Mozart’s Scipio’s Dream: Explore Further

Listen to the full opera on YouTube or Spotify.

The Plot of Mozart’s Scipio’s Dream (Il Sogno di Scipione)

Please Note: The opera is performed in Italian, but English translations are projected on surtitles during the performance. It’s easy to follow the story, so feel free to stop reading if you prefer to avoid spoilers.The performance is 90 minutes without intermission.

As Scipio falls into a deep sleep, the goddesses of Fortuna (Fortune) and Costanza (Constancy) appear to him in the Elysium fields of heaven, a realm where the souls of heroes and virtuous people reside. The goddesses demand that Scipio choose one of them to follow for the rest of his days—he can’t follow both.

Scipio asks for time to consider his choice, but Fortuna is reluctant to agree, acknowledging that she is as changeable and capricious as the wind. As Scipio admires the astonishing beauty of his surroundings, Costanza explains to him that on earth we are incapable of recognizing such wonders. The same way that we have to turn away when we try to look into the sun.

Scipio inquires about the inhabitants of Elysium and is immediately visited by a chorus of noble heroes. Among them is Scipio’s grandfather Publio, who died heroically in military combat while serving his country. Publio explains that only their mortal bodies are dead. He urges Scipio to live a life of virtue, so he can join him and live alongside the immortal heroes in heaven.

Scipio wishes to remain in Elysium, but Fortuna and Costanza insist that this is not permitted. Publio reminds him that he still has plenty to accomplish on earth for the good of his people. He tells Scipio that he has not yet fulfilled his destiny to earn his place in heaven. The time has come for Scipio to choose between Fortuna and Costanza.

One after the other Fortuna and Costanza press their claims for support. Fortuna asserts that every human life is at her mercy. Costanza claims that she alone is capable of withstanding Fortuna and rewarding virtue and merit.

Scipio finally makes his decision. He will ignore the threats and vicissitudes of Fortuna and devote himself to Costanza. Fortuna is livid and unleashes her fury, but Scipio remains steadfast and fearless. He wakes to realize that his dream was a message from the gods, and he reaffirms his loyalty to constancy. The opera comes to an end as the chorus sings his praises, wishing him long life and prosperity.

This plot is adapted from Classical Opera’s album notes from their glorious 2017 recording of Il Sogno di Scipione which can be purchased here and on iTunes and Spotify.

Learn About the Production You’ll See in Portland

OrpheusPDX is reviving a production that was originally produced in New York by the renowned company Gotham Chamber Opera. The show was a huge hit with audiences and critics—it was so popular that it was revived to celebrate the company’s 10th anniversary.

We’re bringing the original director, Christopher Alden, to Portland. He has directed numerous gorgeous shows at Portland Opera, but it will be his OrpheusPDX debut. A team of brilliant local and guest designers will recreate the original concept. Read the reviews below to learn more about the celebrated New York productions.

There is a fun, sensual, modern immediacy to the direction and designs. Alden’s staging is entertaining and often very funny. It elevates the simple storyline to a fun, high energy romp that provides a beautiful foundation to let the incredibly virtuosic music shine.

The story is set in the present day, with elements of different time periods used to reflect the noble heroes that appear to Scipio from different eras. The setting begins in Scipio’s bedroom and playful elements establish the heaven that he is dreaming about. Scipio and the goddesses are initially in their pajamas, but Fortuna has a series of delightfully frenzied costume changes. It’s a brilliant comedic moment that reflects the fickleness of her character. We’re so excited to see the talented singer Jana McIntyre tackle this playful moment in the show.

Here is a sample of reviews from the New York production:

• Alden propelled his cast into unusually intense performances, finding compelling action to enliven the long arias (lasting six to nine minutes each). … This Sogno presents a splendid opportunity to see of one Mozart’s rarest works in a lively production which doesn’t condescend to the difficulties of the work and makes an honorable stab at its vocal demands while at the same time celebrating a milestone for a company that continues to consistently do fine work while other local groups stumble and grope to find their footing.
  –Parterre.com by DeCaffarrelli, 2012
• The ten arias, recitatives, and choruses were all sung beautifully, and enhanced by Christopher Alden’s staging … Making the setting present and lively enables us to hear all the more clearly and deeply the music of past masters who we might dismiss as boring in a more conventional setting. In the Gotham Chamber Opera’s presentation, all the creative zest, the melodic sparkle and the intuitive understanding of opera buffa conventions are on display. Taken on its own terms, Il Sogno is as much fun as Mozart’s later operas. Go and swoon as you listen and look. –Berkshire Fine Arts, 2012
• A vibrant account of this astonishing score. –Associated Press 2012
• Teen Mozart, joyously sung. Some days you can feel like a hero just getting out of bed in the morning. That’s the message of Gotham Chamber Opera’s delightful production of Il Sogno di Scipione, which opened Wednesday. In this offbeat piece — written by a 15-year-old Mozart — the Roman general Scipio Africanus dreams of a confrontation between the goddesses Fortuna and Costanza. Which value best serves a hero, they ask him: luck or determination? There’s hardly any plot in this 1772 work, just elaborate arias requiring nonstop vocal acrobatics from all the singers—one reason it’s rarely performed. But for Gotham’s 10th-anniversary season, artistic director Neal Goren has done the seemingly impossible, grooming a company of young performers who can toss off this daunting music while cavorting through director Christopher Alden’s lively staging. –The New York Post, 2012
• The staging, by Christopher Alden, was modern and quirky, and a universe removed from the vision of mythical antiquity that Mozart imagined. But it was a hit, and the company quickly found its footing as a purveyor of unusual works, old and new. The youthful Mozart is not always edifying listening, but he was in top form here. Every role is packed with spectacularly florid showpieces, and one of Costanza’s arias, “Biancheggia in mar lo scoglio,” has elements that Mozart returned to and developed more fully in his writing for the Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute. –The New York Times, 2012
• On Friday night the company made a propitious debut with a delightful production of Mozart’s Sogno di Scipione (The Dream of Scipione), staged by Christopher Alden. Alden’s directorial imagination sometimes gets the better of him. But here, working with the scenic designer Andrew Cavanaugh Holland and the lighting designer Allen Hahn, he has produced a fanciful and funny show.
  –The New York Times, 2001
• Musically, the work is a wonder. Coming in nine years before Idomeneo, 14 years before Le Nozze di Figaro, and nearly a full 20 years before La clemenza di Tito, Scipione bears presentiments of Mozart’s full operatic trajectory. The work’s strength is also brought out through Alden’s incisive directorship over the Mozartean canon—how tantalizing is the idea of seeing him produce a complete set of the composer’s operas around the city. With a challenging score that could verge on static, there is always movement with purpose. In an early aria, as Fortuna sings her beguiling plea to Scipio, she goes through a wardrobe and a litany of costume changes, reflecting her materialistic prowess. Simultaneously and contrastingly, the enlightened Costanza goes through a series of pure and simple yoga-style movements. It’s constant touches like this that keep the energy glowing. –WQXR, 2012

There’s a good chance you already know a lot about Mozart, but here are some of the reasons he’s considered one of the greatest of all time.

• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) is often referred to as the greatest composer the world has known. He was also the finest pianist, organist, and conductor of his time.
• He was a child prodigy who traveled a great deal, performing in the courts of Europe and absorbing the culture and musical ideas of the entire continent.
• Mozart was known for being impulsive and at times difficult, but there are many examples from history that show he was a kind-hearted, generous, and deeply empathetic person. He supported struggling artists, championed students, and gave donations anonymously to help people who were struggling (even when he wasn’t financially secure).
• His mature operas combine German depth, Italianate melody, and French elegance into deeply human works.
• Mozart is particularly skilled at musical characterizations and dramatic truth.
• As a highly prolific composer, he created supreme masterworks in all genres, including opera, chamber, symphonic, and choral music.
• Mozart’s works are examples of perfection of form and classicism. He continues to influence poets, philosophers, musicians, and the audiences who love him.
• In other words, he is the GOAT! So don’t miss this chance to see one of his early, rarely produced operas. You deserve more than the “popular hits” that are performed over and over—which is one of the reasons OrpheusPDX exists.

Notes From the Creative Team About This Glorious Opera

Christopher Mattaliano, General & Artistic Director

The glory of Mozart’s magnificent music combined with a production that is both whimsical and genuinely funny adds up to a delightful summer experience—a perfect start to our fourth season. I’m so excited for the incredible singers we’ve assembled for this masterful music—including two emerging stars that are already taking the opera world by storm. I first saw this production over a decade ago in New York City and absolutely loved it. I’m thrilled to finally bring it to Portland audiences!

Deanna Tham, Conductor

Everyone loves a good origin story, and while this isn’t the very first operatic work Mozart composed, it’s a very early one, written when he was just 15. Listeners who love Mozart will find it interesting to see these seedlings become the works we are more familiar with. With a simple storyline, we are free to see more plainly Mozart’s gift for proportion, the abandon with which he composes virtuosic lines for both singers and the orchestra, and how he seamlessly joins the instrumental and vocal colors. Perhaps more interestingly, we can see the less mature but still developing coquettishness with which he flirts with form and expectation.

It feels very fitting for Portlanders to want to find the “deep cuts” of an artist. These tracks can often create a deeper understanding and more intimate relationship with the artist. As conductors, we’re often told that if we want to understand opera, study Mozart. With Il Sogno di Scipione, I feel like I’m getting to know a secret side of Mozart in a way. What a treat it will be to work on this opera and experience it with the audience together.

Christopher Alden, Director

A libretto recounting a dream—at first it seems like the librettist Metastasio’s gift to a modern Jungian-minded opera director. The dream turns a bit nightmarish when one is faced with a seemingly endless succession of da capo showpiece arias. But anxiety gradually gives way to bliss as one falls in love with Mozart’s fifteen-year-old genius and the free-flowing inspiration with which he humanizes the formality of opera seria in this Sogno.

One is reminded of a film from some years ago, Two Girls and a Guy, in which a young man, played by Robert Downey Jr., is confronted by two girls with whom he is having simultaneous affairs.  He is forced not only to choose between them but also to face up to the demands of responsible adulthood which loom over his narcissistic young life. There is a telling similarity to the predicament of Metastasio’s and Mozart’s Roman general Scipio, caught in a love triangle of sorts with two demanding goddesses and harangued by the ghost of his illustrious ancestor, who warns him that his destiny is to oversee the destruction of the enemy that has posed an ancient threat to Rome.

An Eighteenth Century opera and a late Twentieth Century film, old world formality and modern slackerish narcissism: disparate bedfellows to the dreaming hero of Il Sogno di Scipione, who seems a kind of Everyman (or Everyperson) waking up from a dream to get dressed and face the day ahead.