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Beethoven's Fidelio

Sounds of LearningTM
Student Dress Rehearsal
Ludwig van Beethoven's
Fidelio
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
2:15 p.m.

Students in the Opera Company of Philadelphia's Sounds of Learning program saw the final dress rehearsal of Beethoven's only opera, Fidelio, on Wednesday, October 8th.

The opera opens as a comedy with Marzelline and Jaquino's quarrel, then turns dark and melodramatic when Leonore enters, disguised as Fidelio, searching for her lost husband Florestan. Then the opera ends in a burst of joy at Florestan's freedom.

Now that you've studied the opera and seen it, what were your impressions? Tell us what you think and post your reviews here! Did you like the opera? Which was your favorite character? Did you like the sets and projections?

Click here if you want to learn more about Beethoven, Fidelio, or singers in the production.

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Comments

Anonymous said…
The opera was nice but they should have put more then just one object in the scenery. So they would have more details. They also should have made Fidelio look more like a boy instead of a girl.



The music was very well played and it went well with the emotions of the opera. I would love to go back to see another opera.



The only liked the King's costume because it was more old fashion for a king to have that outfit, with the gold colors back in that day.



Breanna from AMY at James Martin
2:56 PM
Anonymous said…
I liked the moving lines during the overture of the opera.
And the way it looked like there were really bars in front Florestan's cell was neat!
I liked that the opera was in German because I can speak German!
I was happy to have the chance to see Beethoven's only opera performed here in Philadelphia!
I think Don Pizarro was well cast - with his appearance and long hair - it made him really fit the look of that character.
I thought the costumes were interesting in the way patches of color were incorporated into the design.
The music reflected the feelings occuring in the opera.

Pearl, Jenkintown Homeschool
9:58 AM
Anonymous said…
The opera was good however i would have like it better if the scenery was modernized like it was. becauas of the scenery, i felt it was harder to follow the story because the audience couldn't follow the flow of the opera as well.
10:17 AM
Anonymous said…
I liked the opera but I thought the acting could of been more passionate. They didn't draw the audience in as much as I would of liked. The music was magnificent though. The orchestra was wonderful I thought. I thought the stage and sets weren't very pleasant to look at. I'm a traditionalist and would of prefered the opera reflected the tradiotional method it was planned to be performed as. Overall, it was enjoyable performance that I think could of used some changes.
10:18 AM
Anonymous said…
It was a very well done performace. I agree they could have made Fidelio look more boyish. And I did not like the colorful streamers at the end of the show. Otherwise, I really enjoyed the performance.
10:24 AM
Anonymous said…
The Opera was very interesting and enjoyable. It was my first opera and I enjoyed the music and the set greatly, but I do think that the subtitles should have outlined more, as it was obvious that not every sentence was translated, and the subtitles did not repeat when there were repeating phrases, so it was hard to follow the emotion of certain scenes, particularly the prisoners scene. In this scene the prisoners are speaking to each other outside, but when their phrases repeat I did not know if they were talking about the joyous sun, or telling each other to speak softly. These two emotions are very different, so I was a little lost during this scene.

The scenery was an interesting modern day interpretation, and the symbolism in the background was interesting, although it seemed out of place in the old setting.

All in all the show was a success, and I enjoyed every minute of it!

Dan F.
Neshaminy HS
10:30 AM
Anonymous said…
I thought the plot had potential, but it wasn't portrayed in a way that made it entertaining. I was extremely disappointed in the costumes.
10:31 AM
Anonymous said…
I liked the set because it was unpredictable. I thought that the gun and flashlights were funny. Jacquino was my favorite because he didn't sing that much. He did his part and got out. I thought the costumes were really wierd, but I liked the set.
11:56 AM
Anonymous said…
I enjoyed the opera for many reasons. One of them is that I loved the scenery and costumes. They were unique. I especially liked the last scene. Fidelio was my favorite character. She was the heroine of the story.
11:58 AM
Anonymous said…
The opera was OK. My favorite part was when Leonore stops Pizarro from killing her husband. I liked the costumes of the prisoners the most. Every prisoner had a different costume.

The head that was hanging from the ceiling was kind of strange. I thought Fidelio looked too much like a woman.

I wish it was sung in English because it was hard to follow.

I didn't really like the beginning, but I liked the end. I thought it was funny when everyone cheered when Leonore pulled out the gun.

I would like to see another opera.
12:02 PM
Anonymous said…
I did enjoy the opera. My favorite part was the scenery. I like the beginning with the square black and white tiles. I also liked when the ribbons came down at the end. My favorite character was Marzelline. I thought her singing was the best. I also like the costumes. They were very bright and unique.
12:37 PM
Anonymous said…
This was the first time I went to see an opera in the USA. My father and I used to listen to a lot of classical music. Fidelio was a very interesting opera, but I was expecting a more traditional representation since the setting of the opera supposedly took place in the year 1500. The costumes and the scenery were very modern and I think the clothes were a little funny with the colors and dots. Sometimes I got distracted and did not listen to the music. I did learn a lot from this experience.
12:41 PM
Anonymous said…
I enjoyed the opera, mostly because of the different language. Although I liked Rocco, my favorite character was Pizarro, especially the clothes he was wearing. I greatly enjoyed looking at the chandelier.
12:43 PM
Anonymous said…
My favorite characters were Fidelio, Florestan, Marzelline, and Rocco. I loved the opera because it was in German and about a woman who does anything to get her man.

I liked the sets because Jun Kaneko did it. I t was full of pretty designs and it was full of color. In between it had shows of color dancing and going over each other.

Seeing the opera made me want to be an artist. The colors touched me and it opened my eyes and showed me how cool art is.
12:47 PM
Anonymous said…
The one thing I thought was cool was the head when it came down from the ceiling.

The thing I hated was that I had to keep looking at a projection screen to see subtitles instead of watching the opera.
12:49 PM
Anonymous said…
I really liked the fact that we got to see Jun Kaneko in real life!
12:50 PM
Anonymous said…
Fidelio was an intriguing opera. First, the costumes were a big part in the opera. I like that they were abstract and different. The opera's simplicity made it easy for me to follow. The chorus to me sounded great because all of the voices were very much in sync. Also, the background and set was abstract but somewhat distracting. I think Pizarro was the best because of his acting skills.
12:55 PM
Anonymous said…
The characters all had very interesting, different parts and voices. Out of the four operas I've seen, it was my second favorite opera because it didn't get very boring and there was always something happening. My favorite character was Fidelio because he was a women disguised.
12:58 PM
Anonymous said…
I liked the opera because of the sets and costumes, but I disliked it because it was in German. Also, I didn't like the seating arrangements because the people in front of me were talking the whole time. My favorite character was Jaquino. He was a very good singer and his acting impressed me. I found his emotions very interesting. I did like the sets and costumes. They were very colorful and lively. They were probably my favorite part.
1:09 PM
Anonymous said…
Fidelio was an interesting opera because it had a lot of different emotions and actions. Also, the colors and setting were eye-catching. My favorite character is Fidelio aka Leonore because she shows people if you care and love someone, you could do anything for them. I liked the opera because the emotions were different and the characters made you feel every emotion that they felt. The costumes were interesting, but at the same time they were simple.
1:15 PM
Anonymous said…
I liked this opera because it showed true love between a husband and a wife. My favorite character was Fidelio because of the passion in her voice. My favorite design of this opera was the prison design. I like the way the black and white made me think of the good and the bad things that happened in this opera.
1:17 PM
Anonymous said…
My favorite character was Marzelline. She was my favorite because she was a very good singer and she looked a lot like my Math and Spanish teacher.
1:20 PM
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