|
|
Opera Music Plot Synopsis
Richard Wagner: Der Fliegende Hollander
Cast:
Daland, a Norwegian skipper, Bass
Senta, his daughter, Soprano
Erik, a hunter, Tenor
Mary, Senta's nurse, Mezzo-Soprano
Sterrsman, Pilot of Daland's vessel, Tenor
The Dutchman, Baritone
Norwegian Sailors, Crew of the "Flying Dutchman"
and maids.
Setting
A Norwegian Fishing Village in the Eighteenth Century.
Act I | Act II | Act III
Synopsis
Act I
Setting:a Norwegian seashore with steep cliffs. A violent
storm rages.
A sudden violent storm has driven Daland's ship seven miles
off course. His port
had evidently been in sight because Daland thought he had
seen his home and
Senta waiting to greet him. The storm abates as all settle
down for a rest.
Sleep even overcomes Daland's Steersman who is alone on deck.
The Flying
Dutchman's ship suddenly approaches the shore and drops anchor
next to Daland's
ship. The Dutchman goes ashore and laments his fate (Die Frist
ist um). He has
been condemned to sail the oceans of the earth until doomsday.
His only chance
for rest is to find a woman who will be faithful to him until
death. Every seven
years he is allowed to land and search out just such a woman.
He calls for the
end of time to come and take him to his final rest.
Daland comes up on the deck of his ship and notices the Dutchman's
ship anchored
next to his. The Steersman awakens and calls to the other
ship. They do not
answer and the call is repeated. This time the Dutchman appears
on shore. Daland
joins him on the beach and greets him. The Dutchman tells
Daland his ship is
full of treasures; if Daland will grant him shelter for the
evening, he will be
richly rewarded (Durch Sturm und bösen wind verschlagen).
Two of the Dutchman's
crew enter carrying a chest of jewels and the Dutchman says
that this is just a
small part of the collection he has on-board. He goes on to
ask if Daland has a
daughter, and Daland replies that he does. The Dutchman says
that if Daland will
give him his daughter in marriage, Daland can have all the
treasure on the
Dutchman's ship. Daland promises Senta's hand to the Dutchman.
The Dutchman
admits apprehension over the promise, but also excitement
over the prospect of
ending his torment (Wenn aus der Qualen Schreckgewalten).
Daland expresses joy
over his new found treasures and gladly gives Senta to the
stranger. Daland
departs for his home port. The Dutchman declares that his
ship will rest for a
while, but soon over-take Daland's in their trip home.
Act II
Setting: A large room in Daland's house.
Mary and the girls are seated around the stove spinning and
singing (Summ' und
brumm', du gutes Rädchen). Senta is chastised for not
spinning and instead
gazing at the picture of a man with a pale face and dark beard
wearing a black
cloak. Senta turns to Mary and asks why she told her the story
behind the man in
the picture. The girls chide Senta for being in love with
the man in the picture
when she could have the hot-blooded Erik. Senta calls for
Mary to sing the
ballad of the Flying Dutchman. She refuses, so Senta sings
it instead
(Johohohe!).
Have you met the ship at sea with blood-red sails and black
mast?
On the high deck, the pale man, the master of the ship, keeps
endless watch.
Hoo! How the wind howls - Yo ho hey!
Hoo! How it whistles in the rigging, Yo ho hey!
Hoo! Like an arrow he flies, without aim, without rest, without
peace!
But redemption may one day come to the pale man,
if he but find a woman on earth true unto death.
Oh, when will you find her, wan mariner?
Pray to Heaven that soon a woman will stay true to him!
In bitter gale and raging storm, he once tried to round
a cape;
he cursed in, mad fury, and swore: "Never will I give
up!"
Hoo! And Satan heard it! Yo ho hey!
Hoo! Took him at his word! Yo ho hey!
Hoo! And, damned, he now roams the sea without rest or peace!
But the poor man may still find salvation on earth
for an angel of God showed him how one day he might be redeemed.
Ah, wan mariner, could you but find it!
Pray to Heaven that soon a woman will stay true to him!
At anchor every seven years, a wife to woo he goes ashore:
he wooed every seven years, but never a true wife he found.
Hoo! "Hoist sails!" Yo ho hey!
Hoo! "Weigh anchor!" Yo ho hey!
Hoo! "False love, false faith! Back to sea, without rest
or peace!"
The girls ask who is the angel that will save the poor captain.
Senta answers it
is herself as the girls express horror. Erik has heard Senta's
last words and
asks if she wishes to destroy him Erik reports sighting Daland's
ship
approaching their cliff. The girls and Mary leave to prepare
for his return when
Erik halts Senta. Erik tells her that before Daland goes back
out to sea, he
will give Senta a groom. He adds that his heart will be true
until death. He has
not much to offer her, but asks for her hand anyway. Senta
deflects his plea and
tells him she should go and greet Daland. Erik asks who will
comfort his
heart-break if she leaves with the stranger. She tells him
not to doubt her
affection for him and asks what has made him so sad and suspicious.
He tells her
that her father thinks only of wealth. He asks her to forget
her mad infatuation
at which she tells him it is not her fault her face shows
pity. She tells him
his anguish is nothing compared with the Dutchman's fate.
Erik remembers a dream
in which her father brought home a stranger. Senta embraced
him and then
disappeared with him on the sea. He realizes that his dream
is about to become
reality and rushes from the room.
Senta is startled by the sudden appearance at the door of
her father and the
Dutchman. She recognizes the Dutchman and looks at him spellbound.
Daland chides
her for not embracing him, and she does so. Daland then introduces
the Dutchman
to her and asks if she will be kind to the stranger. Neither
are paying him any
attention so he leaves them alone. The Dutchman comments quietly,
as if in a
trance, that he has seen her before in his dreams (Wie aus
der Ferne). He talks
of the warmth he feels wondering if it is love or the yearning
for redemption.
Senta feels compassion for him and hopes his salvation will
come true through
her. The Dutchman asks if she agrees with her father's decision
and if he can
depend on her (Wirst du des Vaters). She responds that regardless
of his past
she will obey her father. He comments on her quick answer
and asks if she has
pity for his suffering To herself, Senta wonders if she can
console him. The
Dutchman overhears her and his ecstasy soars as he begins
to believe his
redemption is at hand. He warns her of the sacrifices she
will have to make at
which she tells him she knows about the sacred duty of a woman.
This soothes the
Dutchman. Daland returns to see how things are progressing
and asks Senta if she
consents to marriage with the Dutchman. Senta agrees as the
three join in a
joyful trio filled with hope and love.
Act III
Setting: A cove with a rocky beach overlooking the Norwegian
and Dutch Ships. It
is evening.
The Norwegian Sailors are celebrating Daland's return (Steuermann,
laß die
wacht!). The crowd has grown curious about the Dutch ships
eery appearance and
unearthly silence. They begin to call for the Dutch crew to
join them in the
celebration. Girls from the village offer wine and food to
the Dutchman's crew.
Several attempts are made to hail them. All their calls go
unanswered and the
crowd thinks them dead. The Norwegian sailors claim the wine
and food as their
own and they return to drinking and revelry. A blue flame
suddenly flares up on
the Dutch ship. The sea around the ship becomes violent and
the wind whistles
through its rigging. The crew is suddenly illuminated in the
flickering flame.
In an evil chorus they declare that Satan has blessed their
ship (Johohoe!).
They call upon their captain to return as he will never find
a woman to redeem
his soul. The chorus grows in volume until the Norwegian crew
retreats below
deck making the sign of the cross as they leave. The ghostly
crew mocks them and
silence once more returns to their ship and the surrounding
area.
Senta rushes from the house pursued by Erik. He says that
he cannot comprehend
what he has seen or heard. He has been told of her promise
to marry the
Dutchman. He goes on to ask how she could marry someone she
barely knows. She
admits that a noble duty has decreed her destiny. He reminds
her of the
countless risks he took to get her flowers and of her protection
he was sworn to
provide. He reminds her of her declaration of love for him.
The Dutchman has been quietly observing the two and rushes
forward declaring,
"Lost! My redemption is lost forever!" He bids farewell
to Senta and begins to
leave. Senta holds him back as the Dutchman whistles and shouts
for his crew to
get underway. Senta tells him she will fulfill her promise
to marry him. Erik,
unbelieving her words, tries to drag her away. The Dutchman
tells her that since
she has not married him yet, her vow means nothing. Senta
tells him she knows
who he is and insists that through her he will find salvation.
The villagers
arrive, summoned by Erik's cries for help. The Dutchman turns
on Senta and tells
her that she has no idea who or what she is getting involved
with. "I am the
terror of all devout men: The Flying Dutchman I am called!"
He rushes aboard his
ship and instantly it puts out to sea. Senta tries to follow
but is held back by
Daland and Erik. She struggles and tears herself away from
them and runs to a
cliff overhanging the sea. She calls after the Dutchman, "Here
I am, true to you
even until death!" She leaps into the sea and the Dutchman's
ship sinks with all
of her crew still on the ship. The sun begins to ascend and
in its glow, the
Dutchman and Senta can be seen, embracing, ascending from
the ocean to the
heavens.
synopsis © Stephen L. Parker, 1996
|
|
|
