Fidelio is an opera composed by Beethoven, whose premiere in 1805 was a failure, and the final version was not completed until 1814. The heroine of the opera is Leonore, who disguises herself as a man in order to rescue her husband, who is imprisoned in a dungeon. When Leonore is disguised as a man, her name is Fidelio. Fidelio highlights include Fidelio Overture, Leonore Overture No. 3, Leonore Aria, Florestan Aria.
Fidelio, Opera: Character Map
Fidelio, Opera: Roles
| Leonore (Fidelio) | Florestan’s wife | soprano |
| Florestan | a prisoner | tenor |
| Rocco | guard | bass |
| Marzelline | Rocco’s daughter | soprano |
| Don Pizarro | governor of the prison | baritone |
| Don Fernando | King’s minister | baritone |
| Jaquino | assistant to Rocco | tenor |
- Native title: Fidelio
- Language: German
- Composers: Ludwig van Beethoven
- Librettist: Stephan von Breuning, Georg Friedrich Treitschke
- Based on: Léonore, ou L’Amour conjugal by Jean Nicolas Bouilly
- Premiere: November 20, 1805, Theater an der Wien, Vienna
- Running time: 2 hours 15 minutes (Act 1: 75 minutes, Act 2: 60 minutes)
Fidelio, Opera: Summary
Leonore (Fidelio) disguises herself as a man and works in the prison to find her husband. Rocco is the only one the warden allows to enter the dungeon.
Rocco’s daughter, Marzelline, is in love with Fidelio. Fidelio gains Rocco’s trust by becoming Marzelline’s fiancé. Rocco asks the warden for permission for Fidelio to enter the dungeon.
Leonore enters the dungeon with Rocco and discovers her husband. She confronts the Warden who has imprisoned her husband. The Minister arrives to inspect the prison. He arrests the warden. The people praise Leonore’s action.
Fidelio, Opera: Overture
Fidelio, Opera: Act 1, Synopsis
Prison Courtyard
Jaquino
I have decided to marry you.
Marzelline
Oh, really? I’m surprised.
Jaquino
When will I hear from you?
Marzelline
What a disaster.
He leaves.
Marzelline
I used to like him, but then Fidelio came along and changed me. I love Fidelio. I wish I could call you my husband. I wake up every morning at peace. We would greet each other lovingly.
O wär ich schon mit dir vereint
Rocco and Jaquino appear.
RoccoFidelio is not back yet?
Leonore appears.
RoccoNo one is as eager and smart as you. (I bet he likes my daughter so much that he’s working hard to get my approval).
Leonore (Fidelio)This is natural because it is my job.
Marzelline
(He must love me.)
Mir ist so wunderbar
Leonore (Fidelio)(She loves me. I’m in trouble.)
Rocco(My daughter would love him.)
Jaquino
(He approves of their marriage. I can do nothing.)
Jaquino leaves.
RoccoYou love each other. But this is not the only condition for a happy family. What is important for a married couple is money.
Hat man nicht auch Gold beineben
Leonore (Fidelio)There is something more important to me. It is your trust. I cannot help you with your dungeon work.
RoccoNobody can do that job but me.
Marzelline
Father, you work too much.
RoccoI find that job hard. The man has been in the dungeon for more than two years. I can’t do anything for him.
Leonore (Fidelio)I have courage and strength.
RoccoGood. You will always have courage. Then everything will be fine.
Gut, Söhnchen, gut
Leonore (Fidelio)I am brave enough to go to the dungeon with you.
Marzelline
Going to the dungeon will be hard for you. But when you return from there, our happiness awaits you.
RoccoTime for me to turn in the papers to the warden.
Marzelline and Leonore leave and the warden arrives.
Don PizarroThe minister comes to inspect the prison.
(If Florestan is found in the dungeon, he will be in trouble. The Minister thinks he is dead. Let’s kill him before the Minister arrives.)
Now is a good time for revenge. At the moment of his death, we will tell him: Victory. I have won.
Captain. When the minister arrives, sound the horn.
Ha, welch ein Augenblick!
The captain leaves.
Don PizarroI pay you. I want you to kill the man.
RoccoHow horrible.
Don PizarroIf you won’t do it, I’ll do it myself. You dig the grave.
They leave.
Leonore (Fidelio)O wicked one, where are you going in haste? Come, O Hope. Do not extinguish the last star, but illuminate my goal.
Abscheulicher! Wo eilst du hin?
Leonore, Rocco and Marzelline are there.
Leonore (Fidelio)It’s a beautiful day. Why don’t you let those poor prisoners out into the yard?
RoccoNot without the warden’s permission.
Marzelline
I ask you too.
RoccoAll right. Let’s get the prisoners out to the yard. I’ll go see the warden. I will ask him for permission for you to marry and for Fidelio to go to the dungeon.
Rocco goes to see the warden. The prisoners go into the yard. Leonore looks for her husband.
Prisoners
What a joy! I can breathe under the sky.
Prisoners’ Chorus
Rocco returns.
Leonore (Fidelio)How did the warden react?
RoccoHe allowed you to marry and to go to the dungeon. Today we can go to the dungeon.
Leonore (Fidelio)Today! What a joy.
RoccoCalm down. We have a hard job to do. We will dig graves in the dungeons.
The warden appears angry.
Don PizarroYou went the extra mile.
RoccoThe unfortunate man in the dungeon will die, so please give the other prisoners some peace.
Don PizarroDo your work in the dungeons.
Fidelio, Opera: Act 2, Synopsis
Scene1
Prison dungeon
Florestan sits on a stone, still in chains.
FlorestanWhat a dark and scary place. There is nothing alive but me. I see an angel. She looks like my wife. She will take me to heaven.
Gott! Welch Dunkel hier!
Florestan faints. Leonore and Rocco appear.
RoccoCome on, let’s dig. The warden will be here soon.
They start digging graves. Florestan wakes up.
FlorestanI would like to know the name of the warden.
Leonore (Fidelio)(That’s my husband’s voice!)
RoccoThe warden is Don Pizarro.
FlorestanPizarro! I need to contact my wife. And give me some water.
RoccoI cannot contact your wife. I can give you some wine.
Leonore (Fidelio)I will bring him wine.
She gives him wine and bread.
FlorestanI pray that you will all be rewarded with a better world.
Euch werde Lohn in bessern Welten
The grave is ready. Rocco whistles and signals. The warden comes down.
Don PizarroGet rid of him.
She pretends to leave and hides.
Don PizarroYou are about to die. I will tell you everything. Now look at my face. I am the man you once tried to defeat.
Er sterbe! Doch er soll erst wissen
FlorestanWhat I see before me is a murderer.
The warden tries to stab him with a dagger.
Leonore (Fidelio)Stand back. I am his wife.
Don PizarroBoth of you will die in my wrath.
She points the gun at him. The bugle sounds.
Don PizarroThe minister has arrived. Damn.
RoccoO God of justice.
The warden leaves in frustration. Rocco also leaves.
Leonore (Fidelio)O joy without a name. I have my husband at my breast.
O namenlose Freude!
FlorestanO joy without a name. I am at her breast.
Rocco returns.
RoccoGood news. The Minister has a list of prisoners. Your name is not on it. The Warden must have put you in the dungeon on his own.
Leonore Overture No. 3
When Gustav Mahler conducted Fidelio, he played the Leonore Overture No. 3 in this scene. Beethoven did not intentionally include it here.
Scene2
Prison Courtyard
Prisoners and People
Hail! Mercy and justice have appeared at the gates of this cemetery.
Heil sei dem Tag, Heil sei der Stunde
Don Fernando
I am here by order of the king to expose the injustice in the prison.
Rocco brings Leonore and Florestan.
RoccoPlease help them.
Wohlan, so helfet, helft den Armen!
Don Fernando
I thought you were dead.
RoccoShe is his wife. She disguised herself as a man to save her husband and worked in the prison. When the warden tried to kill him, you arrived.
Don Fernando
(To Rocco) Unchain him. No, she deserves the part.
The minister gives her the key.
Leonore (Fidelio)What a happy moment!
FlorestanWords cannot express how happy I am.
People
The outpouring of admiration for the woman who saved her husband will echo through eternity.
Wer ein holdes Weib errungen