Rigoletto

Verdi's Tragic Masterpiece at Santa Fe Opera

By: Victor Cordell - Jul 27, 2025

On the strength of several renowned operas, Giuseppe Verdi became Italy’s premiere opera composer by 1851. But it was only with the emergence of the masterpieces from his rich middle period that he became the most eminent composer in the genre. The works that marked this ascendance remain among the most revered today – La Traviata, Il Trovatore, and the first produced of the three, Rigoletto.

Common to all three is tragedy – the death of a loved one attributed to poor decisions by the ones closest to them. In the case of Rigoletto, the murder of the jester’s daughter results from revenge gone awry. Besides revenge and betrayal, the opera also explores themes of romantic love, filial love, social structure, integrity, and more.

Santa Fe Opera’s current realization is buoyed by Verdi’s timeless music with a raft of great arias and ensembles delivered by a cast of outstanding singers. The most distinguishing element is the staging which is professional and thematically consistent but will not be to everyone’s liking.

Like many operas from earlier eras, Francesco Maria Piave’s somewhat jumbled and gap-filled libretto is not without controversy. In its own day it was considered immoral, while today its dissonance derives from its social incorrectness. While the jester Rigoletto obsesses over his daughter Gilda’s honor, his publicly lampooning courtiers as being cuckolded is fair game. Notwithstanding their purported waywardness, women are treated as property.

The debauched Duke of Mantua, Rigoletto’s employer, is performed by Duke Kim, who is tested from the starting gate with his lively aria “Questa o Quella” (“This One or That One”). He proves to possess a very Italianate lyric tenor voice with just the right amount of tremolo and lilt. For an assignation, the duke targets Gilda who has arrived only recently and is closeted by her father, and is assumed to be a lover, not a daughter.

Gilda, performed by exquisite soprano Elena Villalón, quickly falls in love with the duke, who has disguised himself as a poor student. At this point, Villalón elegantly sings one of the most hauntingly and haltingly beautiful numbers in the repertoire, “Cara Nome” (“Dearest Name”) to show Gilda’s love to this fictitious Gualtier Maldé. Although the duke is infatuated with her as well, he seeks dalliances with others, yet she is willing to sacrifice for her libertine lover.

Baritone Michael Chioldi is quintessentially adventuresome in performing innovative works, yet he has also sung this title role at the Met, and his rendering here is magnificent. His authoritative and penetrating foghorn voice carries the right mix of caustic humor and ennui, and his stage presence dominates. Somewhat surprising is that, unlike Gilda and the duke, he has no hummable signature aria. Nonetheless, he delivers every vocalization with aplomb, and his rage and lament aria after Gilda has been abducted is particularly poignant.

Although earlier acts are dramatic, the final act in a tawdry inn chills as Rigoletto first affirms the duke’s duplicity. Here Kim sings with great relish the universally known if clichéd “La Donna è Mobile” (“Woman is Fickle”), hypocritically, given the duke’s romantic inconstancy. But what follows is the stunningly beautiful and revelatory “Bella Figlia dell’ Amore” (“Beautiful Daughter of Love”) which starts as the duke’s love aria to the mistress of the inn but becomes a wonderfully conceived and performed double duet, as Rigoletto and Gilda secretly witness the tryst and concurrently sing of the betrayal. Finally, the tragedy plays out.

One of the challenges of producing war horses that aficionados have seen many times is the dilemma of whether to stick to the original intention of the composer and librettist or whether to breathe new life into the opera by changing era, location, or even the facts or tone of the action. Director Julien Chavez deserves credit for the creativity that has gone into this innovative version, but his vision does not completely work for me.

The abstract set gives the appearance of burgundy and cream gift wrap framed by makeup lights, and the first costumes of the chorus repeat the look of the walls, which seems forced. Also, the depictions of the interiors of Rigoletto’s apartment and the inn are like doll house dioramas, and particularly the former is undersized and cramped relative to the players. That said, some visuals are quite stunning.

What is more concerning is that while Rigoletto is a tragedy of the highest order that should maintain tension, silliness abounds. Sometimes with (apparently) red lipstick, a dangling earring, and black togs, the duke looks like a refugee from a leather bar and never convinces as one of the highest station. Rigoletto’s maid acts like a giddy Mrs. Doubtfire, and the courtier perpetrators of Gilda’s kidnapping skulk like Boris and Natasha from Rocky and Bullwinkle. Young, first time opera goers often snicker inappropriately anyway, and the inclusion of frivolousness only encourages them to see more humor that is not intended.

Happily, the power of the music conducted by Carlo Montanaro, fine singing, and the unique Santa Fe Opera experience make for a compelling and enjoyable entertainment.

Rigoletto, composed by Giuseppe Verdi with libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, is produced by Santa Fe Opera (www.santafeopera.org) and plays on its stage at 301 Opera Dr., Santa Fe, NM through August 20, 2025.