1. Billy Budd Sparknotes

Prologue Scene 1: Main deck and quarter-deck of HMS Indomitable Scene 2: Address Act 2 Scene 1: Captain Vere's cabin Scene 2: Berth-deck Act 3 Scene 1: Main deck and quarter-deck Scene 2: Captain Vere's cabin Act 4 Scene 1: Bay of the upper gun-deck Scene 2: Main deck and quarter-deck Epilogue 1960 version Prologue Captain Edward Fairfax Vere, an old man, reflects on his life and his time in the navy. He reflects on the conflict between good and evil, he is tormented by guilt over the case of Billy Budd on board his ship, HMS Indomitable, some years earlier. Act 1 The crew of the Indomitable works on deck. For slipping and bumping into an officer, the Novice is sentenced to be flogged. At the same time a cutter approaches, returning from a merchant ship where it has three sailors into the.

Billy Budd (opera) - Wikipedia. Billy Budd, Op. Benjamin Britten to a libretto by the English novelist E. Forster and Eric Crozier, based on the short novel Billy.

One of these sailors, Billy Budd, seems overjoyed with his situation – entirely different from the other two who are not so happy. Claggart, the Master-at-Arms, calls him 'a find in a thousand,' despite the slight defect of a stammer. Billy says a jaunty farewell to the, his former ship, innocent of what his words imply. The officers take his words as a deliberate provocation and order the men below decks. Claggart tells Squeak, the ship's corporal, to keep an eye on Billy and give him a rough time.

Billy Budd Sparknotes

The Novice returns from his flogging, unable to walk and helped along by a friend. Billy is shocked at the cruelty of the punishment, but is certain that if he follows the rules he will be in no danger. Dansker, an old sailor, nicknames Billy 'Baby Budd' for his innocence. At this point in the four-act version came the climax of Act I, in which Captain Vere appeared on deck to give a speech to the men. In the two-act version, Dansker simply tells the others Vere's nickname, 'Starry Vere,' and this is enough for the impulsive Billy to swear his loyalty to the unseen captain.

In his cabin, Captain Vere muses over classical literature. His officers enter, and they discuss the revolution in France and the sparked by French ideas of democracy.

The officers warn that Billy may cause trouble, but Vere dismisses their fears and expresses his love for the men under his command. Below decks the sailors rough-house, but old Dansker remains gloomy.

Billy goes for some tobacco to cheer him up, and discovers Squeak rifling through his kit. In a rage, Billy begins to stammer. He knocks Squeak to the ground as Claggart and the corporals enter.

Billy is still unable to speak, but Claggart takes his side and sends Squeak to the brig. However, when alone, Claggart reveals his hatred for Billy and vows to destroy him.

He orders the Novice to try to bribe Billy into joining a, and the broken-spirited Novice quickly agrees. Billy refuses the bribe and believes he will be rewarded, but Dansker warns him to beware of Claggart. Act 2 Claggart begins to tell Vere about the danger that Billy represents, but is interrupted by the sighting of a French ship. The Indomitable attacks, but loses the enemy in the mist.

Claggart returns, and tells Vere that Billy poses a threat of mutiny. Vere does not believe him and sends for Billy so that Claggart may confront him. Later, in Vere's cabin, Claggart repeats the false charge to Billy's face. Once again, Billy begins to stammer in rage. Unable to speak, he strikes Claggart, killing him. The Captain is forced to convene an immediate, and the officers find Billy guilty and sentence him to hang. Billy begs Vere to save him, and the officers appeal to him for guidance, but Vere remains silent and accepts their verdict.

He goes into the cabin where Billy is being held, and the orchestra suggests a tender offstage meeting as the captain informs Billy of the death sentence. This was the end of Act 3 in the four-act version. Billy prepares for his execution in his cell. Dansker brings him a drink and reveals that the crew is willing to mutiny for his sake, but Billy is resigned to his fate. Four o'clock that morning, the crew assembles on deck, and Billy is brought out. The Articles of War are read, and show that Billy must be hanged.

Just before his execution, he praises Vere with his final words, singing 'Starry Vere, God Bless you!' Echoed by the rest of the crew. Epilogue Vere, as an old man, remembers Billy's burial at sea, reflecting that the man he failed to save has instead blessed and saved him.

As he recalls Billy's blessing, he realises he has discovered genuine goodness and can be at peace with himself. Recordings Year Cast: Billy Budd, Captain Vere, John Claggart Conductor, Opera House and Orchestra Label 1951, Chorus and Orchestra of the, Covent Garden CD: VAI, Cat: VAIA 1034-3 1967, and the Ambrosian Opera Chorus CD: Decca, Cat: 417 428-2LH3 1997, and the Halle Choir, Northern Voices, and the Manchester Boys' Choir (Recording of the original four-act version) CD: Erato, Cat: 3984 21631-2 1999, London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus CD: Chandos, Cat: CHAN 9826 References Informational notes. Carpenter, p. 267., The Guardian, 2 December 2005.

Cooke, Mervyn; Reed, Philip (1993). Benjamin Britten, Billy Budd.

Cambridge University Press. Letter dated 5 August 1960, quoted in Britten (2010): p. 253. Britten (2010): p.

254. Liner notes for Decca/BBC DVD of 1966 broadcast. 12 February 2017.

12 February 2017. Herbert, David (editor) (1979). The Operas of. London: Hamish Hamilton. CS1 maint: Extra text: authors list. Source: Britten-Pears Foundation. The Daily Telegraph, London, 21 February 1998, p.

A8 Bibliography. Britten, Benjamin (2010). Philip Reed; Mervyn Cooke, eds. Letters from a Life: The Selected Letters of Benjamin Britten, Volume V, 1958-1965. Woodbridge: The Boydell Press. Carpenter, Humphrey.

Benjamin Britten: A Biography London: Faber & Faber, 1992. Whittall, Arnold. ' Billy Budd' in, (Ed.), Vol. One, pp. 473–476.

London: Macmillan Publishers, Inc. 1998 External links. from Operabase. Allen, Stephen Arthur, ' Billy Budd: Temporary Salvation and the Faustian Pact', Journal of Musicological Research, Vol. 25, Issue 1, January 2006:43–73. on operadis-opera-discography.org.uk.

Two recent offerings from Opus Arte, Benjamin Britten’s Billy Budd and Mark-Anthony Turnage’s Anna Nicole, may seem like strange bedfellows, but they provide a fascinating perspective on how British opera has changed over sixty years. Budd premiered in 1951, Anna Nicole in 2011. Both draw on products of American End Page 163 culture, despite their many differences. The former adapts Hermann Melville’s 1924 novella Billy Budd, Foretopman, and the latter subjects the life of American celebrity Vickie Lynn Marshall (better known as Anna Nicole Smith) to operatic treatment. The recording of Billy Budd is superlative.

The Glyndebourne Festival’s 2010 production of Britten’s celebrated opera marks theater director Michael Grandage’s first foray into the opera world, and under his direction the entire cast delivers convincing, nuanced performances. Vocally and physically, baritone Jacques Imbrailo captures the youthful innocence of the title character, a quality somewhat lacking in Thomas Allen’s Billy in the 1988 English National Opera production (prior to this release, it was one of only two Billy Budd recordings on DVD). With his powerful bass voice, Phillip Ens gives a sinister, compelling portrayal of the malevolent master-at-arms, John Claggart, and as Captain Vere, tenor John Mark Ainsley embodies the opera’s conflicted protagonist. The set design by Christopher Oram and lighting design by Paule Constable are particularly effective. Together, the two evoke the claustrophobic innards of the late eighteenth-century British man-ofwar on which Melville’s story of evil and innocence—adapted for the opera stage by E. Forster and Eric Crozier—plays out. Conductor Mark Elder leads the London Philharmonic Orchestra and singers with assurance, offering a dramatically sensitive pacing of the opera.

The sound quality of the recording is rich and clear, with options for stereo sound or DTS digital surround sound. The video direction is equally fine, striking just the right balance between wide-angle shots that reveal the thrilling full company numbers—such as the “Starry Vere” sequence in Act I and the opening sequence of Act II—and closer shots that capture some of the finer acting moments. Two brief extras are included on the DVD. “Introducing Billy Budd” interweaves a loose synopsis of the opera with interviews with Elder, Grandage, Imbrailo, and Ainsley that provide insight into characters’ motivations. “Designs on Billy Budd” centers on the opera’s critically-acclaimed visual design, with commentary by Grandage, Oram, and Constable. Anna Nicole is a far cry from Billy Budd, both musically and dramaturgically, and attests to the influence of musical theater on the operatic genre over the past half-century.

With its unconventional subject matter, the opera recreates the strangely compelling voyeuristic lure of reality television. The opera premiered in February 2011 at the Royal Opera House (ROH). In keeping with the media frenzy surrounding the real Smith’s life, the production generated an enormous amount of popular and critical interest, and just over a week after the premiere BBC television broadcasted a recording of the performance. Anna Nicole adopts a chronological approach in its rendering of Smith’s life.

Over the course of seven scenes, the first act traces the early life of the heroine (sung with aplomb by Wagnerian soprano EvaMaria Westbroek). Despite misgivings by her mother (mezzo-soprano Susan Bickley), Smith strikes out ambitiously into the world, acquiring oversized breast implants in the quest to someday hook a rich client at the Houston “gentlemen’s club” where she works. The act culminates in her marriage to the octogenarian oil tycoon J. Marshall Howard II (tenor Alan Oke). In the nine scenes of the second act, Smith’s life spirals downward, propelled by the machinations of her exploitative. If you would like to authenticate using a different subscribed institution that supports Shibboleth authentication or have your own login and password to Project MUSE, click 'Authenticate'.

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