Dve morálky na opernom javisku

Two most noteworthy operas of non-Italian verism, d’Albert’s The Lowlands and Charpentier’s Louise, are connected by the portrayal of two different types of morality. In case of the German opera, the virtuous mountains stand in contrast with the decadent lowland, while in the second opera, the Paris metropolis epitomises moral falls and the morality of a proletarian-petty bourgeois family stands in sharp contrast with the Paris bohème. While the signature of the first work is a blend of verism poetics and Wagner‘s postuplates, the French composer was influenced even by a broader range of influences. Both these pieces have only rarely been staged in Slovakia and with controversial reviews. Contemporary internationally acclaimed theatres (in Barcelona and Paris) are keen to breathe new life in these operas.