined as something that can be heard. It is a wave and is a series of vibrations traveling through a medium, especially those within the range of frequencies that can be perceived by the human ear. Sound can travel through many types of mediums, for example: air, liquids and solids. The compressions and rarefactions that move through the atmosphere are compressing and stretching the molecules of nitrogen and oxygen all around us. Sound cannot be heard in a vacuum, like outer space.

WHAT IS HEARING? Unlike the senses of smell or taste, which rely on chemical interactions, hearing is a mechanical process in which the ear converts sound waves entering the ear into electrical signals the brain can understand. The process of hearing begins with sound. An object produces sound when it vibrates in matter. This could be through something solid, liquid, or gaseous. Humans mostly hear sound that travels through the air.

For example, when a bell is struck, it vibrates. This vibration is actually the metal flexing in and out. This physically moves the air particles next to the metal. Those particles, in turn, move the particles next to them and so on. In this way, the vibration moves through the air.

HOW YOU HEAR To hear the sound traveling through the air, three things have to happen.

1.The sound has to be directed into the hearing part of the ear.

2. The ear has to sense the fluctuations in air pressure.

3. The fluctuations have to be translated into electrical signals that the brain can understand.

The pinna, or outer/visible part of the ear, catches the sound waves.

In humans, the pinna is pointed forward. It helps to determine where the sound is coming from. The direction of the sound is determined by the way the sound wave bounces off the pinna. The brain can distinguish the subtleties in the sound reflection and tell where the sound came from. The horizontal position of the sound is determined by comparing the information from both ears. If a sound is coming from your right, it will enter your right ear slightly sooner than your left and will be slightly louder. Humans cannot really focus in on a sound because the pinnae do not move. Some mammals, such as dogs, have large movable pinnae and so can focus in on a sound.

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/Auditory Nerves

Middle Ear (Outer Ear)

Eardrum

HOW THE VOICE WORKS Singing is actually a simple mechanical process. Here's what's happening in your body that allows you to produce sound to talk and sing: BREATH: Breathe in through your nose to take air into your lungs. You'd be surprised at just how much air you can take in.

Place your hands at the bottom of your rib cage--your lungs extend all the way from the top of your rib cage near the collar bones to the very bottom.

EXERCISE: Singing uses your whole body, and so it's really important for singers to be fit and have good posture. Try this: while slouching with bad posture, take in a long, slow and steady breath, and then hold your breath. See how long you can hold it. Now, standing up straight with your feet shoulder-width apart, your spine stretched, and your hands by your side, do the same thing. Did your posture affect the way you breathe?

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VIBRATION: As you breathe out, the air passes through your voice box called a larynx (Lair-inks) where pitches are made. You can see this bump best on grown men known as the Adam's apple. You can feel your own larynx by lifting your chin and gently feeling along the front of your neck. Around the middle, you should feel a slight bump. Keeping your hand there, try swallowing and Feel the larynx move. The larynx is home to tiny muscles known as the vocal folds. The air rushing over the muscles creates a "buzz" that travels up into the mouth.

ARTICULATION : As the air comes out, it passes by three articulators--tongue, lips, and the soft palate. IF you slide your tongue along the roof of your mouth, about halfway back, it gets softer. This soft palate can be raised and lowered. Can you raise your soft palate? Here's a tip--think about yawning. The secret to good operatic singing is keeping your soft palate up!

DIFFERENT VOICE TYPES Voices come in all shapes and sizes. To make it easier for singers and casting directors, voices are placed into different categories. There are several main categories for men's and women's voices. Determining whether someone is a soprano or a mezzo-soprano, or a tenor or baritone depends on the range, which is called the tessitura, and the timbre of the singer's voice.

Timbre (tam-ber) refers to the tone of the voice, and tessitura (tess-eh-Too-rah) refers to the distance from the highest note to the lowest note a singer can produce. Tenors and sopranos will be able to sing high notes more comfortably than baritones and mezzo-sopranos, while baritones and mezzo-sopranos will be more comfortable on lower notes.

SOPRANO (suh-PRAN-oh): The soprano is the highest female voice. Sopranos typically play leading ladies. At the end of the opera, you can often expect the soprano character to get married or die, depending on whether the opera is a comedy or a tragedy.

Range: C4-C6.

Famous roles: Cio-Cio San, Madama Butterfly , Puccini, and Fiordiligi, Così Fan Tutte , Mozart.

Try listening to ... "Der Hölle Rache" from Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute).

MEZZO-SOPRANO (MET-soh-suh-PRAN-oh): middle-low range female voice. Mezzo-sopranos are usually cast as sultry women, evil witches, or sometimes even young men. They play characters that suit their earthy voices and are often the supporting roles in operas, though not always. Carmen is a famous opera with a mezzo-soprano main character.

Range: A3-A5.

Famous roles: Cherubino, The Marriage of Figaro , Mozart, and Dorabella, Così Fan Tutte , Mozart.

Try listening to ... "Habanera" from Carmen .

TENOR (TEN-er): A high male voice. Tenors typically sing leading male roles. They are usually the heroes of the story. Tenor characters are often the love interest of the soprano characters.

Range: C3-C5.

Famous roles: Tamino, The Magic Flute , Mozart and The Duke of Mantua, Rigoletto, Verdi.

Try listening to ... "La donna è mobile" from Rigoletto .

BARITONE (BAIR-ih-tohn): A middle-range male voice. Baritones are known for their rich tone in the middle of their range.

In comic operas, they often play humorous characters, but in serious, dramatic operas, they are often cast as the villain.

Range: F2-F4.

Famous roles: Figaro, The Barber of Seville , Rossini, and Papageno, The Magic Flute , Mozart.

Try listening to ... "Largo al factotum" from The Barber of Seville .

With contributions from the Museum of Science, Boston.

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THE MERRY WIDOW SYNOPSIS Act One: A grand New Year’s Eve fête is underway at the Pontevedrian Embassy in Paris and everyone is celebrating the end of 1913. Ambassador Baron Zeta is desperately trying to marry off the American heiress, Hanna Glawari—recent widow of the head of Pontevedrian State Bank, to a native son so that her inheritance can remain in the country and forestall an impending government bankruptcy. Seeing Hanna swarmed by potential suitors, Baron Zeta orders Count Danilo, first secretary at the Embassy and a somewhat reckless bon vivant, or pleasure-seeker, to surreptitiously deter any man who is not Pontevedrian away from her. Danilo is nowhere to be found and soon fetched from Maxim’s, a popular night club.

Meanwhile, Baron Zeta is oblivious to his young Costume design by Gail Buckley for BLO’s French wife, Valencienne, who is coyly flirting with production of The Merry Widow.

French diplomat Camille de Rosillon. In a fit of passion, Camille writes “I love you” on Valencienne’s fan. Later she realizes she has misplaced it and worries it will incriminate her if her husband discovers it first.

Danilo and Hanna have a secret past. Years before Hanna was married, she met Danilo in New York City when she was a dancer with the Ziegfeld Follies, a famous American cabaret. They had a passionate affair and fell madly in love, but it abruptly ended when his aristocratic family learned of her common American background, leaving Hanna brokenhearted and furious.

Both are surprised to see each other again in Paris, and it is clear that there is still a spark between them. Hanna teases him that her new wealth makes her easier to love, while Danilo responds by pretending not to care about her or her money.

Act Two: The next evening, Hanna hosts a National Pontevedrian party in honor of the birthday of the Grand Duke Landislaw Danilovitsch. Camille and Valencienne agree to end their flirtation, but Camille easily persuades Valencienne to a secret rendezvous in the garden one last time. The Baron comes dangerously close to discovering his wife’s indiscretion, but Njegus, who has discovered them first, persuades Hanna to secretly replace Valencienne. The Baron then discovers Hanna and Camille together, to which Hanna proclaims that they are in fact engaged. The Baron is distressed at the impending loss of the country’s fortune, Camille is distraught over the loss of Valencienne, and Danilo, unable to hide his jealousy, storms off to Maxim’s.

Act Three: With the help of Njegus, Hanna has transformed the embassy into a replica of Maxim’s, hoping that it will lure Danilo back to her. When he arrives, he forbids Hanna’s marriage to Camille out of patriotic duty. She tells him that her engagement to Camille was a ruse. Danilo and Hanna can no longer deny their love and passionately reunite. All must face the New Year of 1914 with its yearned-for hopes.

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CHARACTERS Hanna Glawari American ex-Ziegfeld girl recently widowed by a Pontevedrian millionaire, soprano

Count Danilo Danilovitsch First Secretary of the Pontevedrian embassy, tenor

Baron Mirko Zeta Pontevedrian envoy in Paris, baritone

Baroness Valencienne The young French wife of Baron Zeta, soprano

Vicomte Camille de Rosillon French military attaché to the embassy, tenor

Visconte Alessandro Cascada Italian military attaché, baritone

Nikolai Ivanovich St. Brioche Russian military attaché,tenor

Jako Njegus The Embassy Secretary and Zeta’s aide, baritone Costume design for Danilo by Gail Buckley for BLO’s production of The Merry Widow.

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THE MAKING OF AN OPERETTA Generally, it is the composer who is commissioned to compose an opera, thus taking the lead in the creation process. For The Merry Widow, at a time when operetta composers were often secondary to the work itself, the process instead began with the adaptation of Henri Meilhac’s 1861 comedic French play, L'attaché d'ambassade.

Leo Stein, Franz Lehár, and Viktor Léon, 1908 Post Card.

Frenchman Henri Meilhac was not only a playwright, but also frequently collaborated with composers to write opera libretti, including several operas and operettas with Jacques Offenbach, and Jules Massenet's opera Manon.

Over 40 years after the play premiered, Viennese librettist, Leo Stein, found a copy of the script and proposed the idea to his frequent collaborator, a librettist and producer, Viktor Léon. The two adapted the play into an operetta libretto and updated the story to intrigue contemporary Viennese audiences. They contracted with Theater an der Wien, whose manager was looking for a comedic operetta set in Paris, to debut the work. Finally, Stein and Léon commissioned composer Richard Heuberger to set the libretto, based on his success with a similar work seven years earlier. The draft of his composition was so disappointing that Heuberger resigned and it looked like the whole endeavor was to be abandoned. The theater, desperate for a production, recommended Franz Lehár. Although Léon was dubious that a Hungarian composer could successfully portray an authentic Parisian atmosphere, he was completely enchanted with Lehár’s sample piece and granted him the contract.

Lehár was no stranger to Léon and Stein, since he had been awarded the position of resident conductor at Theatre an der Wien just three years prior. In that time, Lehár had successfully debuted a few operettas in collaboration with them. Although conservatory trained as a professional musician, Lehár was a self-taught composer. Before arriving at Theatre an der Wien, he founded his musical career in Hungarian military bands and composed opera in his spare time. He left the military to attend to his compositions after his first opera, Kukuschka, premiered.

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Die Lustige Witwe (The Merry Widow), was set to open in December 1905, with operetta stars, soprano, Mizzi Günther, and baritone, Louis Treumann, to play Hanna and Danilo. While neither was very attractive, their onstage chemistry was riveting and audiences loved them. Despite a tumultuous rehearsal period, fraught with financial troubles and Louis Treumann, baritone and Mizzi Günther, soprano, premiering the artistic disagreements, the roles of Danilo and Hanna in The Merry Widow in 1905. premiere was well received and the operetta quickly grew in popularity over the following year. While the Theater au der Wien successfully presented over 400 performances, The Merry Widow quickly spread to other theaters and countries world-wide, and was put through numerous translations and revisions by various producers. It remains, to this day, one of the most performed operettas.

Boston Lyric Opera has chosen to set The Merry Widow about a decade after its original setting on the eve of The Great War—a time of huge change for the world. The beginning of 1914 was teetering on the edge of a new era, one that, in the four short years that followed, replaced the fantastically lavish and prosperous way of life with new social norms and customs as a result of tremendous tragedy. The set evokes a lavish richness adorned in the Art Nouveau style of sensual curves and curls with a nod to the emerging Art Deco geometrics.

The colors are bright and enlivening, bringing the festive and glamorous atmosphere to life, yet also providing contrast to the tensions running below the surface: an impending bankruptcy of the small European country of Pontevedro, as well as the looming shadow of war. This hint of gravitas makes all the love triangles more bittersweet and the effects of champagne more vibrant. BLO’s production will also bring the cosmopolitan feel of an embassy in the heart of Paris to life through the music, and more precisely, the libretto. Although most of the opera will be performed in English, characters from other countries will sing in other languages including German and French.

RESEARCH: It is not uncommon for art, whether performance or visual, to be on the verge of disaster before it becomes a huge success, and earns a defining place in history. What other similar examples can you find?

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OPERETTA: THE EUROPEAN GRANDMOTHER OF BROADWAY MUSICALS A question is often posed: “What is the difference between opera and musicals?”

They share a lineage, so in fact a more accurate question may be, “How are opera and musical theater related?” Just like grandmother and granddaughter, they share similarities in looks, personality, and temperament, however they also have many attributes that distinguish them.

Operetta, a type of opera, does not quite classify a “generation” unto itself, but illustrates the transition of how one art form influenced another.

If you look deeply into the history of these Western musical forms you will understand how each has deeply influenced the other. Grand opera was still alive and well when operetta was born, and musical theatre emerged when operetta was highly popular. There are certainly musical theater productions that are influenced by grand opera, while others are nearly indistinguishable from operetta, and still others are distinctly their own, unlike opera or theater. In their time, before the rise of major motion pictures at the beginning of the 20th century, operetta and musical theater were the most popular evening entertainments across the Western world.

DISCUSS: Broadway musical theater, although still popular today, is not as risqué as it used to be. What new musical, theatrical, story-telling form in our culture could be the next big controversial “thing?”

Can-can dancers by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, 1895 14

GRAND OPERA

OPERETTA

MUSICAL THEATER

SUBJECT MATTER: Formal, often serious or highly dramatic.

Comedic operas were over-the-top silliness rather than realistic, biting satire.

SUBJECT MATTER: Humanistic and light-heartedly presented, frequently with much satire, even if more tragic events are present.

SUBJECT MATTER: Even more comedic, light-hearted and appealing to a diversity of social classes with an emphasis on middle and lower classes.

STRUCTURE: Sung the entire way through by classically trained opera singers. If there is dancing, it is performed by classically trained dancers from the ballet.

STRUCTURE: Sung by classically trained opera singers with more emphasis on acting and some spoken dialogue. Dancing is included, but often performed by the chorus, minor characters and/or hired dancers.

STRUCTURE: A play with singing and dancing where the actors are not necessarily classically trained singers and the principal characters often required to perform major dance numbers.

VENUE: Performed in grand opera houses in the center of major European cities and in court theatres of the monarchies.

VENUE: Performed in smaller “fringe� theatres on the outskirts of major European and American cities to audiences from many different social classes.

VENUE: An urban populist art form originating in the downtown Theater Districts of New York City and London.

INFLUENCES: Had many strict government requirements and composers had to submit their operas to sensors to be reviewed and comply with recommended revisions in order for their operas to be performed.

INFLUENCES: The government cared little for these bawdy populist performances and therefore imposed no restrictions on content beyond keeping the productions small. This led to, among other things, a popularity in cross-dressing characters on stage.

INFLUENCES: Born in Britain and America in the late 19th century out of an influence of operetta, vaudeville, ballad opera, and burlesque.

FOCUS: The well-known composer and his skill in composing rich, complex musical works with much texture, depth, and harmonic structure.

FOCUS: The singers; some of whom became very popular celebrities strongly associated with a particular role they performed.

Composers were not as wellknown.

FOCUS: Composers were more known similar to grand opera, however actors also became famous in particular roles as well.

LANGUAGE: Always sung in its original language regardless of the country where it was being performed.

LANGUAGE: Often translated into the local language when debuted in another country.

LANGUAGE: Mainly an Englishspeaking art form.

MUSIC: A historic musical lineage was closely honored as composers developed their style after studying those that had come before them. The mainstream high art form of the time.

MUSIC: Snappy, up-beat melodies were continually emphasized along with sweeping orchestral landscapes. Strongly influenced by the popular music of the day in which they were written.

MUSIC: The composer was often inspired by populist and provincial music (including jazz, folk, blues, and gospel) that everyone was familiar with emphasizing simple, catchy melodies.

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THE WALTZ Deemed “scandalous,” “shocking,” and “revolutionary” by critics, the waltz introduced a sensuality to dance that had not previously existed in couples dancing. Before the waltz, couples danced à deux, or side by side, and far apart from each other. When the waltz burst onto the scene, not only did the couple dance face to face, with the man’s hand around the woman’s waist, but also the woman’s ankles were revealed as she spun and glided around the ballroom. This newfound intimacy between partners was only heightened by the inevitable addition of champagne!

The oldest ballroom dance form, the waltz became popular in Vienna, Austria, in the 1780s. Waltz is derived from the old German word walzen, which means to roll, turn, or glide. With roots in triple meter country dances dating back to the 16th century, the waltz introduced new moral codes to European high society.

THE WALTZ & SOCIAL VALUES The waltz coincided with the rise of Romanticism in the 19th century, values began to shift toward greater gender equality and opportunity and away from elitism. and class-consciousness.

Courts throughout Europe, and especially England, resisted the popularity of the waltz on moral grounds even into the late 19 th century. Nevertheless, the dance continued to grow and grow in popularity. Even Queen Victoria, known for her modesty, loved to waltz!

The musical waltz form was established by the 1830s by Viennese composers Joseph Lanner and Johann Strauss, Sr., who solidified the historical connection between the waltz and Vienna, even though the genre was popular throughout Europe. Thanks to the music of Lanner and Strauss, the waltz as a social dance was popular all over Europe by the late 18 th century.

The dance first appeared on stage in Vienna in 1786 in Vicente Martin y Soler’s opera La Cosa Rara. The waltz then spread to ballet with Gardel’s La Dansomanie, which premiered in Paris in 1800. Since that day, many ballet composers have integrated the waltz into their work, including Tchaikovsky in Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker.

The Viennese Waltz by Vladimir Pervuninsky

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During the 1860s, Johann Strauss’ two sons, Johann and Josef, continued their father’s tradition in the composition of waltzes. Johann Strauss, Jr. was so famous that he became known as the “Waltz King.”

In 1874, the younger Strauss moved from waltz composition to operetta. Rivaled only by Jacques Offenbach, a German composer writing operettas in Paris at the time, Strauss is best known for his operetta Die Fledermaus.

THE WALTZ IN THE U.S. The first performance, arranged in Boston in 1834 by dance master Lorenzo Papanti, sent shock waves through high society! By the middle of the 19th century, however, the waltz was just as popular in the United States as it was across the Atlantic.

Strauss’ popularity set the stage for Franz Lehár’s operetta The Merry Widow, which is filled with themes of the waltz. Highly popular by the late 19th century, waltzes featured prominently in many operettas, ballets, orchestral and instrumental works.

One of the most famous musical numbers in Lehár’s The Merry Widow is “The Merry Widow Waltz,” in the end of Act III of the operetta. The duet is a flirtatious and sensuous display of a couple’s unexpressed love for each other. “The Merry Widow Waltz” was also featured in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1945 film, Shadow of a Doubt!

DISCUSS: Do new musical forms more often inspire new dance forms or vice versa?

What other kinds of music have popular dances to go with them?

1816 from Thomas Wilson Treatise on waltzing 17

LILY ELSIE AND THE MERRY WIDOW HAT On June 8, 1907, a strikingly beautiful, 21-year-old soprano named Lily Elsie glided onstage during the third act of The Merry Widow’s English-language premiere at Daly’s Theatre in London and changed the course of 20 th century fashion. Flaunting a magnificent hat made from black crinoline, banded with silver, and featuring pink silk roses, Elsie’s third-act appearance as Hanna Glawari marked the start of the Merry Widow Hat fashion craze that would last until World War I and even spread across the Atlantic to the United States.

Beginning in the early 20th century, theatrical productions served an important role in the inspiration of new fashion trends. As a way to draw in female audiences, producers worked with designers to create new and exciting fashions Lily Elsie in her third act costume for to premiere at the opera. It was common for dressmakers and The Merry Widow milliners to attend the theatre in order to make sketches of designs that their clients would no doubt be asking for as soon as the opera finished!

The Merry Widow Hat was designed by Lucile, or Lady Duff Gordon, one of London’s most famous couturiers. Known for her bold, seductive designs, Lucile believed that women should express their uniqueness in their choice of clothing. Lucile’s Merry Widow Hat design helped create an atmosphere of romantic passion in George Edwardes’ London production of The Merry Widow.

LITTLE KNOWN FACT Lucile survived the Titanic!

Read more in Vogue Magazine

Sparking a decades-long fashion craze, word of the Merry Widow Hat traveled quickly. As more and more ladies requested the style from their milliners, it grew in size to allow the wearer to make more and more of a splash. By 1908, the hat had grown to be eighteen inches tall and seven feet in circumference!

In the United States, the Merry Widow Hat craze was a

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One of a series of post cards making fun of the Merry Widow Hat with little rhymes. c1910.

source of great scandal. In the early 20th century, women still occupied a very traditional place in society. Therefore, the women who wore the Merry Widow Hat in public were making not only a fashion statement, but also a strong comment on the role of women. It was so popular, that women even wore it to church! This caused further dismay from male critics, who complained about the inability to see beyond ladies’ enormous hats.

DISCUSS: Are we just as influenced by fashion we see in movies and on television today as opera audiences were in the first half of the 20th century? What other artistic and popular media do we look to for fashion inspiration?

LA BELLE ÉPOQUE—THE GOLDEN AGE Known in France as La Belle Époque, and in the United States as the Gilded Age, the period from 1871 to 1914 was a time of great prosperity, innovation, and artistic expression across the Western world. It is now widely referred to as the Golden Age. Europe experienced peacetime from civil and international wars, and Paris in particular was a leader in technological advancement earning substantial economic prosperity. France was leading the way in automobile manufacturing, aviation, early telephone systems, neon lighting, and cinematography. Electricity was replacing candles and gas lanterns. Rapid advances were being made in many different media including photography, radio, and recorded sound.

It was also a time of great artistic innovation and production in visual arts, literature, poetry, music, dance, theater, and architecture. While movements including Impressionism, Expressionism, and Cubism dominated in visual arts and music, Art Nouveau defined design.

Art Nouveau style in architecture, interior design, and graphic design was highly influenced by nature and a flowing, fine, feminine aesthetic. Designers emphasized harmonizing with the natural environment using mostly or entirely curved lines and shapes.

The second industrial revolution in the late 19th century transformed urban life and the economy at the turn of the century. As a result, aristocrats were extremely wealthy with family estates (like Downton Abbey); and the upper-middle class, a new social class, was forged creating the nouveau riche – those with new money. Socialites with money to spend and time to spare spurred growth in the entertainment industry so that in addition to traditional theater, ballet and music, casinos, cabarets, vaudeville, and operetta became highly popular.

DISCUSS: How has The Golden Age influenced our lives today? Are there other periods in history that have so widely inspired new art, culture, and technology?

Do you think that we are living in a similar boom currently? Why or why not?

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MAXIM’S The Parisian restaurant, opened in 1893, (and still in operation today!) was made famous by both its exquisite Art Nouveau décor and its reputation for a social dining experience complete with new gastronomies and filled with beautiful people.

Maxim’s Restaurant, Paris

Maxim’s was a popular hotspot throughout the early 20th century, frequented by celebrities, artists, and socialites alike, looking to see and be seen. Parisians came to enjoy fine cuisine, fancy cocktails, and sometimes live music. An icon of Art Nouveau, every element of the interior design promised an elegance void of angles and full of curvy, sensual, and round shapes.

The owner of Maxim’s, Eugène Cornuché, attributed his success to one secret: “I never have an empty dining room. There is always a beautiful figure in the window as one passes by.” Maxim’s is the restaurant that Danilo, in The Merry Widow, often escapes to, preferring to drink champagne and flirt with beautiful women than face pressures from his family regarding his love life and finances.

A trendy, yet classy establishment, Maxim’s developed a reputation among young male socialites as a place to enjoy the company of beautiful women.

These demi-mondaines were most often young, unmarried, professional opera singers, ballet dancers, and actresses who enjoyed the nightlife of Maxim’s when they weren’t on stage or in rehearsal. It was not uncommon for their male aristocratic admirers to financially ruin themselves lavishing these starlets with expensive gifts.

These women lived an independent lifestyle that was rare for the time and welcomed the subsidized luxuries they were afforded by their admirers.

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LISTEN UP! Camille & Valencienne Clandestine lovers meet and flirt, while Valencienne sings about being a “Highly Respectable Wife.” Listen to how the quality of the music contrasts her words.

Note: This duet is sung in French in BLO’s production as both characters are French.

Act I Finale Hanna has arrived at the party as the most eligible woman (and wealthiest) in the room! At the Lady’s Choice dance the men vie for her attention in this flirtatious waltz.

Vilja This made-up Pontevedrian folk song that Hanna sings in Act II tells of a hunter who fell in love with a woodland nymph at first sight, and then couldn’t find her again. Listen to the Balkan folk musical influences (Lehár’s home) contrasting to the cosmopolitan Parisian feel in other parts of the opera.

The Waltz Perhaps the most iconic duet of this operetta, it is also a wonderful example of Viennese waltz composed in the height of its popularity. Feel the ¾ time signature and notice when it changes tempo.

The waltz naturally has a sweeping quality, and with tempo changes becomes an even more dramatic love duet.

GENERAL QUESTIONS TO GUIDE YOUR LISTENING • • • • • • • • • • • •

Dance at Bougival, 1883.

What instruments are playing?

Pierre-Auguste Renoir How fast is the music? Are there sudden changes in speed? Is the rhythm steady or unsteady?

Key/Mode: Is it major or minor? (Does it sound bright, happy, sad, urgent, dangerous?)

Dynamics/Volume: Is the music loud or soft? Are there sudden changes in volume (either in the voice or orchestra)?

What is the shape of the melodic line? Does the voice move smoothly or does it make frequent or erratic jumps? Do the vocal lines move noticeably downward or upward?

Does the type of voice singing (baritone, soprano, tenor, mezzo, etc.) have an effect on you as a listener?

Do the melodies end as you would expect or do they surprise you?

How does the music make you feel? What effect do the above factors have on you as a listener?

What is the orchestra doing in contrast to the voice? How do they interact?

What kinds of images, settings, or emotions come to mind? Does it remind you of anything you have experienced in your own life?

Do particularly emphatic notes (low, high, held, etc.) correspond to dramatic moments?

What type of character fits this music? Romantic? Comic? Serious? Etc.

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RESOURCES Other Study Guides Metropolitan Opera Virginia Opera Videos BBC History of Dance: Viennese Waltz Opera Australia Merry Widow Waltz Video Books & Articles Central Home. (1996). History of Waltz. Retrieved April 5, 2016, from http://www.centralhome.com/ballroomcountry/waltz.htm

Coda magazine. Boston Lyric Opera. Spring 2016 issue. http://issuu.com/bostonlyricopera Craine, D., & Mackrell, J. (2000). The Oxford Dictionary of Dance (Second ed.). Retrieved March 28, 2016, from https://books.google.com/books?id=42g8HpxA48C&dq=Oxford+Dictionary+of+Dance&source=gbs_navlinks_s Holland, E. (2009, November 11). The Merry Widow Hat. Retrieved March 28, 2016, from http://www.edwardianpromenade.com/fashion/the-merry-widow/ Mower, S. (2012, April 13). A Scandal Survives: The Story of Fashion Designer (and Titanic Passenger) Lucile. Vogue. Retrieved March 28, 2016, from http://www.vogue.com/869106/ascandal-survives-the-story-of-fashion-designer-and-titanic-passenger-lucile/ S, R. J. (2002, June 7). Miss Lily Elsie. Retrieved April 5, 2016, from http://www.lilyelsie.com/index.htm Schweitzer, M. (2009). “Darn That Merry Widow Hat�: The On- and Offstage Life of a Theatrical Commodity, Circa 1907-1908. Theatre Survey, 50, pp 189-221.

Stewart, C. (2014, April 9). The Merry Widow Hat (1907-1914). Pretty Clever Films. Retrieved April 5, 2016, from http://prettycleverfilms.com/costume-design-film-fashion/merry-widowhat-1907-1914/#.VwQZiPkrKUn

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Lesson Topic: Analyzing Subtext Grade Level: 9-10 Pre-Performance Lesson Plans Length of Lesson: 2 Class Periods Stage 1 – Desired Results Content Standard(s): Reading Standard MA.1: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

Writing Standard MA. 3.A.: Demonstrate understanding of concept of point of view by writing short narratives, poems, essays, speeches, or reflections from one’s own or a particular character’s point of view.

Speaking and Listening Standard 1.a.: Come to discussions prepared, having read and researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation by referring to evidence from texts and other research on the topic or issue to stimulate a thoughtful, wellreasoned exchange of ideas.

Arts Theatre Strand: Standard 1.14: Create complex and believable characters through the integration of physical, vocal, and emotional choices.

Understanding(s)/goals Students will understand: • What subtext is in written and spoken dialogue.

• How to convey the subtext within spoken dialogue.

Essential Question(s): • What are the nuances in how we communicate?

• Why don’t we always say exactly what we mean or how we feel even if we try to?

• How do we communicate the subtext if not through the words we say?

• How do we understand subtext from someone else?

Student objectives (outcomes): Students will be able to: • Analyze text from the libretto to determine the subtext • Delineate the difference between spoken and written dialogue and subtext (which is not recorded) • Perform short written scripts using body language, tone of voice, facial expressions etc. to convey subtext.

Stage 2 – Assessment Evidence Performance Task(s): Other Evidence: • Read the dialogue provided: an • Self-awareness of communication skill in excerpt from the libretto of The being able to pretend to convey subtext.

Merry Widow.

• Empathy to use deductive reasoning to determine subtext.

• Research and demonstrate understanding of what subtext is.

• Create subtext for The Merry Widow excerpt.

• Perform dialogue conveying subtext through other non-verbal communication.

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Stage 3 – Learning Plan Learning Activities: Total Time: 2 class periods Introductory Activity: Introduce concept of subtext and The Merry Widow: (1/2 class period) • Introduce the concept of subtext with definition, and perhaps a pop-culture example.

Discuss how we understand the subtext if it isn’t spoken.

• Research the characters of Hanna and Danilo and the plot of The Merry Widow.

• Read the provided (at the end of this guide) dialogue between Hanna and Danilo as a class.

• Discuss generally what the overarching subtext might be.

Developmental Activity: Developing understanding of subtext: (1/2 class period) • Students work in pairs to fill in the subtext under each line of dialogue in the scene between Hanna and Danilo.

Closing Activity: Conveying complex communication: (1 class period) • Student pairs perform The Merry Widow dialogue aloud while conveying their version of the subtext in tone of voice, body language, facial expression etc. in front of the class.

• Class discusses on whether they understood the subtext from each performance and why/how.

Lesson Topic: Subtext and Texting Grade Level: 11-12 Pre-Performance Lesson Plans Length of Lesson: 1-2 Class Periods Stage 1 – Desired Results Content Standard(s): Reading Standard MA.1: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters uncertain.

Writing Standard MA.3: Write narratives to develop real our imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences.

Writing Standard MA. 3.A.: Demonstrate understanding of concept of point of view by writing short narratives, poems, essays, speeches, or reflections that respond to universal themes.

Writing Standard MA 6: Use technology, including the Internet, to produce, publish and update individual or shared writing products in response to ongoing feedback, including new arguments or information.

Speaking and Listening Standard 1.a.: Come to discussions prepared, having read and researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation by referring to evidence from texts and other research on the topic or issue to stimulate a thoughtful, wellreasoned exchange of ideas.

Arts Theatre Strand: Standard 1.14: Create complex and believable characters through the integration of physical, vocal, and emotional choices.

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Understanding(s)/goals Students will understand: • What subtext is in written and spoken dialogue.

• How to convey the subtext within spoken and written dialogue.

Essential Question(s): • What are the nuances in how we communicate?

• Why don’t we always say exactly what we mean or how we feel even if we try to?

• How do we communicate the subtext if not through the words we say?

• How do we understand subtext from someone else in spoken dialogue or even though text message?

Student objectives (outcomes): Students will be able to: • Analyze text from the libretto to determine the subtext • Delineate the difference between spoken and written dialogue and subtext (which is not recorded) • Perform short written scripts using body language, tone of voice, facial expressions etc. to convey subtext.

• Use current technology write a text dialogue that clearly conveys subtext.

Stage 2 – Assessment Evidence Performance Task(s): Other Evidence: • Read the dialogue provided at the • Self-awareness of communication skill in end of this guide: an excerpt from being able to pretend to convey subtext. the libretto of The Merry Widow.

• Empathy to use deductive reasoning to determine subtext.

• Research and demonstrate understanding of what subtext is.

• Create subtext for The Merry Widow excerpt.

• Perform dialogue conveying subtext through other non-verbal communication.

• Write a dialogue via text message that clearly conveys subtext Stage 3 – Learning Plan Learning Activities: Total Time: 1-2 class periods Introductory Activity: Introduce concept of subtext and The Merry Widow: (1/2 class period) • Introduce the concept of subtext with definition, and perhaps a pop-culture example (like text messaging). Discuss how we understand the subtext if it isn’t spoken.

• Research the characters of Hanna and Danilo and the plot of The Merry Widow.

• Read the provided dialogue between Hanna and Danilo as a class.

• Discuss generally what the overarching subtext might be.

Developmental Activity: Developing understanding of subtext: (1 class period) • Students work in pairs to fill in the subtext under each line of dialogue in the scene between Hanna and Danilo.

Conveying complex communication: • Student pairs perform The Merry Widow dialogue aloud while conveying their version of

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the subtext in tone of voice, body language, facial expression etc. in front of the class.

• Class discusses on whether they understood the subtext from each performance and why/how.

Closing Activity: Demonstration of Learning: (1/2 class period) • Students work independently to write a short dialogue via text message between two people that clearly contains subtext and demonstrates an understanding of what subtext is.

Lesson Topic: The Waltz Grade Level: 9-10 Post-Performance Lesson Plans Length of Lesson: 1-2 Class Periods Stage 1 – Desired Results Content Standard(s): Dance Standard 1.17: Demonstrate rhythmic acuity in moving.

Music Standard 2.1: Demonstrate and respond to: the beat, division of the beat, meter (2/4, 3/4, 4/4), and rhythmic notation.

Writing Standard MA 3.A: Demonstrate understanding of the concept of theme by writing short narratives, poems, essays, speeches, or reflections from one’s own point of view.

Understanding(s)/goals Essential Question(s): Students will understand: • What is a waltz?

• What a waltz is and what makes its • How is a waltz different from other forms time signature unique. of dance music e.g. a march?

Student objectives (outcomes): Students will be able to: • Feel the waltz time signature in their bodies as well as be able to count the time signature.

• Be able to follow along through movement to The Merry Widow Waltz.

Stage 2 – Assessment Evidence Performance Task(s): Other Evidence: • Attend Boston Lyric Opera’s dress • Understanding of waltz will be successfully rehearsal performance of The demonstrated in future musical Merry Widow. assignments (if in a music class).

• Participate through movement to • Self-awareness and self-confidence through movement. understand the time signature and tempo of a waltz through kinesthetic learning.

Stage 3 – Learning Plan Learning Activities: Total Time: 1-2 class periods Introductory Activity: Listening for Understanding (1/2 class period) • Listen to The Merry Widow Waltz from the Listen Up! section of the Study Guide.

• Play it a second time and have students count out loud with the time signature of the waltz “one, two, three…”

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Developmental Activity: Kinesthetic Learning (1/2 class period) • Clear a space in the classroom and have students line up along one side in three lines.

Have three at a time cross the classroom counting and walking in a waltz time. (The instructor can set a tempo by counting off or playing a metronome.)

• Reflect on how the downbeat has the most emphasis, yet the beats are even. Discuss how that can be portrayed in a walking step.

• Students traverse the classroom (in threes again), but this time to the music of The Merry Widow Waltz.

• Compare and contrast through class discussion how the waltz differs from other musical dance time signatures such as a march.

Closing Activity: Writing Reflection (1/2 class period) • Students write a critical response analyzing why Lehár chose a waltz to set this particular part of the libretto and how the waltz form enhances or detracts from the text. They will also articulate what makes a waltz distinct and what distinguishes it from other similar movements?

• Students write a personal reflection on the experience addressing questions including what was challenging for them and how they overcame it.

Lesson Topic: 1914—The Great War Grade Level: 11-12 Post-Performance Lesson Plans Length of Lesson: 1-2 Class Periods Stage 1 – Desired Results Content Standard(s): World History II.17: Describe the relative importance of economic and imperial competition, Balkan nationalism, German militarism and aggression, and the power vacuum in Europe due to the declining power of the Russian, Austrian, and Ottoman Empires in causing World War I. (H, E) World History II.18:Summarize the major events and consequences of World War I. (H, E) A. physical and economic destruction B. the League of Nations and attempts at disarmament C. the collapse of the Romanov dynasty and the subsequent Bolshevik Revolution and Civil War in Russia D. post-war economic and political instability in Germany E. the Armenian genocide in Turkey F. the unprecedented loss of life from prolonged trench warfare Writing Standard MA.3: Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences.

Writing Standard MA. 9: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection and research.

Understanding(s)/goals Essential Question(s): Students will understand: • What was life like in Europe preceding WWI? • Social, political, economic and • In what ways did WWI change the world historical perspective in Europe socially, politically and economically? on the years leading up to the • How did these sweeping systemic changes beginning of WWI. affect and/or alter the course of individual • Change in these perspectives lives? during and after WWI. • How these events effected individual lives.

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Student objectives (outcomes): Students will be able to: • Demonstrate an understanding of culture before, during, and after WWI. • Imagine how these systemic changes affected the individual lives of the characters in The Merry Widow.

Stage 2 – Assessment Evidence Performance Task(s): Other Evidence: • Attend Boston Lyric Opera’s dress • Gauge students’ familiarity with a variety of rehearsal performance of The cultural, political, and religious ideals.

Merry Widow.

• The balance of creative imagination based in historical fact.

• Research the historical and social context of World War I and beyond.

• Extrapolate through creative writing the fates of The Merry Widow characters.

Stage 3 – Learning Plan Learning Activities: Total Time: 1-2 class periods Introductory Activity: Read and Contextualize: (1/2-1 class period) • Research and discuss the specific social, economic, political, and cultural systematic changes that occurred throughout Europe just before, during, and just after World War I. • Review the plot and characters in The Merry Widow.

Developmental Activity: Understanding Cultural Context: (1/2-1 class period) • Each student may pick three different characters in The Merry Widow, and creatively imagine based in historical context, what might have happened to them through the war and where they would end up by the end of the war.

• Students write a short creative historical fiction narrating in detail the fate of each character they chose.

Closing Activity: (optional) Sharing Perspectives: (1 class period) • Students share their work, and the class compares and contrasts the fates of characters written from multiple student perspectives.

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Act I: The Merry Widow Danilo and Hanna meet again after knowing each other and parting ways years prior.

Danilo: Are you – do you live in Paris now?

Hanna: I’ve just arrived.

Danilo: Are you… ha- - happy?

Hanna: Why do you ask?

Danilo: Curiosity. I’d like to know. Whether you’re happy. Or - - or not…

Hanna: (pause) I’m very happy. Isn’t everyone happy in Paris? Ha ha! Why, I - - I might even get married!

Danilo: Well you shouldn’t have any trouble. All that money.

Hanna: How gallant of you. But you’re right. Having no money didn’t help once…

Danilo: It wasn’t the money. My family - Hanna: Your very aristocratic family…

Danilo: That would have cut me off. And I’d’ve been penniless. Penniless men don’t take wives. It’s not honorable.

Hanna: Ah. Danilo: When I finally inherited, you were married. It took you no time at all, did it…

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Hanna: He asked so nicely.

What did you do with all that - - Inheritance?

Danilo: Blew it to the four winds in Montecarlo.

Hanna: Ah. Smart.

Danilo: I’ve never been smart.

Hanna: And here you are. Penniless again.

Danilo: Unfortunately, Madame‌ Hanna: You can call me Hanna.

Danilo: Better not.

Hanna: Afraid?

Danilo: Yes. Hanna: Why? Danilo: I may forget my position.

Hanna: Which is?

Danilo: I told you. A penniless man.

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