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Vanessa is an opera in three (originally four) acts by Samuel Barber with an original English libretto by Gian-Carlo Menotti. It was composed in 1956–1957 and was first performed at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City on January 15, 1958, in a production designed by Cecil Beaton and directed by Menotti. Barber revised the opera in 1965, reducing the four acts to the three-act version most commonly performed today. Vanessa was an immediate critical and popular success and won Barber the Pulitzer Prize. In Europe, it met with a chillier reception. It is occasionally revived in the United States. Highlights from the score include the soprano scena and aria He has come, he has come! . . . Do Not Utter a Word (recorded by Leontyne Price and Renee Fleming), the mezzo aria Must the Winter Come So Soon? (recorded by Denyce Graves), and the last-act quintet, To Leave, to Break.
Characters Plot Time: About 1905. Place: Vanessa's country house in a northern country. Act I Vanessa, Erika, and the baroness await Anatol's arrival. Vanessa and Anatol were lovers twenty years ago. She refuses to reveal her face until he says he still loves her. He does, but she does not recognize him. It is Anatol's son who has come. His father is dead. Erika and Anatol now enjoy the meal meant for Vanessa and his father. Act II The baroness scolds Erika after Anatol seduces her. Erika loves him, but resists his marriage proposal because she doubts his sincerity. Vanessa tells her niece that she also loves Anatol, despite Erika's warning that he is not her former lover. The baroness tells Erika to fight for Anatol. She is unsure if he is worthy of her efforts. He again proposes, and she again declines. Act III The doctor is drunk at a New Year's Eve ball. The baroness and Erika refuse to come to the party to hear his announcement of Anatol and Vanessa's engagement. The doctor goes to fetch them, while Vanessa tells Anatol her fears. Finally Erika returns, but faints, clutching her stomach, as the doctor makes the announcement. She recovers and flees to the lake as Anatol chases after her. Act IV Vanessa is happy when Erika is found alive. She asks Anatol why Erika is acting so strangely. He explains that Erika does not love him. Vanessa begs him to take her away. Erika confesses to the baroness that she was pregnant, but no longer. As Vanessa and Anatol prepare to leave, she asks Erika why she ran away. Erika says she was just being foolish. After the couple leave, Erika covers the mirrors and closes up the house, like Vanessa had done before her. | ||||||||
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