Zhidovka (opera)

Action One

Square in Konstanz . People kneeling on the porch of the temple, praying. One can hear the singing of the thanksgiving hymn and the cheerful noise of the jubilant crowd. The mayor of the city of Ruggiero, accompanied by the guards, appears and reads the royal edict to the people, announcing the victory of the imperial prince Prince Leopold over the Hussites and the convening of a cathedral for the trial of them. On this occasion, the king ordered a national holiday to be held. All work should be stopped, a solemn prayer service will be held in the temples, and at noon all the fountains will be filled with wine. People greeted with joyful screams this message. Hearing suddenly the hammer knock on the anvil, Ruggiero asks: “Who dares to do work that day?” He is told that this is a jeweler, a Jew, Eleazar, who does not consider Christian holidays mandatory.

At Ruggero’s order, the guard goes to Eleazar’s house and brings him to the mayor with his daughter Rachel. Ruggiero declares to Eleazar that, working on a holiday, he thereby expresses contempt for the God of Christians and deserves strict punishment. The Jew replies that he cannot honor the Christian God, to whose glory all his sons were burned at the stake. Ruggiero says he will face the same fate, and orders Eleazar and his daughter to be executed.

At this moment Cardinal de Bronny leaves the church. Eleazar rushes to him with a plea for forgiveness. Bronny, peering at Eleazar, recalls that he saw him somewhere. It turns out that he knew him while still living in the world. Eleazar reminds him that it was he, de Bronny, who expelled him from Rome. Then he was a dignitary, not a cleric, and lived among the laity, in the circle of his beloved family. The cardinal asks not to poison his heart wounds with memories of the past, since he has since lost both his wife and children. Then he announces to Eleazar and Rachel that they are free, adding: “Let the anger and enmity against the Jews cease: by forgiveness and mercy we will turn them to God!” The freed Eleazar and Rachel retire to their home. Armor and Ruggiero leave with the crowd.

When all the people disperse, a disguised Prince Leopold sneaks to the house of Eleazar and serenades a date for his beloved and loving Rachel, whom he impersonates a Jew, the artist Samuel. Rachel goes to the balcony and joyfully meets her lover. They swear to each other in eternal love. Rachel invites Leopold to come to them tonight to celebrate Easter. Hearing the noise of footsteps, they hide from the room.

The bell rings and the sounds of the solemn march. The fountains, which clogged with wine instead of water, again attract people to the square. Leopold hurries to mingle with the crowd. The magnificent procession of Emperor Sigismund is approaching. Eleazar and Rachel stand on the steps of the temple to better see the procession. Ruggiero, noticing this, finds that the presence of the Jews disgraces the temple, and orders them to be seized. The crowd rushes to fulfill the order of Ruggiero. Arriving in time Leopold rushes to the defense of Rachel and frees her. At the same time, Eleazar, beaten and bloodied, escapes from the hands of the crowd. The people shouted: “A Jew must perish!” Leopold tells Officer Albert to take the Jews to their house under the guard of soldiers. A solemn procession opens. The people enthusiastically greet King Sigismund.

Action Two

Room in the house of Eleazar. Eleazar and Rachel celebrate the Passover with the guests; among the guests is the imaginary artist Leopold. Eleazar sings Easter chants, and the rest sings along with him. Then he gives the interlocutors a piece of matzo . Leopold quietly throws his piece on the floor. Rachel sees this and does not know what to think. Suddenly there is a knock on the door, the whole assembly jumps up in fright. Eleazar quickly puts out the lights and tells everyone to leave, except Leopold, who is hiding behind an easel. Eleazar unlocks the door, and Princess Eudokia, the niece of the emperor, enters the room, accompanied by pages. She came to buy a Constantine the Great necklace from a jeweler, which she intends to present to her husband, the Hussite winner, Prince Leopold, as a sign of her love and devotion. Leopold, hearing this, becomes discouraged. Eleazar gives the princess the requested necklace. Evdokia admires the beauty of the product and says that her beloved Leopold is quite worthy of this gift. Having decided that the necklace should be delivered the next day to the palace, the princess leaves. Leopold exclaims: “How hard it is to be a criminal husband and feel the love of the unfortunate victim of marriage!” Eleazar rejoices that he will take a lot of money by the necklace and at least take revenge and express hatred for the rich Christian. Rachel enters and asks the prince to reveal his secret. His behavior during the meal and much more inspired her to suspect that he was hiding his true origin. Leopold promises her to open during today's night date. Eleazar realizes the relationship of Leopold with his daughter and escorts the imaginary artist. But Rachel remains to wait for him. When everything is quiet in the house, Leopold returns. He asks Rachel for forgiveness and confesses that he has deceived her: he is a Christian. Rachel in horror tells the prince that Christian law punishes death for having a relationship with a Jew, that Eleazar curses her when she finds out that she gave her heart to a Christian. Leopold replies that he is not afraid of the law, asks him to forget his father for his sake and persuades her to run away with him. Rachel at first hesitates - she is sorry for her father, but then she agrees and they are preparing to escape. Suddenly entered, Eleazar catches a couple in love and requires explanation. In a strong indignation, he offers Leopold to leave, adding that “if he were not of the Jewish faith, he would have paid with his life for his daughter!” Leopold shouts: “Kill me! I'm a Christian!". Eleazar furiously grabs a dagger and throws himself at Leopold. Rachel restrains him, saying that they are both to blame. The sorrow of the daughter forces the old man to give his consent to the marriage, provided Leopold changes his religion. But at the last minute Leopold finally reveals the whole truth: he is not only a Christian, but also a prince, the spouse of Eudokia. Eleazar curses him. Leopold runs away.

Action Three

Festive hall in the palace. Ballet. At the table sits the emperor, beside him - Evdokia and Leopold, Bronny and other dignitaries. Those present praise the emperor and congratulate Evdokia and Leopold. At the end of the ballet, the emperor leaves. Are Rachel and Eleazar with a necklace ordered by the princess for Leopold. The prince, seeing them, comes in terrible excitement. Evdokia is going to put a necklace on the kneeling Leopold, but Rachel pulls the jewelry out of her hands, claiming that the prince is not worthy of this honor, because he had a relationship with a despicable Jewess, and this Jewess is herself. Evdokia in despair. Leopold is not defending. The cardinal announces to the prince that with his silence he only confirms his guilt. Then, talking with the Electors, he steps forward, pointing to Eleazar, Leopold and Rachel, announces a curse to all three and orders them to be arrested. The guard takes them to prison. Evdokia falls without feeling into the hands of the court ladies. General confusion.

Action Four

The prison hall. Evdokia enters and orders the guard to bring the Jewess Rachel. They bring her. The princess convinces Rachel to save Leopold, abandoning her fair accusations. At first, Rachel does not agree, saying that he deserves death for stealing her honor and covering her with shame, but after the princess’s intensified prayer, she surrenders and, in the name of her boundless love for Leopold, declares her readiness to take all the blame. Eudokia delightedly thanks her and leaves. Is a cardinal. On his orders, the guard introduces Eleazar. The cardinal, who is sorry for the accused, tells the Jew that he could soften the judges if he is baptized. Eleazar declines the offer. He desires death and revenge. Eleazar knows that the cardinal once had a daughter, who was considered dead in a fire. This child was saved by a disguised Jew, but how - he will not say that. The cardinal begs to reveal a secret to him, but Eleazar is adamant. The armor with the words “You want to die - so die!” Angrily leaves. Eleazar is not afraid of execution - he is sorry for Rachel, but the thirst for revenge triumphs, and he decides to die and take revenge.

Action Five

Place outside the city. A huge steaming cauldron is an instrument of execution. Eleazar and Rachel lead to execution. When Eleazar asked why Leopold was not with them, Ruggiero replied that the prince was only sentenced to exile. Eleazar exclaims: “Here is your justice!” Ruggiero explains that Leopold’s fate is softened, because Rachel admitted that she slandered him. Includes Armor and members of the Ecumenical Council. The cardinal asks Eleazar to open to him in his dying hour, where his daughter is, but he is silent. Saying goodbye to Rachel, Eleazar quietly tells his daughter that at the cost of his life he can save her. But Rachel firmly states that he cannot live without him. Then Eleazar says: “God himself has given you this hardness. May the will of the Almighty be done upon you! ”At that moment, when Rachel had already thrown herself into a boiling pot, Eleazar announces to Bronny that the cardinal executed his own daughter. He falls to his knees, covering his face with his hands. Eleazar, casting a triumphant glance at him, cheerfully goes to execution.

The first production of the opera in St. Petersburg in 1837 took place under the name “Cardinal's Daughter”. Nevertheless, in the second half of the 19th century - the beginning of the 20th century, this Halevi opus was known in Russia under the name "Zhidovka" or "Jewess" ^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]} . According to the entry in the Diary of S. S. Prokofiev , on July 31, 1917, the opera in Kislovodsk was called Zhidovka ^[6] .

However, in the New Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron in an article about Halevy (vol. 12, 1913) all the titles of his works are given in French.

Under the Soviet regime, especially in the context of the campaign against anti- Semitism in the 1920s, the name of the opera Zhidovka became unthinkable.

For a long time, almost a hundred years, Halevi’s opera was not staged on the domestic stage. When preparing the premiere in St. Petersburg in the style of “radical postmodern”, it was not an easy choice of a name from three options: “Jewish”, “Zhidovka” or “Judea”. Despite the fact that in 2010 the first performance at the Mikhailovsky Theater was called “Zhidovka,” at present, in Russia, in the announcements of the opera, there is a tolerant version of the translation of “Judea”.

In Russia

Pre-revolutionary productions

• 1837 - October 23, the first production of the opera entitled "Cardinal's Daughter" was presented by a German troupe in St. Petersburg ^[7] .
• 1859 - premiere in St. Petersburg.
• 1865 - the opera was performed at the Moscow Bolshoi Theater .
• 1878–1879 - productions in the private entreprise of P. M. Medvedev in Saratov and Kazan .
• 1887 - in the private entreprise of P. Lyubimov in Yekaterinburg .
• 1888 - Kazan Opera House , entitled "Cardinal's Daughter." In December, the opera was visited by Vladimir Ulyanov (Lenin) with his brother - D. I. Ulyanov. In 1901, Vladimir Ulyanov wrote to his mother: “I was in the opera the other day, I listened with great pleasure to“ Zhidovka ”: I heard it once in Kazan (when Zakrzhevsky sang), it must have been 13 years ago, but some motives remained in my memory " .
• 1905 - in a private entreprise of M. Valentinov and L. Steinberg in Kharkov .
• 1914 - the opera was performed at the Zimin Opera House ^[8] .

In Soviet times

• 1922 - the performance was in the Zimin Free Opera Theater. According to the data published by E. S. Vlasova, the repertoire index of the 1929 General Repertoire Committee the opera "Zhidovka" was not allowed to be performed, and signs of 1931 and 1934 were forbidden to be performed ^[9] .

In the Russian Federation

• 2010 - February 19, Mikhailovsky Theater of St. Petersburg . Stage Director Arnault Bernard ^[10] , Music Director and Conductor Peter Feranets . According to the initial announcements, the opera was to be called "Zhidovka", but subsequently the name was changed to "Judea" ^[11] . The premiere was scheduled for February 18, but the performance was postponed the next day and was presented under the name "Zhidovka" ^[12] .

Abroad

• 1999 - Vienna State Opera
• 2003 - Metropolitan Opera
• 2004 - Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theater ^{[13] [14]}
• 2005 - La Fenice
• 2007 - Paris Opera
• 2007 - Zurich Opera House
• 2013 - Gothenburg Opera ^{[15] [16]}
• 2016 - National Theater (Munich) ^[17]

• Halevi. Zhidovka. R. Tucker, J. Hayashi, M. Le Breeze, H. Sabate, D. Guinn. Conductor A. Guadagno / London Royal Festival Hall 4.3.1973 / MYTO
• Halevi. Zhidovka. H. Carreras, I. Tokody, S. Gazarian, C. Merritt, C. Siepie, A. Shramek. Conductor Gerd Albrecht / Vienna 23.1.1981
• Halevi. Zhidovka. N. Shikoff, S. Isokoski, R. Schorg, Z. Todorovich, A. Miles, I. Gati. Conductor Simone Young / WIENER STAATSOPER 1998 Live
• Halevi. Zhidovka (full version, the so-called Lemoine-Edition, 1857). A. Papyan, O. Makarina, F. Casanova, J.-L. Viala, P. Plishka. Conductor I. Kweler / New York Carnegie Hall 13.4.1999
• Halevi. Zhidovka. N. Shikoff, S. Isokoski, E. Futral, E. Cutler, F. Furlanetto, D. Cavracos. Conductor M. Viotti / MET 12/13/2003
• Halevi. Zhidovka. N. Schikoff, J. Tamar, A. Massis, B. Sledge, R. Scandiuzzi, V. Le Texier. Conductor F. Chaslin / Venice, La Fenice 11.11.2005
• Halevi. Zhidovka. N. Shikoff, A.K. Antonachchi, A. Massis, C. Lee, F. Furlanetto. Conductor D. Oren / Paris Opera Bastille 18.3.2007

Publications in the USSR

• 1947 - Aria of Eleazar (from the opera The Cardinal's Daughter) - Halevi; George Nalepp . Orc. Bolshoi of the USSR. Deere K.P. Kondrashin. 14937-8, G 340/47;
• 1952 - Aria of Eleazar (from the opera The Cardinal's Daughter) - Halevi; Mikhail Alexandrovich . Orc. Bolshoi of the USSR. Deere A. Sh. Melik-Pashaev. D — 00115-6. 1951 record.
• 1963 - Aria of Eleazar (from the opera Daughter of the Cardinal) - Halevi; Zinoviy Babiy. Orc. Bolshoi of the USSR. Deere M. Ermler. D — 012535-6, C — 0689-90;
• 1965 - Aria of Eleazar (from the opera The Cardinal's Daughter) - Halevi; Kipras Petrauskas. Lithuanian State Opera Orchestra. Deere L. Hoffmekleris. D — 16211-2. In Lithuanian.
• 1979 - Aria of Eleazar (from the opera The Cardinal's Daughter) - Halevi; Dmitry Tarkhov. Bolshoi Symphony Orchestra of BP. Deere O. Bron. M10-41551-2. Archival record of the late 40s or early 50s.
• 1981 - Aria of Eleazar (from the opera Daughter of the Cardinal) - Halevi; Vladimir Petrov. Orc. Bolshoi Theater of the USSR. Deer L. Lazarev. S10-15717-18. Record 1980.

• Halevi, Jacob // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
• "Zhidovka" on the website classic-music.ru