NPR World of Opera
The Coronation of Poppea, by Claudio Monteverdi

We all remember the 2001 Oscars, when the film "Gladiator" won a boatload of awards. In case you haven't seen it, "Gladiator" is a state-of-the-art, digital-effects extravaganza -- a spectacular, thoroughly-modern look at the pageantry and passions of ancient Rome. That is, the movie's technology is modern. Its story, on the other hand, is pretty standard stuff -- old-fashioned, even. There's a conflict between a noble, forthright good-guy, and a slimy, malevolent bad-guy. Good wins out, when the hero gives his life for justice and freedom, earning the admiration of all. The villain dies, too, but in the end he's thoroughly reviled and his cause is defeated.

As it turns out, this modern, hi-tech film gives us a decidedly conventional drama. So it stands to reason that a 350-year-old opera, also based on ancient Roman politics, would be even more antiquated, right? Well, not necessarily.

Monteverdi wrote a "Roman" opera, The Coronation of Poppea, in the early 1640's. But there's nothing stuffy or predictable about it. In fact, the very morality of its story has been under attack for centuries. In the opera's Prologue, Cupid argues with the deities of Virtue and Fortune. He contends that Love is stronger than both of them - always has been, always will be.

As it turns out, Cupid is right. The opera has one, truly virtuous character - the philosopher Seneca. He spends the entire opera listening to the others make fun of his "square" attitudes. Actually, he spends the first half of the opera doing that. He spends the second half of the opera dead. Sure, there are a couple more characters who have some ethics going for them - and they're filthy rich, to boot. But, when their love-lives are threatened, they quickly become schemers and murderers. And the two characters who allow pure passion to overcome all their moral sensibilties? When the final curtain falls, they're having the time of their lives.

For more on the "love vs. virtue" issue, and to hear the opera itself, you can tune in this week's NPR World of Opera. Host Steve Curwood will introduce a production of Monteverdi's The Coronation of Poppea from one of America's finest opera companies, the Houston Grand Opera. For more on Monteverdi, you can also visit NPR's At the Opera.

LINKS:

Houston Grand Opera
More on Poppea from HGO
Libretto of tPoppea, in Italian
Monteverdi from NPR's Milestones of the Millenium
NPR's At the Opera