3. Opera Structures. In adapting his novel La dame aux camélias (The Lady of the Camellias) for the stage in 1852, Alexandre Dumas fils had already done some of the work that Verdi's librettist Francesco Maria Piave would need to turn the piece into an opera, La traviata, the following year. A direct comparison between the spoken and sung versions affords a fascinating insight into Verdi's technique of constructing one of those dramatic scenes for two characters that are the life-blood of his operas. We shall also look more briefly at ways in which Verdi uses larger ensembles to create a dramatic climax.

PREPARING FOR THE CLASS. We shall be looking at two scenes from the opera in detail: the duet in the final scene between Alfredo and Violetta, and the Act II scene between Violetta and Alfredo's father, Germont. The attached EXCERPTS contain translations of the equivalent scenes in the opera, in the Dumas play, and in his earlier novel (the final scene does not occur in the novel). These are mainly for your reference, but I strongly advise reading the two passages as they appear in the play (pages 1–4 and 13–19) before class, as they will enable you to get much more out of what follows.

The script and video links will be posted immediately after class.