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    7K views71 pages

    Amahl and The Night Visitors

    Uploaded by

    Stephanie Rabbitts

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
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    of 71
    AWAIRG HI DiC LOWE ViSbUie GIAN-CARLO MENOTTI AMAHL AND THE NIGHT VISITORS Gera m Que Ae Words and Music by GIAN-CARLO MENOTTI G. SCHIRMER, Inc. tear ubtshng Corporation “AMABL AND THE NIGHT VISITORS” is the first opera commissioned especially for television, and was given its premitre by the NBC Television Opera Theatre in New York City on December 24, 1951. The following cast took part in this performance: | Cuer ALLEN His Mother. 200202 + + Rosemary KuHiaanny King Kaspar. 20 0 0 2 2) +) ANDREW McKinzey King Melchior ©. 0 os <.» Davin Aken King Balthazar... 2... 2...» + + Leon Laser The Page «Francis MonacHino Conductor, THomas ScuiPPERS ‘The entire production was staged by Mr. Menotti, The settings and costumes were designed by Eugene Berman, John Butler designed the choreography. Serving for NBC Television were Samuel Chotsinoff, Producer; Charles Polachek, Associate Producers irk Browning, Televi- sion Director; and George Vouteas, Audio Director. mu Nole AU rights of any kind with respect to this opera and any art thereof, including but not limited to stage, radio, tele- vision, motion picture, mechanical reproduction, transla- tion, printing, and selling, are strictly reserved. License to perform this work, in whole or in part, must ‘be secured in writing from the Publisher. Terms will be quoted upon request. Copying of either separate parts or ihe whole of this work, by hand or by any other process, is unlawful and punish- able under the provisions of the U. S. A. Copyright Act. Orchestral materials and an arrangement of the orchestral score for two pianos are available on rental. The work is scored for Flute, 2 Oboes, Clarinet, Bassoon, Horn, Trum- et, Harp, Piano, Percussion, and Strings. The use of any copies, including orchestrations, other than those issued by the Publisher, is forbidden. All inquiries should be directed to the Publisher: G. SCHIRMER, Inc. esr ‘The painting, The Adoration of the Magi, by Hieronymus Bosch, is reproduced on the title page of this score through the courtery (of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Vv Characters ‘Amahl (a crippled boy, of about 12)... . - » Boy Sornano HieMother. 2. es . » SOPRANO King Kasper (slightly deaf)... - + + Tenor King Melchior 0 2 0 ee BAnrrone King Balthazar © 2 2 2 = we Bass. The Page ee ce es Bass Chorus of Shepherds and Villagers Dancers v Production Noles Br Gian-Canto Menor The Setting ‘The stage is divided into two areas. One is the interior of the shepherd's hut where Amahl and his mother live. At the extreme right is a low bench, built against the wall, which serves as the Mother's bed and later as the seat to which the Kings are ushered. The bench is cov- ered with straw and sheepskins, Up center is the fireplace, low, rounded, made of stone. Left of the fireplace is a pallet of straw, Amahl’s bed. There are few objects in the room. Beside the fireplace is a low, rough-hewn stool. On the mantel there is a small oil lamp, which throws meager light into the room. In the corner above Amahl’s bed hangs a bird cage made of twisted vines. Except for a few peasant's implements, the room is otherwise bare, clean-ewept. The wood and the stone of the hut have aged and weathered into the hues of grey, brown, and green which bespeak poverty. The third wall of the hut, containing the door and the window, divides the stage, with the door downstage. The door is heavy, wooden, held on a large wooden latch. The window is broken into erndely-fashioned panes, divides at the center, and pushes outward. Near the door, on the outside, is a large stone. Surrounding the hut is the countryside, strewn with little hamlets perched precariously among the distant hills. Past the door of the hut goes the road. The road turns down and out of sight at the extreme left, to reappear winding through the hills. Snow lies softly on the ground. The night sky is pierced by many stare, but the Star of the East with its faming tail floods both sky and earth with a glowing radiance, The Costumes Amahl, the Mother, and the Shepherds are clothed in the plainest homespun materials. Leg bindings, hats fashioned from straw and reeds, rough-cut cloaks, are the marks of the shepherd's trade, The costumes should suggest the anachronistic character of those figures one sees in a Neapolitan presepio, or in any of the paintings of the Flemish and Italian primitives. The Three Kings are magnificently clad, fulfilling in the richness of their dress, their jewels, and their robes'a child’s most colorful dream of what an Orient King should wear. King Melchior carries the coffer of gold, symbol of power, King Balthazar the urn of incense, symbol of prayer, and King Kaspar the chalice of myrrh, symbol of death. The Page is costumed as an oriental slave, The bundles he carries are wrapped richly in furs and cloth of gold. Both King Balthazar und the Page are Nubian. The Characters and the Action Amahl, a child, is the focsl figure of the opera.* Hence, all the action, and even the characterizations of the adult figures, is dictated by his point of view. The seeming severity of the Mother, the occasionally colloquial conduct of the Three Kings, the visit of the Shepherds, the theft of the gold, and the miracle — all these must be interpreted simply and directly in terms of a child's imagination, “Huis the express wish of the composer that the role of Amul should always bé performed by « boy. Neither the masial ror the’ deematie soncept ef the opera permite the subutiiion of a women, eoxtumed ms «child vi Amahl and the Night Visitors ‘Words and Music by Gian-Carlo Menotti Andante sostenuto a> z Piano daleiesino (Orchestra) Sil Lo Lah FP —_____frt= (rhe curtain rises, It ts night, ‘The orystal-clear winter sky ts dotted with stare, the Eastern Star flaming a= smonaes thew Outside the cottage not far from ia dtr, Amahl, wrapped inan secreted cloak, sits ou atone playing Me pipe, Wie orudely- ‘Hes on the ground bestde Mm. Within,the Mother Works at AS chores ha room ti leghtod only Oy the aptng fire and the ie fame of tiny ot tony) Allegro,ma non troppo <=. Pee “ff ve TP OF? Tt OF PF OF DP Copyright, MOMLI, MOMLI, by @ Schirmer, Inc. ‘International Copyright Secured Printed Jn the 0.8. A. Pot PP or or rer or Pr ITP ‘The Mother (She pauses in Aer work to listen to the piping, then calls.) Mother Ae —__ * PPT OF Andantino i or On Time to go to bed! SasCO EA = = = Pm (maki does not stir. After a moment he begins to play agein,) ‘Allegro, ma non troppo @ wel oy For erry tf of ot Mr Or or PF ame (With a ehrug of Mis shoulders, Amul continues to lay) ‘Andantino Allegro Anas om ‘Coming! ‘mahi! ‘Andantinol Ce hi es PEP f lp Mother a Compton be Meter groin opene serpy ang ory. Mother maa ‘echo = Mother Howlong must I shout tomake you o-bey? Hur-ry int Th time to go to bed ro Andantino, con moto jm But Mother, letmevtay a h-le longer Bat my» clea is warm, Irtmestay'a ttle meter '@ Andantino, con moto ‘Thewind is cold longer! But the sky is light, let mestay a lit-tle —long-er! Thenight is di ‘The time Is late. sean moon has-nt risen yet, let me stay a lit-tle ss yet etme Hay 8 Mt agping Aer hand), ® There won't be an-y moon to - Oh, ver-ywell... right. Butthere will be aweepingchildver-y soon, if he docs. hur-ry up and o-bey his mother. rhe Mother elosce the seindow = a Sei a thar tte bane (Reluctantly, Amaht rises, takes up Mis eruteh, and hobblee into the Rouse. On the pegs to one side © _ on a —— — ‘a tompo PP 20, we bi i Of te door he hangs his heavy clock and shepherds cap. His pipe he places carefully in the corner. The Mother kneels at the fin irying to cous a flame from the few remaining twigs, Amal returns fo the open door and leans — ‘aguinst t,looking up to the sky) Hiberamente Ob, Mother, youshould go out and see! There's nev-er been such a at was keeping you outside? sy! Damp cloudshave shined it andsoft winds have swept it r ‘col pedale King’s ball. All its lanterns are and its dak floor is tit, all its torch-es are burn-ing, ~T fe stin-ingtke erys = tal. @ Hang-ing o-ver our roof there isa star as large as a 7 er win-dow, and it moves a-cross the sky like a char - jot on fire. a 6 Poca pit mosso The Mother Mother ont @o wan-dera-boutin a éream, All day tong you S whenwillyoustop telling lies? t <— ¢ cer fire, not a drop of oil in the not a stick of wood on the ————e Gi) Here we are with nothingto eat, 5 id td “5 3 Sd : ao Jug, and all you do is to wor-ry your mother with fair-y tales. Mother hhave “ufor-got-tenyour promise never, nev-er 10 Tie to your moth-er a - gain? ‘Amahl. 1, do be-lieve me, please, do be-lieve me, @ure ——SS eee ——_—-< aoe (ie tugs ot her skirt) ‘winabt Come out- side and let me ‘See for your-self, see for your-self.—__ oe _—— wt Pia in Sit a (She brushes his hand aside.) : (liboramente) pie moxso, (een ‘Stop both-er-ing met ‘Why should be-lieve you? You come with a newone ev-'ry day! @ Fir was a teop-ardwith a wo-man's ‘head, Then it was a trecbranch that shreked and bled. PP ‘Then it was a fish as big a8 & boat, with whis-Kersliko a cat andwingslike & bat and ideramente) horny like a goat, And nowt is a star as large as a win-dow... or way it a Sf, And if that were e-nough, the starhas a til andthe ta is of fel @ Gamat measures the ate as wide Lberamente fe Me armacen reach) Gt her frown,de reduces = the stad by half) Butthere is a star and it has a tail this tong. ‘Well, may-be on-ly... Mother a tempo this tong. But itt there! Cross my heart andhope t0 die. ezgsping Amal! in her arms) mother] X-mahtt @ Hlun-ger has gone to your head. Dear God, what isa poor wid- ow to do, ane (She moves diseonsovarety s0 sne serepeuce.) ‘molto meno mosso Pannier her epioards and pockets are emp-ty and evrything Weld? Unesewe go begging at #0 mano moaso ° PZ ne mpi eee ma Tete stabi) Mother hhowshallwe live through fo-mor-row? My lit-tleson, a beggar! ase a is aril (aman goes to her and embraces her tenderly, stroking her hatr.) ‘Amant ‘Andante calmo ‘Amabt Dont ery, Moth-er dear, dont wor- ry for me.— If we must go begging, a good ‘Amant ‘beg-gar I'l be, know sweet tunes to set peopledanc-ing. Orin a a ‘walk and walk from vil-lageto town, you dressed as Agyp-sy and Tf a clown, Well and walk from vil- lage to tk _ fro lage we shall eat roast goose and sweet al-monds,at night we shall sleep with the sheep ahd the stars ‘win-dows will 8-pen and_peo- ple lean out. The King will ride by hear yourloudvoice and ‘S, ‘throw us some gold to. stop all the noise. noon we stalleat roast goose andeweet al-monds, at night we shall sleep with the My dream-er,geod night! Youre wast - ing the light. es (The Mother rises and bends 10 reaetve the good-night Ries) ‘Amant night. (Amant goes to his patlet of straw at one side of the fireplace, The Mother secures the door, takes @ Allegro, con moto 2a PP —=. Amahte cloak and spreads it over him, touches his head tenderly, then, having snuffed out the tiny oit lamp, she Hee down on the Dench. The lights die from the room except for a faint glow in the fireplace and the radiance of the sky through the window.) ) (the voices of the Three Kings are heard very far away) — @) Andante a Kasper From far a-waywe come and far-ther wemust go. How far, how 2p. = — > Melchior From far a-way we come and far-ther wemust go.— How far, how Baazar come and far-ther we must go. How far, how (athe distance among the hills, Ae ace a tiny winking light rom lantern, then the small figures @ Kaepes ola. ey te crystal star? ‘The shep-herd dreams in -side'the fold.— Metchior fe the fold. — Cold ete 2. cerys-tal star? ‘The shep-herddreams in- cerys-tal star? Cold ‘The shep-herd dreams in- sidethe fold. Of the Three Kings andthe Page vending @y(mah raises himaef om one lbw and stems with etonshment theje way along the mountain road.?) yo the distant singing.) Kaepar fare the sands by the si-lent sea, Froz - en the: in - cemse in ourffoz-en hands, — Manion fare the wands by the si-lent sea, Froz- en the in - cense in our frozen hands,— Botnarar Froz - en the in fare the sands by the si-Tent sea. = cense in our frozen hands, — lo children, costumed exactly like the adult figures. This effect can be achieved by using either poy azn (rhe Figures disappear at a turn én the road.) Kaspar eav ow y the gold. How far, far, my crystal star?. Matchior heavy y the gold. How far, how far, my erystal star? Bahasa heavy - y the gold. How far, how far, my exystal star? Cima throws back Mis cloak and, leaning on his crutch, holes over tothe window) )Allegro Kaspar Matehior Balthazar (dl the left, on the road, appear the Three Kings: first Melchior, Storing Ts coffr af got then bthaner beteink he ate myrrh, and finally Kaspar bearing the wrn of tmeente. All are @ Andante (evvicinandosi a poco a poco) preceded by the Page, whe walks heavily, bent beneath the fond Px ol of many bundlessanong Kaspar By si = Tencesunk-en Takes. the an. te-lope leaps. In A Marhior By si-- lencesunken lakes the an - te-lope leaps. ~e— Busthazar By si Jencesunken lakes the an - te-lope leaps. lante (avvicinandosi a poco a poco) In ® them a rich Oriental rug, a caged parrot, and an elaborate jeweled bor. In one hand the Pifecarriesa heaty lantern Kasper PA- perpainted 0 - * - sis the drunk- en gyp-y weeps. The fun - gryli- on Metedior sy weeps. The hun - pa- perpaintedo - a - ais the drunk- en gy anhazar a= sis the drunk - Pa perpainted 0 - py ween The ggbtn = atv < om 2: Gds the travelers approach the door of the cottage, the Page steps aside 0 fight the way) @, How, Kasper how, the co-bra sleeps. far, far, mycrystal star? wan - ders, the co-bra_ sleeps. ig — far, hgw— far, mycryetal star? — althazar = the co-bra How ®. ‘sleeps. far, how far, mycrysstal 40 Jet King Melchior knock wpon the door) F ‘Amant Gegpnous sripring > Mother. Mother Goandveewho'knockingat the daor. Kaspar Metcdion athazas| 15 \ahl goes to the door and opens i « crack, or Allegro faa cee creme erat) ts Bg uh ce he dao, and ren 0 Ba meter) agitate ‘Amabt Moth-er... Mother T want to besure that you see what I see. ‘The Mother (raising herscif on her 1box) What is the mat-ter withyou now? What is all this fuss a - bout?___ Who is it then? ‘Amah esitatingly) Amant out side the door there is... there is a King with « crown, 46 The Mother No tappo presto i ee Liberamente Mother What__shall I dowiththis boy,what ehall T do, what shall T do? If youdont learn to tell the truth, @er¢ 2 enocks Dabgdy Aer @ pause, she sinks ick on the bed) Mother TH have to spank you! Go back and vee who it iv and ask them what they want. (ite closes it once more and returns CAmakt hurries (0 the door, again opens tt just a crack, and stores) __ @) to his mother.) @ Allegro tenes aby of Amahl poco. pile agritato ‘Amat Gitte Matter. ether omenitine, —Twant tober tat 5 2. da lat. ac. |S see what I see, Motner What fe thematterwithyou now, what fs allthis fuss a - bout? Peart I " $ = > didi ell the Wath be-fore. There is nota King outwide, — SF ‘Thats % good boy. TI =. What — shall T do with this boy, what shall I do, what shall 2 knocks vy Allegro Mather Har-ry back and see who it is, and don't yon dare make up tales! (Amaht repeats again the action tothe doer and back). Arabi Moth- er, Moth- er, ‘Moth- er,come with me: Tf tellyou the truth, — ee me a en ee ee wm 7 418 ‘Aensb — =e * 2S SS Se SSS you wont be - lieve me. But you wont believe me. SSS Try Ho for & change! SSS SS SEES a st Mother + a ah Asvaht T tar it SSS 5 Sure e = nough, there are not two Mother + TH be-tieve you if you tell me the truth, iF ‘Aman Kings out- side, ‘The Kings are three, and one of them is black. That is surpris —- = ‘What shall I do with this boy! Tt you were strong-er Td like to =~ [Melchior acer SEE == @ haan bn os naaaio a q g ges g 3 Amahl (chispering to Aig mother) amos FE 3 Takes her shasl from the peg and goes tothe door) What id I tellyou? Mother z = ° Your star? Sh —— oar sta ior SEE fae—sip tap SSS fap kt FGA = ‘on = ly stay a little while, We must not lose sight of our star We a a im a a 42: Ss ‘Amma = a = Hotter. “Bie gee T shall beright back... and Amal, don't be a mui-sance. gridhly) oa, Matchior| ‘Still have @ Tong way. to Fo, a ane (Lhe moment his mother “ logretto FAment goes to Batthesor) (Kespor goes to the corner ofthe féreplace rhe the Page has placed Allog “inemeate a eae ‘dhornce ‘nai Ithazar__Areyou a real King? Have you re-gal blood? nT see it? a pattharar Yes tis just likeyours. ats theuse of Hav-ing it, then? ‘Where fs your home? SSE ga tompo The fy k black marblepalace Fall of oe baie yen) liberamente ‘black phn-thers and white déves, And you, It-tle ‘what do you (da flock of sheep. But my mother sold them, sold them. Now thereare no Weep left. oo) | ‘had 4 black goat whogave me warm sweet milk, But shedied of old age, old age. Now there is no == aa J bls fin-br ways that now we skall both fo Ueg-ging fromdoorfo door Won't it Ue fan? @ Tt has its pbints, Gamat eroses to Kaspar, cho mahi tooks wonderingly at Betihexer, who indicatea thet Kasper deaf continues to feed the parrot) meh repeats the question, shoxting ) Amahi ‘Areyou areal King, too? AREYOU AREALKING,TOO? Kaspe my, truly, truly, thoy yen, {am & real Amabt What is that? WHAT IS THAT? esit talk? (looking questioningly to Balthes wm T not? ‘althazar Yes, Rasps, a @ (pointing at the Geweted boa) jes IT TALK? Does it bite? DOES IT BITE? ‘And what is this? Gndicating Mis deaf ears) Kaspar displaysa heavily bandaged Singer) How do T know? Giri great excitement, Kaspar opens one drawer at « time, concealing ite contents from Amaht until he lifts the fects, ‘atoms GT my box, this fx mybor, T ney-er trav-el without my box. Inthe first drawr I keep my ‘a tompo aa — PP {he beads, and Sinally the Weorice before the boy's amared eyes.) Kaspar ‘mag-T® stones. One car-ne-lian &-gainst all e-vil ahd en-vy. One moon-stone to make you sleep. One fap-ts Tez - Kaspar help you ~ ter. One small your eyes. "One'red ru-by to protect you from light-ning. te This is my box, this is my box, 1 ney-er trav-el with In the seconddraws T keep —— = — PL all my beads. Oh,— how I love to play with beads, all kinds of beads. Kaspar [GOTH is my box, this is my box. T nev- er trav-el with-out my box Tn the third draw’... Andante in the third draw, me Oh, lit-tle bo yh, little boyl.. In the third drawt I keep... Allegro 7 Kaspar e-o-riee. bhuck,sweet lic-o-rice, bac sweet lie-o-rice, Have some. wom an e" CAmahi seises the candy ond gondies st Gown aa hie mother enters from the outside, bearing « fev stitke) a eee ‘Amant But it isea't my fault! ‘The Mother + Mother ‘A-mahl, T told you not to be a nui-sance! smother, Amal whispers discreetly) ———— = = SSS5S5 5 ‘and call the oth- er shep- herds. Mother ‘Aman ‘Yes, Mother. Mother house, as we have noth-ing to of - fer them. ur- ry ont Cmaht grabs up Ais eloak, claps his hat on hishead.ond hurrice out as Jast as his crutch will carry him. The Mother ‘erosses tothe fireplace to set doven the rccod she has fathered. Suddenly she sees the coffer of gold ond tke rick chaitees of ‘incense and myrrh chick sit Before the Kings. Irreststibly drawn, she moves foward them.) Allegro 7 28 Lento eramente Getth pret estoment) ferent ‘ Mer Se oe SSS z SSS See Tie are the gifts to the Chil, mae 3 == Metenior = Py PP. Mother _ jut perhaps I know him, What does he look like? Metchioe ‘We dost know. But the Star will guide us to Him, fs Andante calmo, quasi adagio Marchioe Haveyou seen a Child the color of wheat,the color of dawn? His eyes are mild,His hands are those of it-¢the ees Ss SS P doleissina Melchior King, asKingHewasborn.Incense,myrrhandgoldwe bring toHisside, andtheEasternStaris our guide, Te Mater rT oF F plas though to herself) Mother ‘Yes, I know a child the col-or of wheat,the color of dawn. His eyesare mild his hands are tose of Os3aes3:3...—. — = sens King, as King he was born. But no one will bring him ih-cense or gold, thoughsick and poor and hun-gry and cold. He's my child, my son, my dar-ling,my own. P, SG — Metehior Have you seen a Child the col-or of rth, the col-or of thorn? His Baihases| Have you ween a Child the col-or of earth, the col-or of thorn? His ®, 5, P a tempo eyes are sad, His hands fe those of the ‘as poorHe was born. eyes are sad, His hands are those of the poor, as poor He was born. fiss| J2Ts Po ane so Matehior Tn - cense, myrrh, and gold we bring to His side, the Bathazas| In-cense,myrth,and gold we bring to His side, andthe Eastern Star is our eee Mother T know a child the cbl-or of earth, the color of thorn. His Matehior Bast-ern Star is our guide. Batthazas| guide, Mother ‘eyes are sad his handsare thoseofthe poor, as poor he was born But no one will bring him @ Mother Tnedase or gold, thoughsick and poor and hungry and cold, Hes my child, my son, my =. sen on darting,my own. ep ‘The Child we seek holds the veas and the winds on His Siva ye PB atenpo —— PP. pep Kaspar holds the winds on His palm. The Childwe seck has the moon and the starsat His Metenior palm, holds the winds on His palm PP Bantharar olds the winds on His palm. (Adiorbed in her oven thoughts, the Mother moves slowly downstage.) Kaspar feet. Thay the stars at His athena fore Him the ea-gle is gen-tle,the li-on is meek Be @ molto expr © —————— Mother “Thechild T know on his palm holds my heart, — The child T know at his Kaspar : ip. He's warmed by breath He’ fed hy Mother who Tire of angels hv-er Ser lis roof andsingHimto ot Meteor Ghoirs of angels hover over His roof andstnglimfo sivep. Hes warmed by breathes fed by Mother who oe Choirs of angels hov-er over Mis cof ahd vingHim to sleep, Hes warmed by breathes fed by Mother who Ost Mother feet has omy ‘iif. ese, Hes my Kaspar is both Virgin and Ip-cense,myrrh, and gold we bring to His ide, iy both Vir-gin and Queen. Ingense,myrrh, and gold we bringto His wide, Battazar fs both Vir-gin and Queen. In-cease,myrsh, and gold we is side, $Borese ®@ i aad L$ et. and the Eastern Star Metedior| our guide. ‘and the Eastera or de Kaspar Metchior Balthazar king. the hushed silence of the room. The Mother fooks s,then she goes to the door and opens it wide.) (The call of the shepherds falte sharp and clear on the aér,b énstimetsvely (0 see if her room is ready fo recetve her neigh Mother Theshepherds arecoming! (ite nudges the dosing: Kasper, Matchior ‘Wake up,Kas-par! moe ee ae oe Whoseallingywhoscalling? ORD 1 ye gs oo [egg SBtP-Betdo'ShepherdestWhascaltingbabealng? Oh! ‘Shep-herdslShepherdend ‘Shep-herdslShepherdes™ @ P . iret singly, then im twos anid threes, the shepherds begin fo appear. They come 3 from ail directions, On the hills in the’ distance lantern lights pierce the dark - Ieee Slowly they coveerire and move dorm the road toward Uke hut ed by a radiant dahl) Allegretto, con _grazia Em-inly, Em-i-ly, Micchael, Bar-thol-O-mew, how ‘and how are

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