Operas abound about women demanding to know who this bloke really is, but Semele's punishment was particularly harsh. She was the only mortal in Greek mythology to become the parent of a god. But she was struck by lightning before the birth of her son, Dionysis (Bacchus). The lightning of course was his father (Zeus/Jupiter), who had succumbed to her pleas to see him in his godly form. For more on the myth, and Jupiter's inventive midwifery method, here's Wiki. And wondrous accounts from the great texts are here. The trailer, here, gives a glimpse of the way the drama unfolds - and that's just the overture.
Handel, always one for a good myth, composed his oratorio, Semele to the libretto by William Congreve. It's played now as an opera, and Barrie Kosky produced it in 2018 for Komische Oper Berlin. Reviewers raved. Here's Bachtrack. And here's a detailed account of the making of the opera. With a splendid cast and a wicked Kosky twist, it's a brilliant three hours' viewing - and the music is Handel arguably at his best.
It's just come up on OperaVision and available free for one month till 2nd February. Click here to view it.
It's in English, of course, but also has subtitles.
'The questionable morals of whether Semele was 'profane' and so perhaps not suitable for decent members of the audience meant that the work quickly fell from the repertoire, only being revived once by Handel. ' For the history of the opera and the ways it handles the myth, go to Wiki. And yes, Allan Clayton, who plays Jupiter, was the brilliant Hamlet in Brett Dean's opera earlier this year. Our blog post is here.
Trivia question: where does that lovely Handel song, 'Where'er you walk' come from? Sung often as a soprano solo (here's Kathleen Battle) it was was adapted as a Victorian parlour ballad and was later made famous by Kathleen Ferrier. But that's Jupiter - beguiling Semele to his paradise. Wait till you hear tenor Allan Clayton, a devious, giggling and selfsatisfied top god, in purple socks, singing it as he seduces her. In this production, which begins in the ash of the lightning strike, and plays out in the burnt room as Semele relives the story, the sweet music brings green leaves and light.
And at the Met?
Metropolitan Opera continues, bless them, with free live streaming. This week's lineup is titled 'Leading Ladies: Opera’s Greatest Heroines'.
Perhaps not a complete list of those, but some splendid productions among these. Dates are for Melbourne.
Tuesday, January 19 Bizet’s Carmen Starring Anita Hartig, Anita Rachvelishvili, Aleksandrs Antonenko, and Ildar Abdrazakov, conducted by Pablo Heras-Casado. From November 1, 2014.
Wednesday, January 20 Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor Starring Anna Netrebko, Piotr Beczała, Mariusz Kwiecień, and Ildar Abdrazakov, conducted by Marco Armiliato. From February 7, 2009.
Thursday, January 21 Bellini’s Norma Starring Sondra Radvanovsky, Joyce DiDonato, Joseph Calleja, and Matthew Rose, conducted by Carlo Rizzi. From October 7, 2017.
Friday, January 22 Verdi’s La Traviata Starring Natalie Dessay, Matthew Polenzani, and Dmitri Hvorostovsky, conducted by Fabio Luisi. From April 14, 2012.
Saturday, January 23 Puccini’s Tosca Starring Hildegard Behrens, Plácido Domingo, and Cornell MacNeil, conducted by Giuseppe Sinopoli. From March 27, 1985.
Sunday, January 24 Massenet’s Manon Starring Lisette Oropesa, Michael Fabiano, Carlo Bosi, Artur Ruciński, Brett Polegato, and Kwangchul Youn, conducted by Maurizio Benini. From October 26, 2019.
Monday, January 24 Wagner’s Die Walküre Starring Deborah Voigt, Eva-Maria Westbroek, Stephanie Blythe, Jonas Kaufmann, Bryn Terfel, and Hans-Peter König, conducted by James Levine. From May 14, 2011.