Bedrich Smetana Opera The Bartered Bride
Czech Comic Opera Prodaná Nevesta in Three Acts
Bedrich Smetana (March 2, 1824 – May 12, 1884) composed The Bartered Bride (Prodaná Nevesta), a three-act Czech comic opera. Libretto was written by Karel Sabina as an original work. It was premiered in Prague, Provisional Theater, May 30, 1866. The setting is in a Bohemian village in the 19th century.
Smetana, best known for his symphonic poem, Ma Vlast ('My Country'), is the first great Czech opera composer. The Bartered Bride is the opera that made him famous.
Notable Arias: "Were I ever to learn that you have ceased to care" (Marie), "Ah, love's sweet dream" (Marie)
Character Roles of The Bartered Bride
- Marenka or Marie, a village girl (soprano)
- Vasek, Micha's son (tenor)
- Jenik, Micha's son from his first marriage, and Marie's love (tenor)
- Kecal, marriage broker (bass)
- Krusina, father of Marie (baritone)
- Ludmila, mother of Marie (soprano)
- Micha, Vasek's wealthy father (bass)
- Esmeralda, an acrobat (soprano)
- Háta, Micha's wife (mezzo)
- Company manager (tenor)
Plot Summary / Synopses of Smetana's The Bartered Bride
Act 1. The Main Square of a Village, on a Feast Day in Spring
The villagers sing about love and its perils. Jenik assures Marie that her parents will not succeed in parting them. He tells her how he was driven from home by his step-mother. She then he has wandered away like a drifter. Kecal, the marriage broker persuades Marie's doubting parents, Krusina and Ludmila, to place Marie in his hands when it comes to marriage, that she will marry Tobias Micha's son. Micha's son by his first marriage has disappeared, but his youngest son, Vasek, will make a good son-in-law. Kecal praises Vasek and his wealth.
Act 2. Inside a Country Inn
At the country inn, the village men drink and dance. The stammering Vasek fears that people will make fun of him. He does not know who Marie is, so he does not recognize her when she approaches him to warn him that Marie is a no good woman, who loves another. Vasek is attracted to this mysterious woman, but is unsure what to do as his mother insists that he marries Marie.
Meanwhile, Kecal tells Jenik that poverty has no place in romance. So, he should give up Marie, he advises, and that he will find him a rich and pretty woman free of charge. Then he offers to pay Jenik 300 ducats outright. Jenik agrees, on condition that Marie marries a son of the wealthy Tobias Micha. Jenik thinks of Marie's future happiness. The chorus is scandalized that Jenik has bartered his bride for gold, but Jenik signs the contract anyway.
Act 3. The Main Square of the Village
When the circus director introduces his show, Vasek is enchanted by one member of the troupe, the lovely Esmeralda, who returns his affection. One of the comedians, an Indian, tells the circus director that the man who plays the bear is too drunk to perform. Esmeralda and the director talk to Vasek into taking his place. Vasek shocks his parents by telling them that he will not marry Marie as he is more interested in the woman who warned him about Marie.
Marie discovered Jenik's apparent treachery, but says she will not marry Vasek. Vasek, in turn, realizes the woman he likes is Marie. Jenik explains to Marie that he made bartered her for the money because he cared for her happiness, but she will not listen. Jenik promises Kecal – in Marie's presence – that Marie will marry a son of Micha. When the parents arrive, Hatá and Micha immediately recognizes Jenik as his son by his first marriage. Hatá is furious at Jenik's plan, but the contract is written and Jenik prevails. There was panic in the square as two boys announce that the bear has escaped from the circus, but it is only Vasek in his costume. Marie forgives Jenik, who gets the bribe and his bride.
Sources:
Concise Guide to Opera, Penguin, London, 2005
Opera by Alan Riding and L.D. Downer, DK, 2006
The Da Capo Opera Manual by Nicholas Ivor Martin, 1997 (This opera is published by State Music Publishers, 1946)
