L'elisir d'amore (The Elixir of Love) is a comic opera (melodramma giocoso) in two acts by the Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto, after Eugène Scribe's libretto for Daniel Auber's Le philtre (1831). The opera premiered on 12 May 1832 at the Teatro della Canobbiana in Milan.

Background

Written in haste in a six-week period, L'elisir d'amore was the most often performed opera in Italy between 1838 and 1848 and it has remained continually in the international opera repertory. Today it is one of the most frequently performed of all Donizetti's operas: it appears as number 13 on the Operabase list of the most-performed operas worldwide in the five seasons between 2008 and 2013. There are a large number of recordings. It contains the popular tenor aria "Una furtiva lagrima," a romanza that has a considerable performance history in the concert hall.

Donizetti insisted on a number of changes from the original Scribe libretto. The most well known of these was the insertion of "Una furtiva lagrima" and the duet between Adina and Nemorino in the first act, "Chiedi all'aura lusinghiera". The melody to the duet "Io son ricco e tu sei bella" in Act 2, Scene 1 recurs in the final scene of the opera sung by Dulcamara as a solo aria with new scabrous lyrics.

In general, under Donizetti's hands, the subject became more romantic than in the Auber version: L'elisir d'amore features three big duets between the tenor and soprano. There is also personal history in this opera. Donizetti's military service was bought by a rich woman, so that, unlike his brother Giuseppe (also a well known composer) he did not have to serve in the Austrian army.

Performance history

The premiere of L'elisir d'amore took place at the Teatro della Canobbiana, Milan on 12 May 1832. Today, the opera is part of the standard repertory.

Giuseppe Frezzolini as Dr Dulcamara

Roles

Role	Voice type	Premiere Cast, 12 May 1832 (Conductor: Alessandro Rolla)
Nemorino, a simple peasant, in love with Adina	tenor	Gianbattista Genero
Adina, a wealthy landowner	soprano	Sabine Heinefetter
Belcore, a sergeant	baritone	Henri-Bernard Dabadie
Dr Dulcamara, an itinerant medicine man	bass	Giuseppe Frezzolini
Giannetta, Adina's friend	soprano	Marietta Sacchi
Peasants, soldiers of Belcore's platoon

Synopsis

Front page of the libretto published by editions Ricordi.

Place: A small village in the Basque Country

Time: The end of the 18th century

Act 1

Nemorino, a poor peasant, is in love with Adina, a beautiful landowner, who torments him with her indifference. When Nemorino hears Adina reading to her workers the story of Tristan and Isolde, he is convinced that a magic potion will help him to gain Adina's love. The self-important Sergeant Belcore appears with his regiment and immediately sets about courting Adina in front of everyone. Nemorino becomes anxious (although, Adina meanwhile secretly derides Belcore's complacency) and, alone with Adina, reveals his love for her. Yet Adina rebuffs him, saying she wants a different lover every day and following her example would do Nemorino better. Nemorino declares that his feelings will never change. The travelling quack doctor, Dulcamara (the self-proclaimed Dr. Encyclopedia), arrives, selling his bottled cure-all to the townspeople. Nemorino innocently asks Dulcamara if he has any of Isolde's love potion. Despite failing to recognise the name 'Isolde', Dulcamara's commercial talents nevertheless enable him to sell a bottle of the cure-all - in reality only cheap Bordeaux wine - to Nemorino, withdrawing all his savings.

"Dr. Dulcamara" (Andrew Foldi), an itinerant quack and purveyor of "elixirs" and other tonics, gestures to "Cochise" (Bruce Cooper), his sly trumpet playing assistant, to call together the townspeople as he sings his Act 1 (Scene 2) aria "Udite, udite, o rustici" ("Hear me, hear me, o peasants") in a performance of the Cincinnati Opera's noted 1968 "Wild West" production of L'Elisir d'Amore in which the 1832 opera's setting was moved from a village in the Basque country to 1870s Texas.

To make a safe escape, Dulcamara tells Nemorino the potion needs 24 hours to take effect — by which time, the doctor will be long gone. Nemorino drinks the potion in a haste in order to watch the effect tomorrow. Emboldened by the "elixir" (in fact, drunk), Nemorino feigns indifference when he encounters Adina, as he expects that the elixir will facilitate his conquest of Adina the following day. She becomes increasingly annoyed; perhaps she has feelings for Nemorino after all? Belcore returns and proposes marriage to Adina. Still riled by Nemorino and wishing to give him a lesson, Adina falsely promises to marry Belcore in six days' time. Yet Nemorino only laughs in response: such confidence is sustained in the belief in the magic potion. However, when Belcore learns that his regiment must leave the next morning, Adina promises to marry him before his departure. This of course panics Nemorino, who cries out for Dr. Dulcamara to come to his aid. Adina, meanwhile, invites everyone to the wedding.

Act 2

Adina and Belcore's wedding party is in full swing. Dr. Dulcamara encourages Adina to sing a duet with him to entertain the guests. The notary arrives to make the marriage official. Adina is annoyed to see that Nemorino has not appeared, for the whole deal has been intended only to punish him. While everyone goes to witness the signing of the wedding contract, Dulcamara stays behind, helping himself to food and drink. Having seen the notary, Nemorino appears, depressed, as he believes that he has lost Adina. He sees Dulcamara and frantically begs him for a more powerful, faster-acting elixir. Although Dulcamara is proud to boast of his philanthropy, upon discovering that Nemorino has no money any more he changes his tune and marches off, refusing to supply him anything. Belcore emerges, musing about why Adina has suddenly put off the wedding and signing the contract. He spots Nemorino and asks his rival why he is depressed. When Nemorino says he needs cash, Belcore suggests joining the army, as he'll receive funds on the spot. Belcore tries to excite Nemorino with tales of military life, while Nemorino only thinks of getting the potion and thus winning Adina, if only for a day before departure. Belcore produces a contract, which Nemorino signs in return for the money. Nemorino privately vows to rush and buy more potion, while Belcore muses about how sending Nemorino off to war has so easily dispatched his rival.

After the two men have left, Giannetta gossips with the women of the village. Swearing them all to secrecy, she reveals that Nemorino's uncle has just died and left his nephew a large fortune. However, neither Nemorino nor Adina is yet aware of this. Nemorino enters, having spent his military signing bonus on - and consumed - a large amount of the fake elixir from Dr. Dulcamara. Hoping to share his fortune, the women approach Nemorino with overly friendly greetings. So out of character is this that Nemorino takes it as proof of the elixir's efficacy. Adina sees Nemorino with the women, is rattled by his newfound popularity and asks Dr. Dulcamara for an explanation. Unaware that Adina is the object of Nemorino's affection, Dulcamara explains that Nemorino spent his last penny on the elixir and joined the army for money to get more, so desperate was he to win the love of some unnamed cruel beauty. Adina immediately recognises Nemorino's sincerity, regrets her behaviour and realises that she has loved Nemorino all along. Although Dulcamara seizes the opportunity to try and sell her some of his potion to win back Nemorino, Adina declares that she has full confidence in her own powers of attraction.

Nemorino appears alone, pensive, reflecting on a tear he saw in Adina's eye when he was ignoring her earlier. Solely based on that, he convinces himself that Adina loves him. She enters and asks why he has chosen to join the army and leave the village. When Nemorino explains that he was seeking a better life, Adina responds that he is loved and that she has purchased back his military contract from Sergeant Belcore. She offers the cancelled contract to Nemorino and reassures him that, if he stays, he will be happy. As he takes the contract, Adina turns to leave. Nemorino believes she is abandoning him and flies into a desperate fit, vowing that if he is not loved he might as well go off and die a soldier. Deeply moved by his fidelity, Adina finally declares that she will love Nemorino forever. Nemorino is ecstatic. Adina begs him to forgive her, which he does with a kiss. Belcore returns to see Nemorino and Adina in an embrace. When Adina explains that she loves Nemorino, the Sergeant takes the news in his stride, noting that there are plenty of other women in the world. Adina and Nemorino learn about the inheritance from his uncle. Dulcamara returns and boasts of the success of his elixir: Nemorino is now not only loved but also rich. He exults in the boost this will bring to the sales of his product. As he prepares to leave, everyone queues up to buy the elixir and hails Dulcamara as a great physician.

Noted arias

Act 1

• Quanto è bella, quanto è cara/ "How beautiful she is" — Nemorino, Scene 1
• Della crudele Isotta / "Of the cruel Isolda" — Adina, Scene 1
• Come Paride vezzoso / "Just as the charming Paris" — Belcore, Scene 1
• Udite, udite, o rustici / "Listen, listen, o peasants" — Doctor Dulcamara, Scene 2

Act 2

• Barcarolle for Two Voices Io son ricco e tu sei bella / "I'm rich, and you are beautiful" - Dulcamara, Adina, Scene 1
• Una furtiva lagrima / "A furtive tear" — Nemorino, Scene 2
• Prendi, per me sei libero / "Take it, I have freed you" — Adina, Scene 2

Arrangements and adaptations

In 1840, Richard Wagner arranged the work for solo piano. W. S. Gilbert wrote a burlesque adaptation of the opera, Dulcamara, or the Little Duck and the Great Quack, in 1866.

Recordings

Year	Cast (Adina, Nemorino, Belcore, Dulcamara)	Conductor, Opera House and Orchestra	Label
1953	Margherita Carosio, Nicola Monti, Melchiorre Luise, Tito Gobbi	Gabriele Santini, Orchestra and Chorus of the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma	CD: Testament Cat: SBT 2150
1955	Hilde Gueden, Giuseppe Di Stefano, Renato Capecchi Fernando Corena	Francesco Molinari-Pradelli, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Orchestra and Chorus	CD: Decca Cat: 443542
1966	Roberta Peters, Carlo Bergonzi, Frank Guarrera, Fernando Corena	Thomas Schippers, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus (Met Opera broadcast of 5 March 1966)	CD: Sony Classical Cat: 90991-2
1967	Mirella Freni, Nicolai Gedda, Mario Sereni, Renato Capecchi	Francesco Molinari-Pradelli, Rome Opera Orchestra and Chorus	CD: EMI Cat: CMS 7 69897 2
1970	Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti, Dominic Cossa Spiro Malas	Richard Bonynge, English Chamber Orchestra Ambrosian Opera Chorus	CD: Decca Cat: 424912-2
1977	Ileana Cotrubas, Plácido Domingo, Ingvar Wixell, Sir Geraint Evans	John Pritchard, Royal Opera House Covent Garden Orchestra and Chorus	Audio CD: Sony Masterworks Cat: 2796-96458-2
1981	Judith Blegen, Luciano Pavarotti, Brent Ellis, Sesto Bruscantini	Nicola Rescigno, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus	DVD: Decca Cat: 074 3226
1982	Lucia Popp, Peter Dvorsky, Bernd Weikl, Yevgeny Nesterenko	Heinz Wallberg, Bavarian Radio Chorus, Munich Radio Orchestra	Audio CD: RCA Cat:
1986	Barbara Bonney, Gösta Winbergh, Bernd Weikl, Rolando Panerai	Gabriele Ferro, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Orchestra and Chorus	CD: Deutsche Grammophon Cat: B000458002
1990	Kathleen Battle, Luciano Pavarotti, Leo Nucci, Enzo Dara	James Levine, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus	CD: Deutsche Grammophon Cat: 429744
1996	Alessandra Ruffini, Vincenzo La Scola, Roberto Frontiali, Simone Alaimo	Piergiorgio Morandi, Hungarian State Opera Orchestra and Chorus	CD:Naxos Cat: 8660045-46
1997	Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna, Roberto Scaltriti, Simone Alaimo	Evelino Pidò, Lyon Opera Orchestra and Chorus	CD:Decca Cat: 455691
2006	Anna Netrebko, Rolando Villazón, Leo Nucci, Ildebrando D'Arcangelo	Alfred Eschwé, Vienna State Opera Orchestra and Chorus	DVD: Virgin Classics/EMI Cat: 00946 363352 9
2007	Silvia Dalla Benetta, Raùl Hernández, Alex Esposito, Damiano Salerno	Alessandro De Marchi, Teatro Donizetti, Bergamo Orchestra and Chorus	DVD: Dynamic Cat. 33577

References

Notes

1. ^ Ashbrook 1998, pp. 37 - 38
2. ^ "Opera Statistics". Operabase. Retrieved 14 September 2013. 
3. ^ But "in a small Italian Village" is noted in the Schirmer English edition of the score
4. ^ Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 5th ed., 1954
5. ^ "St. James's Theatre", The Era, 30 December 1866, p. 15
6. ^ L'elisir d'amore discography from Stanford website
7. ^ Recordings of Elixir on operadis-opera-discography.org.uk

Sources

• Allitt, John Stewart (1991), Donizetti: in the light of Romanticism and the teaching of Johann Simon Mayr, Shaftesbury: Element Books, Ltd (UK); Rockport, MA: Element, Inc.(USA)
• Ashbrook, William (1982), Donizetti and His Operas, Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-23526-X
• Ashbrook, William (1998), "L’elisir d’amore" in in Stanley Sadie (Ed.), The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, Vol. Two. London: MacMillan Publishers, Inc. ISBN 0-333-73432-7 ISBN 1-56159-228-5
• Ashbrook, William; Sarah Hibberd (2001), in Holden, Amanda (Ed.), The New Penguin Opera Guide, New York: Penguin Putnam. ISBN 0-140-29312-4
• Black, John (1982), Donizetti’s Operas in Naples, 1822—1848. London: The Donizetti Society.
• Loewenberg, Alfred (1970). Annals of Opera, 1597-1940, 2nd edition. Rowman and Littlefield
• Osborne, Charles (1994), The Bel Canto Operas of Rossini, Donizetti, and Bellini, Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press. ISBN 0-931340-71-3
• Sadie, Stanley, (Ed.); John Tyrell (Exec. Ed.) (2004), The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. 2nd edition. London: Macmillan. ISBN 978-0195170672 (hardcover). ISBN 0195170679 OCLC 419285866 (eBook).
• Schirmer, G. (1990/91), L'elisir D'amore in Collection of Opera Librettos
• Weinstock, Herbert (1963), Donizetti and the World of Opera in Italy, Paris, and Vienna in the First Half of the Nineteenth Century, New York: Octagon, 1963 and 1979. ISBN 978-0-374-98337-6 OCLC 5219645