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Opera Music Plot Synopsis
Massenet: Herodiade
ACT I
Outside Herod's palace in Jerusalem, a dispute between merchants
of different
sects is broken up by Phanuel. Phanuel meets Salome, who has
come to Jerusalem
to find her mother; instead she had met, and fallen in love
with, John the
Baptist. As Phanuel and Salome leave, Herod, who is in love
with Salome, enters.
His wife, Herodiade, follows him, demanding that John be punished
for insulting
her. Herod knows that John is popular and tries to deter her;
as they argue,
John himself enters and again insults Herodiade; she and Herod
flee, and Salome
enters. She offers herself to John, but he rejects her and
advises her to seek a
more spiritual love.
ACT II
In Herod's palace, Phanuel tries to convince Herod to forget
about Salome, with
whom he is obsessed. The two of them plan revolution, but
Phanuel disagrees with
Herod's plan of killing John and other holy men; he thinks
they will only become
martyrs. In front of his palace gates, Herod is rallying his
people to
revolution, but the rally is interrupted by the arrival of
Vitellus, the Roman
proconsul, and his soldiers. Vitellus appeases the mob by
allowing the High
Priest to return to the Temple of Israel. John enters, accompanied
by Salome,
and Vitellus, alarmed by his popularity, has the prophet arrested.
ACT III
Herodiade comes to Phanuel's house to seek his help in revenging
herself on her
husband's rival. Examining the stars, he tells the queen that
only her daughter
can help her. When he tells her her daughter is Salome, however,
she denies it;
Phanuel sends her away. In the temple, Salome again declares
her love for John
and her wish to die with him. Herod plans to save John to
foment rebellion among
the Jews; entering, he sees Salome and declares his love for
her. She rejects
him, and he threatens to kill both her and her rival. The
people gather for
worship; the hierarchs of the temple appeal to Vitellus to
condemn John for his
heresy; Vitellus passes the task to Herod, as John is a Galilean.
Herod
questions John and is about to save him, thinking the prophet
will further his
plans for freedom, when Salome reveals that she loves him.
Herod, enraged,
condemns them both; they are seized by the temple guards.
ACT IV
John is praying in his cell, saying that he is not afraid
to die, but he is
haunted by thoughts of Salome. She enters, and they declare
their love for each
other. John tells Salome to save herself, but she is determined
to die with him.
However, the guards take John away to be killed and drag Salome
off to the
palace, where Herod and Vitellus are holding court. Salome
begs Herod and
Herodiade for John's life; just as Herod is about to give
in to her, the
executioner carries in his bloody sword, indicating that John
has already been
killed. Salome draws a dagger and tries to kill Herodiade,
but the queen tells
her she is her mother; in despair, Salome kills herself instead.
contributed by Chris Hapka; © 1998
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