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Rigoletto
Rigoletto, opera in three acts by Italian composer
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Giuseppe Verdi (Italian libretto by Francesco Maria
Piave) that premiered at La Fenice opera house in Introduction
Venice on March 11, 1851. Based closely on the
Background and context
controversial 1832 play Le Roi s’amuse (The King
Cast and vocal parts
Amuses Himself; also performed in English as The
Setting and story summary
King’s Fool) by Victor Hugo, Verdi’s opera was nearly
kept off the stage by censors. With Rigoletto, Verdi
reached a new level in his career; his next two operas, Il trovatore and La traviata, exhibit
comparable artistry. Each of the three remains a staple of the operatic repertoire. The
opera’s best-known aria is “La donna è mobile,” in which the womanizing Duke of Mantua
muses upon the fickleness of women.

Background and context

Verdi had agreed in 1850 to write an opera for La Fenice in Venice, where Piave, one of his
favourite librettists, was the resident poet. The composer was eager to adapt Hugo’s Le Roi
s’amuse, which he declared “the greatest subject and perhaps the greatest drama of modern
times.” Verdi also said that the title character, called Tribolet in the play, was “worthy of
Shakespeare.” The composer, librettist, and theatre management were aware that getting
the libretto through the censorship process could be a challenge. The play had premiered in
1832 but was banned after only one performance when the French government, horrified
by its disrespectful portrayal of a monarch, declared it immoral.

Northern Italy was at the time controlled by the

Austrian Empire. (See Italy: The Vienna settlement.)
If Verdi wished to stage an opera in Milan or Venice,
two cities central to his career, he needed permission
from both Austrian and local authorities. Very early in
Giuseppe Verdi their work on the libretto, under the title La
Giuseppe Verdi.
maledizione (“The Curse”), Verdi and Piave began
© Juulijs/Fotolia
revising the story so that they would avoid problems
with the censors. They changed the lecherous and debauched king to a duke, transposed the
setting to Italy, and made adjustments to decrease some of the more shocking aspects of the
violent story. As Verdi had wished, however, the duke’s antagonist remained a cruel
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hunchbacked jester. They had not expected to have problems with the censors. Yet back-
and-forth demands and responses, first from the Austrian censor and next from the local
authorities, continued almost until the opera opened. Under its final title, Rigoletto, the
premiere was well received. Two years later Verdi insisted that the opera had “the best, the
most effective subject I have so far set to music.”

Rigoletto is an acknowledged masterpiece that demonstrates Verdi’s complete grasp of his

musical materials. The action proceeds almost continuously, so the audience rarely
perceives artificial breaks for conventional arias. The orchestra conveys moods and
unspoken emotion, perhaps most notably in the storm music of the final act. Even minor
characters are delineated musically—for example, through distinctive rhythmic, melodic,
or harmonic patterns. The quartet “Bella figlia dell’ amore,” is a marvel of simultaneous
characterization, beautifully integrated into the larger context. In fact, upon seeing
Rigoletto in Paris, Victor Hugo himself wrote about the quartet:

If I could only make four characters in my plays speak at the same time, and have the audience
grasp the words and the sentiments, I would obtain the very same effect.

Betsy Schwarm
Cast and vocal parts
The Duke of Mantua (tenor)
Rigoletto, the Duke’s jester (baritone)
Gilda, Rigoletto’s daughter (soprano)
Sparafucile, hired assassin (bass)
Maddalena, Sparafucile’s sister (mezzo-soprano)
Count Ceprano, a nobleman (bass)
Countess Ceprano, Ceprano’s wife (soprano or mezzo-soprano)
Count Monterone, an elderly nobleman (baritone)
Borsa, a courtier (tenor)
Marullo, a courtier (baritone)
Giovanna, Gilda’s nurse (soprano or mezzo-soprano)
Courtiers, nobles, pages, servants

Setting and story summary

Rigoletto is set in Mantua, Italy, in the 16th century.

Act I
Scene 1. The Duke of Mantua’s palace.

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At a splendid ball in his palace, the Duke of Mantua boasts to his retainer, Borsa, of his
plan to finish his conquest of a young woman who has been at church every Sunday for
three months. He has discovered where she lives, and every night he sees a mysterious man
enter her house. The Duke has not revealed his identity to the woman. Borsa, meanwhile,
admires the ladies at the ball, and the Duke is particularly taken with the wife of Count
Ceprano. Borsa warns that if Ceprano were to find out, he might tell the young woman. But
the Duke does not care; all women are the same to him (“Questa o quella”). As Countess
Ceprano passes by, the Duke flirts with her and escorts her out of the room. Rigoletto, the
Duke’s hunchbacked jester, mocks the sullen Count Ceprano, who follows them out in a
huff. Rigoletto joins them, laughing.

Marullo, another of the Duke’s retainers, comes in

with big news: Rigoletto has a mistress! The courtiers
suppress their laughter as Rigoletto arrives with the
Duke, who is whispering to the jester that Ceprano is
a pest and his wife an angel. Rigoletto advises the
Peruvian tenor Juan Diego Flórez as Duke, in a voice loud enough for the Count to hear, to
the Duke of Mantua in Rigoletto,
performed in Callao, Peru, 2008.
carry the Countess off and imprison or execute her
Karel Navarro/AP husband. Ceprano is enraged. The Duke warns
Rigoletto that he has gone too far, but Rigoletto does
not care. The courtiers and ladies enjoy the scene immensely. The merriment is interrupted
by the sudden entrance of Count Monterone, who threatens the Duke. Rigoletto mocks him
for complaining that the Duke has seduced his daughter. Outraged, Monterone swears
vengeance. The Duke orders his arrest. As he is led away, Monterone places a curse upon
the Duke and Rigoletto for laughing at a father’s grief. Rigoletto is visibly shaken.

Scene 2. An alley outside Rigoletto’s house.

Rigoletto is still upset by Monterone’s curse. A strange man, the sinister Sparafucile,
accosts him. He reveals his sword and offers to free Rigoletto from the man who cursed
him. The killer’s attractive sister, Maddalena, will lure the victim to their house, where
Sparafucile will quietly execute him. Rigoletto declines the offer, and Sparafucile says that
he can be found in the alley every night. After dismissing him, Rigoletto reflects that they
are alike: both destroy others—Rigoletto with his wit and acerbic tongue, Sparafucile with
his sword (“Pari siamo”). He reflects again on Monterone’s curse and rails at Nature for
making him deformed and wicked, with no choice but to be a buffoon and no solace but in
mocking the Duke’s courtiers.

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Rigoletto shakes off his fears and enters the courtyard of his house, where Gilda, his young
daughter, throws herself into his arms. Noticing that her father is troubled, she begs him to
tell her what is wrong. Gilda, not knowing her own history, wants him to tell her who he
really is and who her mother was. Rigoletto, sighing, describes his lost love, a woman who
loved him despite his deformity and poverty. Sadly, she died, leaving Gilda to console him.
He will not tell her anything else, only that she is his whole life. Gilda accepts his reticence
and asks permission to go out into the city, which she has yet to explore. Rigoletto
adamantly refuses and pointedly asks if she has already gone out. She says no, and he
warns her to be careful. Secretly, he fears that the courtiers will find Gilda and dishonour
her. He calls for her nurse, Giovanna, and asks whether anyone has been to the house. She
says no, and Rigoletto urges her to keep a close watch on Gilda. His daughter proceeds to
comfort him with the image of her mother watching over them from heaven.

Rigoletto hears something outside and goes to investigate. The Duke, disguised in humble
clothes, slips into the courtyard and hides behind a tree, silencing Giovanna by throwing
her a money purse. Rigoletto returns, asking Gilda if anyone has ever followed her to
church; she says no. He orders Giovanna never to open the door to anyone, especially the
Duke. The Duke, in his hiding place, is stunned to discover that the woman he desires is
Rigoletto’s daughter. Father and daughter embrace, and Rigoletto leaves.

Gilda is stricken by remorse, for she failed to tell her father about the young man who has
followed her to church. When Giovanna suggests that he might be a great gentleman, Gilda
replies that she would prefer that he be poor; she confesses that in her fantasies she tells
him that she loves him.

The Duke emerges from hiding and throws himself at Gilda’s feet, repeating that he loves
her. He motions for Giovanna to leave. Gilda, frightened, calls for her nurse, but the Duke
presses his suit. She asks him to leave, but his flowery words of love have captured her.
She admits that she loves him and asks his name. (Meanwhile, outside, Borsa and Ceprano
have found the home of the despised Rigoletto.) The Duke tells Gilda that he is a poor
student named Gualtier Maldé. Giovanna comes in to say that she has heard footsteps
outside. Fearing that Rigoletto has returned, Gilda urges the Duke to leave. They swear
undying love before Giovanna leads him out.

Alone, Gilda reflects on her lover’s name and swears to love him forever (“Caro nome”).
Out in the street, however, Ceprano, Borsa, Marullo, and other courtiers, armed and
masked, are spying on her. They are stunned by the beauty of the woman they believe to be

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Rigoletto’s lover. Meanwhile, Rigoletto blunders onto the scene. It is too dark for him to
see who is there. Marullo identifies himself and tells him that they are planning to abduct
Countess Ceprano for the Duke. To prove it, Marullo hands Rigoletto the key to Ceprano’s
nearby palace. Rigoletto likes the plan and asks to be masked like the others. Marullo
obliges—with a blindfold—and tells Rigoletto that he is to hold the ladder. The courtiers
clamber up the ladder and into Rigoletto’s house. They drag Gilda screaming out of the
house; she drops a scarf as they take her off. Rigoletto, still holding the ladder, at first
enjoys the joke but then tears off the blindfold. Seeing Gilda’s scarf, he cries out, “Ah! The
curse!”

Act II
A drawing room in the Duke’s palace.

The Duke, having discovered that Gilda has been taken, but not by whom, rails against her
abductors and vows revenge (“Ella mi fu rapita”). Marullo and the others arrive with the
news that Rigoletto’s mistress has been kidnapped. The Duke, amused, asks to hear how it
was done; as they do so, he realizes that the abducted woman is Gilda. He is overjoyed to
learn that they have brought her to his own palace, and he hurries off to see her.

Meanwhile, Rigoletto shuffles in, singing of his grief. The courtiers pretend to feel sorry
for him and ask him what is new. As he answers sarcastically, he looks around for clues
about where Gilda might be. He finds a handkerchief, but it is not hers. When he asks about
the Duke, they say that he is sleeping. Just then a page enters with a message from the
Duchess. The courtiers firmly turn him away, first saying that the Duke is out hunting, then
that he cannot see anyone right now. Rigoletto realizes that Gilda is with the Duke. The
courtiers mock him for losing his mistress, but he reveals that the young woman is actually
his daughter. He tries to run into the other room, but they block him. He threatens them, but
to no avail (“Cortigiani”). Then he begs for their pity, but they ignore him.

Gilda rushes in, weeping for shame. Rigoletto orders the courtiers to leave. They do so, but
they stay nearby to watch him. Gilda tells her father about how she saw a handsome young
student at church and fell in love with him at first sight, how he suddenly appeared to
declare his love, and how she was abducted soon after (“Tutte le feste al tempio”).
Rigoletto consoles her and says they can leave after he does what he has to do.

Monterone and his guards pass by—the aged man is being led to prison. He addresses the
Duke’s portrait on the wall, saying that his curse was in vain. As Monterone leaves,

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Rigoletto swears that he will be avenged (“Sì, vendetta”). He ignores Gilda’s pleas to
forgive the Duke, for she loves him in spite of his betrayal.

Act III
Outside Sparafucile’s house, by the river.

Rigoletto asks Gilda if she still loves the Duke; she replies that she will love him forever,
because he loves her. To prove her wrong, Rigoletto leads her over to an opening in the
wall of Sparafucile’s house and tells her to watch. She can see the Duke enter the room and
ask Sparafucile for a room and some wine. The Duke sings of woman’s fickleness (“La
donna è mobile”). At Sparafucile’s signal, his sister, Maddalena, comes downstairs. The
Duke begins to flirt with her. Meanwhile, Sparafucile comes out of the house, draws
Rigoletto aside, and asks if the Duke should live or die. Rigoletto says that he will come
back later to discuss this. Sparafucile goes off behind the house.

From outside the house, Gilda and Rigoletto watch as the Duke pursues Maddalena. Gilda
is in agony but cannot tear herself away, though Rigoletto keeps asking her whether she has
had enough (Quartet: “Bella figlia dell’amore”). Rigoletto urges her to go home, change
into the male clothing that he has prepared for her as a disguise, and flee to Verona; he will
join her tomorrow.

After she leaves, Rigoletto fetches Sparafucile and pays him half the money for the murder.
When Rigoletto says he will return at midnight, Sparafucile replies that it is unnecessary
and offers to take care of throwing the body in the river. But Rigoletto insists on doing that
himself. Sparafucile asks the victim’s name. Rigoletto replies as he leaves, “He is Crime,
and I am Punishment.”

A storm is brewing. Sparafucile enters the house; the Duke and Maddalena are still flirting.
Knowing the plan, she secretly urges the Duke to leave, but he refuses because of the
storm. Sparafucile takes her aside and shows her the money. Then he invites the Duke to
stay for the night. The Duke agrees and, lightly singing his “woman is fickle” tune, falls
asleep. Maddalena has fallen for the Duke, but Sparafucile is focused on the money.
Meanwhile, the storm is worsening. Gilda reappears outside the house, dressed as a man.
She looks through the crack in the wall and overhears Maddalena trying to persuade her
brother not to kill the Duke. She suggests that when Rigoletto returns with the rest of the
money, they kill him instead. But Sparafucile replies that he is no thief. He suggests that if
someone else comes to the house before Rigoletto’s return, that person can die in the

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Duke’s stead; the body of that man will then be delivered to the jester. Maddalena does not
think anyone will be coming in such a storm. But this gives Gilda an idea. Seeing
Maddalena weep for the Duke makes Gilda determined to substitute her own life for his. At
the height of the storm, she pounds on the door and cries out that she is a beggar in need of
shelter. Sparafucile, thinking again of the money, gets his dagger ready. Maddalena opens
the door, Gilda rushes in, and Sparafucile strikes as everything goes dark.

The storm has abated. Rigoletto arrives, savouring the moment of vengeance. As midnight
strikes, he knocks on the door. Sparafucile informs him that the deed is done and shows
him a sack with a body in it, but the killer refuses to give Rigoletto a light by which he can
identify the body until he is paid the rest of the money. Sparafucile suggests that they
quickly throw the body in the water, but Rigoletto wants to do it himself. Sparafucile takes
the money and bids him good night.

Rigoletto is overjoyed at the success of his plan. He is about to roll the body into the water
when he hears the Duke singing his theme song from inside the house. He pounds on the
door, but no one answers. Then he cuts open the sack to reveal his own daughter. She is
barely alive. She admits her deceit but she says that she loved the Duke too much, and now
she is dying for him. She begs Rigoletto’s forgiveness and promises to pray for him when
she is in heaven with her mother. The grieving father begs her to hold on, but she fades
away. Crying out, “Ah! The curse!” he falls over her lifeless body.

Linda Cantoni

Citation Information
Article Title:
Rigoletto
Website Name:
Encyclopaedia Britannica
Publisher:
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Date Published:
22 August 2014
URL:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Rigoletto
Access Date:
April 18, 2022

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