Life with an Idiot
{{Infobox opera
| name = Life with an Idiot
| composer = Alfred Schnittke
| image =
| image_upright =
| caption = The composer
| native_name = {{lang|ru|Жизнь с идиотом}}
| librettist = Viktor Erofeyev
| language =
| based_on =
| premiere_date = {{Start date|1992|04|13|df=y}}
| premiere_location = Het Muziektheater, Amsterdam
}}
Life with an Idiot ({{Langx|ru|Жизнь с идиотом|translit=Zhizn s idiotom|links=no}}) is an opera by the Russian composer Alfred Schnittke to a Russian libretto by Viktor Erofeyev. Written as an allegory of oppression under the Soviet Union,{{cite book|title=Penguin Guide to Opera on Compact Discs|publisher=Penguin|year=1993|page=382}} the opera was first performed at Het Muziektheater, Amsterdam, on 13 April 1992.
Roles
| class="wikitable"
|+{{sronly|Roles, voice types, premiere cast}} !Role !Premiere cast, 13 April 1992{{Almanacco|dmy=13 April 1992|match=Life with an Idiot}} |
| I
|Dale Duesing/Romain Bischoff |
| Wife
|Teresa Ringholz |
| Vova
|Howard Haskin |
| Guard
|bass |Leonid Zimnenko |
| Marcel Proust
|baritone |Robbin Leggate |
Synopsis
;Act 1: As a punishment for not working hard enough, "I" is forced by the authorities to live with an idiot. He chooses Vova from a lunatic asylum. Vova is only capable of speaking a single word: "Ech".
;Act 2: At first Vova behaves well but then he suddenly begins to make a nuisance of himself, including tearing up I's wife's copy of the works of Marcel Proust. I and his wife go to live in another room and Vova calms down. I's wife falls in love with Vova and becomes pregnant by him. Then Vova and I turn on the wife. Vova kills her and I becomes an idiot.
Recordings
- Life with an Idiot (live recording of premiere cast), Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Rostropovich (Sony)
References
Further reading
- The Viking Opera Guide, ed. Amanda Holden (Viking, 1993).
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20120219193134/http://delteatro.it/dizionario_dell_opera/v/vita_con_un_idiota.php Del Teatro (in Italian).]
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Category:Operas by Alfred Schnittke