从门外汉到歌剧通

主持：Joanna C.Lee 编译：辛时雨

圣诞氛围

The Christmas Spirit

现场歌剧团制作的《 阿马尔与夜访者》剧照

小琼：又到了年末，整个世界都在迎接新年，不少节日氛围浓厚的演出上演了。

小薇：我知道亨德尔的清唱剧《弥赛亚》无论在业余还是专业合唱团当中都很受欢迎，那歌剧领域怎么样呢？有没有专门关于圣诞的作品？

小琼：第一部以圣诞为主题的歌剧在1622年12月25日首演。这部《耶稣救世主的降临》由乔瓦尼·巴蒂斯塔·达格里亚诺与雅各布·佩里（均为克劳迪奥·蒙特威尔第同时代人）作曲，但音乐后来失传了。

小薇：太可惜了！我听说过另一部圣诞前后首演的歌剧：恩格尔伯格·洪佩尔丁克的《汉泽尔与格蕾泰尔》，于1893年首演。这部“童话歌剧”红极一时，至今还迷住一代又一代的孩子。

小琼：若把时间再往后推移，20世纪最杰出的圣诞题材歌剧当属《阿马尔与夜访者》（1951）。作曲家吉安·卡洛·梅诺蒂受委托写下了这第一部电视歌剧，电视是当时美国新兴的流行媒介。所谓“夜访者”实际上指的是寻找圣婴的三位国王。作曲家甚至指定要求阿马尔——这个年轻的、来自贫穷家庭的跛脚男孩角色，必须由男童高音来饰演。

Joan:It’s the end of the year again, and the entire world begins celebrating the holiday season with many a festive performance.

Valery:I know that Handel’sMessiahis a huge favorite among amateur and professional choruses.But what about operas? Are there any that specifically address Christmas?

Joan:The first opera on a Christmas theme was premiered on December 25, 1622.Composed by Giovanni Battista da Gagliano and Jacopo Peri(contemporaries of Claudio Monteverdi), the music toIl gran natale di Christo salvator nostro(The Great Nativity of Christ, Our Savior) has since been lost.

Valery:What a pity! I know of another opera that premiered right around Christmas: Engelberg Humperdinck’sHänsel und Gretel, in 1893.This“fairy-tale opera” became an instant hit, enchanting generations of children.

Joan:If we move closer to the present, the most prominent Christmas opera of the last century isAmahl and the Night Visitors(1951).Composer Gian Carlo Menotti was commissioned to write the first opera for television, which was then a new and popular medium in America.The “night visitors” are actually the Three Kings in search of baby Jesus.The composer even stipulated that Amahl—a young,crippled boy from a poor family—must be played by a boy soprano.

圣何塞歌剧院制作的《汉泽尔与格蕾泰尔》剧照

小薇：我发现从2000年起，不少歌剧院团都在委托制作圣诞主题的新作品。

小琼：能有机会上演新剧目的世界首演向来都是让人兴奋的。此外，大家都希望创作出圣诞题材的、老少皆宜的新经典，因为只要其获得了成功，该作品每年都可以在佳节搬演，吸引成千上万的观众。

小薇：狄更斯以慈善为主题的中篇小说《圣诞颂歌》是多部歌剧的灵感来源。纽约的迪卡珀歌剧团在2000年演出了《上帝保佑我们，每一个人！》（当中引用了狄更斯原著中的最后一句话）。而最近一部改编自该小说的歌剧于2014年在休斯敦大歌剧院首演，由伊恩·贝尔作曲，英国男演员西蒙·卡洛作词。

小琼：这些作品之中同样有原创故事。马克·阿达莫作词曲的《圣诞老人成长记》2015年在达拉斯歌剧院首演。还有，你知道吗？所有首演都安排在12月中旬前后，那是家人团聚的好日子，也是一起看歌剧的好机会！

Valery:I realize that since 2000, quite a few opera companies have commissioned new works for Christmas.

Joan:Well, it’s always a thrill to be able to put on a world premiere.Moreover, everyone wants to create a Christmas classic that appeals to young and old,because if it ever becomes successful, the work can reach millions of people, year after year.

Valery:Charles Dickens’s novella A Christmas Carol,which is about charity and kindness, has inspired multiple operas.New York City’s Di Capo Opera put onGod Bless Us, Every One!(quoting the last line of Dickens’s story) in 2000, and the most recent opera based onA Christmas Carolpremiered at the Houston Grand Opera in 2014, composed by Iain Bell with libretto by British actor Simon Callow.

Joan:There are original stories too.Becoming Santa Claus, with libretto and music by Mark Adamo,premiered at the Dallas Opera in 2015.And guess what? All of these premiere dates occurred around mid-December, which is a great time for families to gather … and watch operas together!