SynopsisWho is Idomeneo and why are
the gods pursuing and punishing him? This is the first question that
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart asks at the start of his opera. Without this
question, it is impossible to understand why Idomeneo, King of Crete
and one of the greatest Greek military men in the Trojan War, was
prepared to sacrifice his own son to save himself.
The second
question is connected to peculiarities of the era where the action
unfolds. Can Idomeneo´s story be told with the same heat as in Mozart´s
time? To what degree do the behaviour and psychological reactions of
the opera´s characters interweave with the life experience of audiences
today?
As may be imagined, there are many such overlappings. The
ten-year battle for Troy was unusually bloody and cruel, it was close
to today´s "total wars" and Idomeneo was (like all other military
leaders) one of those to commit was crimes.
What happened before
The
Trojan War is over. On his way home Idomeneo, King of Crete, having
been one of the most influential Greek military figures, is caught in a
powerful storm. He promises Neptune, God of the Sea, to sacrifice to
him the first person he meets on shore.
Act I
At the
peak of the storm, Idomeneo´s son Prince Idamante has saved Ilia,
daughter of King Priam of Troy. She has fallen in love with him but
does not dare declare her feelings to him. Idamante has also freed the
Trojan prisoners. Elettra, daughter of King Agamemnon and Orest´s
sister, having fled to Crete from Argos, also loves Idamante. When
Arbace the Prince´s mentor relates that Idomeneo, having desired a
marriage between Elettra and Idamante, has drowned in the storm, she
understands that her own wish to marry Idamante will not come to
fruition. Her jealousy and longing for revenge burst forth. Idamante
runs to the shore in despair to find his father.
In the
meantime, although Idomeneo´s ship has been destroyed and sank in the
storm, he has made it to dry land and the first person he sees is his
own son. Idomeneo curses the gods, renounces his son and forbids him to
appear before him. Idamante despairs.
The storm through which
Idomeneo has passed is not just an "outer" storm but also a metaphor
for what is going on inside him. The terrors of war – bloody battles
and the slaughter of the innocent – follow the King in his
subconsciousness. What happened at war cannot be undone like the
buttons of a military tunic. The nightmares will cease if they are
overcome and recognised. Here the matter lies not just in Idomeneo´s
own responsibility and not just in what he himself has done, but also
in what happened to him because of the war.
Of course, there is no
such interpretation to be found in Virgil´s poem Aeneid. There Idomeneo
sacrifices his own son and in response the people of Crete drive him
from the island. In Mozart´s opera the old myth takes on an allegorical
meaning, and Idomeneo´s sacrifice will be staved off by an invisible
"voice from the heavens". The storm, sent by Neptune, is a warning to
Idomeneo. And so Neptune is observing the King – as detailed in the
libretto – "with a gloomy and threatening look". Apropos, Idomeneo
finds it easy to keep his oath; at war he killed hundreds and thousands
of men.
Act II
Arbace and Idomeneo are trying to
find a solution to a difficult situation: Idomeneo decides to send his
son off with Elettra to Argos. Ilia appears before the King and he is
drawn to her. But Ilia tells Idomeneo that she regards him only as a
father. After she leaves, Idomeneo, in a fit of anger, realises that
his soul will face a greater storm than that which he barely survived.
The
only person to approve the turn of events is Elettra. She is permitted
to leave with the Prince, whom she loves, and at the same time be rid
of her rival Ilia. Idamante reluctantly submits to his father´s order.
But when he and Elettra approach the ship which is to take them to
Argos another storm gathers and a terrifying beast emerges from the
sea. It has been sent by Neptune to punish Idomeneo. Idomeneo admits
his guilt though he refuses to sacrifice an innocent person. The storm
continues and all flee.
Only as the opera progresses does
Idomeneo realise what he has done. After reaching land, he worries
about the innocent victims who perished at his hand. He is, however,
convinced that he performed his duty, as being barbaric to one´s
enemies is "normal" in war.
But there is no such thing as a "clean"
war. Innocent people always die. These victims of war in our production
are not just in Idomeneo´s mind, they are present on stage too. These
ghosts pursue Idomeneo until he sees what he has done. The "Voice of
the Oracle" that keeps him back from sacrifice is Idomeneo´s inner
voice. Suddenly he comprehends the sin he has taken upon himself.
Mozart´s
opera also portrays the love of two young people – Idamante and Ilia.
Idamante and Ilia create a new world, another way for nations and
people to communicate in a utopia of human existence without hatred and
war. Moreover, Ilia suffers a breakdown during the storm as a
consequence of the recent war. Ilia contemplates her destiny – although
not just her position and her own feelings but also important political
events – war, the fall of Troy, the death of her father Priam and her
brother and the destruction of the Greek fleet.
Both Ilia and
Elettra are torn apart by inner conflict – "revenge, jealousy, hatred
and love", as is written in the libretto. And yet Elettra is not a
negative character. The hope of love that makes her forget all that has
happened comes to Elettra at the moment when she discovers she may
return to her homeland in Argos.
Act III
Ilia
declares her feelings to the sleeping Prince. When he awakes and
declares his intent to battle the monster she again speaks to him of
her love. They are interrupted by the unexpected appearance of Elettra
and Idomeneo, who demands that Idamante and Elettra depart immediately
for Argos, refusing, however, to explain to his son the reason behind
his decision. In despair Idamante withdraws before his departure for
Argos, in order to fight the monster which has brought plague and
ecological disaster to Crete. Accompanied by the crowd, the High Priest
approaches the palace, savagely demanding the name of the man to be
sacrificed. Idomeneo then admits that his son Idamante should be
sacrificed. Arbace mourns the fate of the innocent Prince.
Suddenly
there is a chorus of triumphant voices declaring that Idamante has
killed the beast. The returning Prince voluntarily agrees that he be
sacrificed, but just as Idomeneo is about to kill him Ilia runs in,
demanding that she be sacrificed in Idamante´s place. Idomeneo admits
his guilt: it was he who caused this irresolvable conflict. And so now
he abdicates. Idamante and Ilia are to rule the country.
In despair, Elletra prostrates herself. The Cretans celebrate the peace and honour the new ruling couple.
Idamante
is suffering from the conflict between his own love and grand politics
marking the victory in the Trojan War and which threaten his love for
Ilia. Moreover, he is extremely devoted to his father. He must and he
wants to know why Idomeneo is avoiding him, desiring once again to feel
the love of his father. Idamante guesses that Idomeneo´s behaviour is
somehow linked with the storm and the ship sinking; to the ecological
disaster and the strange plague destroying lives. He wants to defeat
the beast, even if it costs him his life (in essence a kind of suicide
through which he hopes to regain his father´s affection). However, once
Idamante knows who has sent the beast he realises that the solution to
the problem lies not in the beast but in Idomeneo. If Idomeneo cannot
come to terms with the past, with what he did during the Trojan War,
then father must sacrifice son. "New" and "old" ways of dealing with
the conflict are discussed but no resolution can be found, and Idamante
does not wish to take on himself his father´s guilt. After some soulful
agonising he decides to submit to his fate and to State interests, in
so doing regaining his father´s love. And yet it is not he but Ilia who
wishes to die instead of him that brings events to a new turn. When she
reminds Idomeneo of his victory over Troy, she begins the process of
recognition of all that has occurred.
The love that develops between
Ilia and Idamante is a humanistic alternative to destructive war, both
in terms of society and in people´s minds. But will the peace won be
long-lived? This reticent question drowns and fades in the final sounds
of the chorus…
Derek Weber
