Beethoven's Fidelio

Pizarro, the corrupt governor of the fortress, has imprisoned Florestan, a young nobleman who exposed his crimes, in the most secret dungeon. Florestan’s wife, Leonore, is determined to find him and has disguised herself as a young man, Fidelio. As Fidelio, she has been employed in the fortress as an assistant to Rocco, the head jailer. Rocco’s daughter, Marzelline, has fallen in love with Fidelio – to the annoyance of Jaquino, a janitor who is in love with Marzelline.

The opera opens with a duet between Marzelline and Jaquino outside Rocco’s rooms where Marzelline is ironing. Jaqunio tries to win Marzelline’s hand in marriage, but she tactfully refuses him. Knocking at the door continually interrupts the duet. Jaquino leaves and Marzelline sings an aria in which she dwells on her love for Fidelio, her wish to marry him, projected dreams of possible domestic bliss and her loss of feeling for Jaquino.

Rocco and Fidelio enter, and Rocco expresses his approval of what he sees as the reciprocated love between Fidelio and his daughter. In the famous canon-quartet that follows, Rocco, Marzelline, Fidelio and Jaquino enunciate their individual responses to Marzelline’s love for Fidelio. Marzelline is blissfully deluded and thinks her love is returned, Fidelio is worried about this complication to her mission to save her husband, Rocco encourages the couple’s supposed love and Jaquino is possessed by jealousy. Rocco then gives permission for Fidelio to marry his daughter, but goes on to stress the important role of money in the forging of true happiness.

Fidelio finds the situation very awkward, but needs to retain her disguise in order to rescue Florestan. Fidelio replies that love must surely be the most important thing between man and wife, and so wins the confidence of Rocco that the latter shares the secret of Pizarro’s special prisoner being starved to death in the secret dungeon. Fidelio correctly guesses that this is Florestan, her beloved husband, and asks to see him. The trio which follows sees Fidelio pondering her impending ordeal and galvanizing to courage it will take to rescue Florestan, while Marzelline frets over the meaning behind Fidelio’s agitation and Rocco commits himself to obtaining permission to take Fidelio down to the dungeons.

Scene ii
Accompanied by a march, Pizarro enters the courtyard with a group of guards. Rocco hands him several dispatches, amongst which is a letter warning of a surprise inspection of the prison by the Minister (who has heard tales of Pizarro’s cruel tyranny). Pizarro makes the sudden decision to have Florestan killed so that his tyranny will not become known, and proceeds to relish the prospect of Florestan’s death in an aria. Pizarro posts a trumpeter to sound the alarm at the Minister’s arrival and tries to bribe Rocco into murdering Florestan. When Rocco refuses Pizarro resolves to commit the murder himself. Rocco is prevailed upon to dig a grave in the dungeon so that the body may be hidden from the Minister’s prying eyes. Fidelio, meanwhile, has overheard the plot and her aria at this point in the action expresses her hope and courage that she will succeed in saving her husband with the aid of Providence. On Rocco and Jaquino’s return, Fidelio entreats Rocco to allow her to see the prisoners. Because it is the King’s birthday, Rocco relents and allows the prisoners into the garden, but Florestan is not among them. Rocco informs Fidelio that she will assist in digging the grave and she learns that Florestan is still alive but that Pizarro plans to kill him that day. Almost on cue, Pizarro appears. He has learnt of the prisoners’ temporary freedom and furiously locks them up again.

Florestan languishes deliriously in heavy chains. He bemoans his fate and his cruel circumstance while not being able to shake the feeling that his wife is very near to him. He falls unconscious as Fidelio cannot be sure that he is her husband. As they dig, Fidelio decides to rescue the prisoner even if it is not Florestan, so pitiful is his condition. When the prisoner regains consciousness and pleads for water and begs Rocco to send word to his wife, Fidelio recognizes him but cannot disclose her identity yet if her plan is to succeed. She manages to get permission to give Florestan food and drink just as Pizarro enters, identifies himself to the prisoner and draws his dagger to take his life.

Fidelio throws her body between Pizarro and Florestan and declares, “First kill his wife!” – and so reveals her true identity. Pizarro attempts to kill husband and wife together, but Fidelio draws a pistol she has kept hidden on her person and defends their lives. At this crucial moment, a trumpet call announcing the timeous arrival of the Minister is heard. Florestan is now safe and he and his wife offer thanks to Providence and God and foresee Pizarro’s retribution. Rocco’s relief is tempered by his fear for his own future, and Pizarro and Rocco flee the dungeon, leaving Florestan and Leonore to reacquaint themselves in a rapturous duet.

Scene ii
The square outside the prison
The Minister grants freedom to all the prisoners and the townspeople gather to watch their release. Rocco introduces Florestan and Leonore to him and relates Pizarro’s plot to kill them. The Minister recognises Florestan as an old friend whom he had been mislead into thinking dead by Pizarro’s reports. He has Pizarro apprehended and led away by the guards, refusing to listen to Pizarro’s weak defense. Because of Leonore’s great heroism, she is given the joyful task of unshackling Florestan as all solemnly thank God for the outcome before a stirring chorus, Wer ein solches Weib errungen (He whom such a wife has cherished), brings the opera to its celebratory close.