While opera is a great source of entertainment it can also be a source of wisdom for daily life. Here, we look at five lessons that we can absorb from five different operas – including some which Welsh National Opera will be performing soon.
1) Pick and choose what you drink
Many of us wish we could rid ourselves of the pains of life. But in Janáček’s The Makropulos Affair we discover that meaning depends on our limitations. Elina Makropulos has lived for over 300 years by drinking a potion; her father made her drink the potion to make sure it worked when she was 13 years old. But this enormous life span has left her cold and blunted. Will she finally accept her mortality and discover what it means to be a human being?
2) Don’t judge a book by its cover
Leonard Bernstein’s 1952 opera Trouble in Tahiti opens with a jazz trio singing a bright and cheerful tune (complete with scat singing) about living in an idyllic American suburb. But the dark irony of this introduction is revealed when the drama gets underway. We see the terrible domestic situation of husband-and-wife Sam and Dinah as they argue over breakfast. We are made painfully aware of how the reality of day-to-day life can fall so short of the perfect image that we display to the world.
3) Absolute power corrupts absolutely
The enormous work (which is actually four operas) that is Wagner’s Ring Cycle lasts for over 15 hours and has to be seen over several days. It represents the pinnacle of Romanticism with its rich, shifting harmonies and lush orchestration. Its epic plot deals with the human desire for power, which can be fulfilled by a magic ring. But as the work unfolds, we see that the blind pursuit of power is a dangerous and destructive path, both to ourselves and everyone else.
4) Don’t waste your salary
One of the lighter but nonetheless important messages to be taken from Puccini’s La bohème is not to spend your rent down the pub. The four bohemians Rodolfo, Marcello, Schaunard and Colline even use alcohol to distract their landlord from the rent he has come to collect. But we all know that this a pretty risky strategy in the long run.
5) What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger
In Mozart’s The Magic Flute, Tamino and Pamina are united after a series of trials and are praised by the priests of the temple. This symbolises how difficulty and strife can often bring out the best in us. Despite the fact that we wish things were easier, it is sometimes the darkness which can show us who we really are.
If all this wisdom has inspired you to give opera a try, then why not come along to WNO’s production? Experience The Makropulos Affair and La bohème this Autumn and The Magic Flute between 5 March – 27 May 2023.