Scotti, Sembrich, Caruso, Homer Sang Last Rigoletto Together April 1905

Summary: Antonio Scotti, Marcella Sembrich, Enrico Caruso and Louise Homer sang their last Met Opera Rigoletto together on Thursday, April 6, 1905.

Marcella Sembrich became Met Opera's third Mimì with her appearance in the opera house's 18th performance, Dec. 15, 1902, of Puccini's La Bohème: The Sembrich @TheSembrich, via Facebook Nov. 12, 2018

Antonio Scotti, Marcella Sembrich, Enrico Caruso and Louise Homer sang their last Met Opera Rigoletto together on Thursday, April 6, 1905, two years four and one-half months after their first Met Opera Rigoletto together.

Baritone Scotti (Jan. 25, 1866-Feb. 26, 1936), soprano Sembrich (Feb. 15, 1858-Jan. 11, 1935), tenor Caruso (Feb. 25, 1873-Aug. 2, 1921) and contralto Homer (April 30, 1871-May 6, 1947) made their first three Met Opera Rigoletto appearances together in the 1903-1904 season. Rigoletto by Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901) received six performances in the 1903-1904 season. The Metropolitan Opera House was the venue for the first three (Monday, Nov. 23; Saturday, Nov. 28; Wednesday, Dec. 16) and last two (Saturday, Jan. 9, 1904; Friday, Jan. 29) performances. The fourth performance (Tuesday, Dec. 29) was staged in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Enrico Caruso's Met Opera appearance Monday, Nov. 23, 1903, as the licentious Duke of Mantua in the opera house's 35th Rigoletto performance marked the Italian tenor's Met Opera debut. The first of the season's six Rigoletto performances also registered as the opera house's 19th opening night and as the season premiere of the opera house's new production of Rigoletto, directed by Karl T.F. Schroeder (1864?-Feb. 5, 1944).

Caruso's Met Opera debut also occasioned the first of his four Met Opera Rigoletto appearances with Antonio Scotti, Marcella Sembrich and Louise Homer. In the 1903-1904 season, the four reunited in the season's third (Dec. 16) and fourth (Dec. 29) performances.

Antonio Scotti sang the title role as his second reprisal of the hunchbacked, mischievous jester who suffers greatly for his insensitivity. The Italian baritone had added the role to his Met Opera portfolio in the 1899-1900 season's two Rigoletto performances (Saturday, Dec. 2, 1899; Saturday, March 3, 1900); his first Rigoletto featured Marcella Sembrich's Gilda. His first reprisal occurred in the first of the 1902-1903 season's two performances (Friday, Dec. 5, 1902; Saturday, Jan. 10, 1903); his second Rigoletto cast him with Sembrich's Gilda and Louise Homer's Maddalena. Antonio Scotti had made his Met Opera debut Wednesday, Nov. 15, 1899, as the Count de Nevers in the opera house's 78th performance of Les Huguenots by German Jewish opera composer Giacomo Meyerbeer (Sept. 5, 1791-May 2, 1864).

Marcella Sembrich sang Gilda in her fourth reprisal of the jester's naive, self-sacrificing daughter. The Polish coloratura soprano had created Met Opera's Gilda in the opera's premiere, Friday, Nov. 16, 1883, during the opera house's inaugural season, 1883-1884. Her first Gilda reprisal had occurred in the 1898-1899 season's three performances (Wednesday, March 1, 1899; Thursday, March 9; Saturday, March 11). Marcella Sembrich's second and third Gilda reprisals had taken place in the 1899-1900 season's two performances and the 1902-1903 season's two performances. She had made her Met Opera debut Wednesday, Oct. 24, 1883, in the title role in the inaugural season's second premiere, Lucia di Lammermoor by Italian opera composer Gaetano Donizetti (Nov. 29, 1797-April 8, 1848).

Louise Homer sang Maddalena in her second reprisal of professional assassin Sparafucile's Duke-infatuated sister. The American operatic contralto had added Maddalena to her Met Opera portfolio in the first three of the four performances (Sunday, Dec. 2, 1900; Saturday, Feb. 9, 1901; Thursday, Feb. 28; Friday, March 22) offered in the 1900-1901 season. Her first Maddalena reprisal took place in the 1902-1903 season's two performances, of which the first (Dec. 5) cast her with Scotti's Rigoletto and Sembrich's Gilda. The American operatic contralto had made her Met Opera debut Wednesday, Nov. 14, 1900, as Amneris in the opera house's 55th performance of Aida by Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901).

The fourth and last Met Opera Rigoletto performance uniting Scotti's Rigoletto, Sembrich's Gilda, Caruso's Duke and Homer's Maddalena occurred in the 1904-1905 season's third, closing performance (Thursday, April 6, 1905). Their last Met Opera Rigoletto performance together took place at the Grand Opera House in San Francisco, California.

Antonio Scotti shared the performance's Rigoletto with Italian baritone Taurino Parvis. Scotti sang the role in the first two acts while Parvis added his one, and only, performance as Rigoletto to his Met Opera portfolio via his appearance in Act III. Taurino Parvis (Sept. 5, 1879-May 9, 1957) had made his Met Opera debut Wednesday, Nov. 23, 1904, as Enrico in the opera house's 52nd performance of Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor.

Arturo Vigna (Jan. 28, 1863-Jan. 30, 1927) conducted all four of the Scotti et al.'s Met Opera Rigoletto performances. The Italian opera conductor, who specialized in Verdi operas, had made his Met Opera debut in the same performance as Enrico Caruso.

The Metropolitan Opera premiere of Rigoletto took place 20 years before the first of the four Met Opera Rigoletto performances uniting Scotti's Rigoletto, Sembrich's Gilda, Caruso's Duke and Homer's Maddalena. The Metropolitan Opera House staged Rigoletto Friday, Nov. 16, 1883, as the ninth premiere in the opera house's first season, 1883-1884. Rigoletto received three performances, sung in Italian, in its Met Opera premiere season.

The takeaways for the last Rigoletto togetherness of Antonio Scotti, Marcella Sembrich, Enrico Caruso and Louise Homer on Thursday, April 6, 1905, are that the four opera singers first sang the Verdi opera together on Monday, Nov. 23, 1903, the occasion of Caruso's Met Opera debut; that their second and third Rigoletto performances also took place in the 1903-1904 season; and that all four performances were conducted by Arturo Vigna, who made his Met Opera debut, alongside Caruso, in the four's first Met Opera Rigoletto performance.

Italian conductor Arturo Vigna, who conducted all four Met Opera Rigoletto performances uniting Scotti, Sembrich, Caruso and Homer, made his Met Opera debut in their first Met Opera Rigoletto performance; photograph of Arturo Vigna by Belgian-born American photographer and sculptor Aimé Dupont (Dec. 6, 1841-Feb. 16, 1900) and inscribed to I Pagliacci's composer Ruggero Leoncavallo (April 23, 1857-Aug. 9, 1919): ENRICO CARUSO @granenricocaruso, via Facebook Nov. 30, 2013

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Marcella Sembrich's Gilda, Enrico Caruso's Duke of Mantua, Antonio Scotti's Rigoletto and Louise Homer's Maddalena first were heard together on Nov. 23, 1903, during Caruso's Met Opera debut and again in two more of the 1903-1904 season's six performances; their fourth and last Met Opera Rigoletto togetherness occurred in the 1904-1905 season's third, closing performance: The Sembrich @The Sembrich, via Facebook Dec. 16, 2020, @ https://www.facebook.com/TheSembrich/photos/a.481908958541300/3485083808223785/

Italian conductor Arturo Vigna, who conducted all four Met Opera Rigoletto performances uniting Scotti, Sembrich, Caruso and Homer, made his Met Opera debut in their first Met Opera Rigoletto performance; photograph of Arturo Vigna by Belgian-born American photographer and sculptor Aimé Dupont (Dec. 6, 1841-Feb. 16, 1900) and inscribed to I Pagliacci's composer Ruggero Leoncavallo (April 23, 1857-Aug. 9, 1919): ENRICO CARUSO @granenricocaruso, via Facebook Nov. 30, 2013, @ https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=548431655234192&l=37f31521eb

For further information:

"Debut: Antonio Scotti." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 22450 Les Huguenots {78} Chicago, Illinois: 11/15/1899.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=22450

"Debut: Louise Homer." MetOpera Database > Met Performance] CID: 25050 Aida {55} San Francisco, California: 11/14/1900.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=25050

"Debut: Taurino Parvis." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 34010 Lucia di Lammermoor {52} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/23/1904.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=34010

"Debuts: Enrico Caruso, Ellen Förnsen, Arturo Vigna, Karl Schroeder, Baruch & Co." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 32000 New production Rigoletto {35} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/23/1903. (Opening Night {19} Heinrich Conried, General Manager.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=32000

"Debuts: Marcella Sembrich, Giuseppe Kaschmann, Achille Augier, Amadeo Grazzi, Imogene Forti, Vincenzo Fornaris." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 1010 Metropolitan Opera Premiere Lucia di Lammermoor {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 10/24/1883.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=1010

ENRICO CARUSO @granenricocaruso. "Arturo Vigna (1863, Turin - January 30, 1927, Milan) was an Italian opera conductor who was particularly associated with the operas of Giuseppe Verdi." Facebook. Nov. 30, 2013.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=548431655234192&l=37f31521eb

Marriner, Derdriu. "Ernani Opened Jan. 28, 1903, as Eighth Verdi Opera at Met Opera." Earth and Space News. Monday, March 1, 2021.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2021/01/ernani-opened-jan-28-1903-as-eighth.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Manru Opened Feb. 14, 1902, as First Polish Opera Staged at Met Opera." Earth and Space News. Monday, Feb. 22, 2021.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2021/02/manru-opened-feb-14-1902-as-first.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Marcella Sembrich Created Met Opera's Queen of Night March 30, 1900." Earth and Space News. Wednesday, March 29, 2021.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2021/03/marcella-sembrich-created-met-operas.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Marcella Sembrich Made Last Met Opera Appearance Feb. 6, 1909." Earth and Space News. Monday, Feb. 15, 2021.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2021/02/marcella-sembrich-made-last-met-opera.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Marcella Sembrich Sang Met Opera's Mimì December 1902 to February 1909." Earth and Space News. Monday, March 8, 2021.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2021/01/marcella-sembrich-sang-met-operas-mimi.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Marcella Sembrich Sang Mozart's Susanna as Last Met Role Feb. 4, 1909." Earth and Space News. Monday, Feb. 8, 2021.
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"Metropolitan Opera Premiere Rigoletto." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 1150 Metropolitan Opera Premiere Rigoletto {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/16/1883.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=1150

"New Production Rigoletto." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 32000 New production Rigoletto {35} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/23/1903. (Opening Night {19} Heinrich Conried, General Manager.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=32000

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Rous, Samuel Holland. The Victrola Book of the Opera: Stories of One Hundred and Twenty Operas With Seven-Hundred Illustrations and Descriptions of Twelve-Hundred Victor Opera Records. Fourth revised edition. Camden NJ: Victor Talking Machine Company, 1917.
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The Sembrich @The Sembrich. "117 years ago, this all star cast performed Verdi's "Rigoletto" with The Metropolitan Opera! This was also Enrico Caruso's debut season. He then sang alongside Mme. Sembrich until her retirement in 1909! Learn more about Caruso's career and legacy: TheSembrich.org/online/caruso Pictured Clockwise: Soprano Marcella Sembrich, Tenor Enrico Caruso, Baritone Antonio Scotti, Contralto Louise Homer #Opera #Verdi #TheSembrich #Music #History #Nature #Rigoletto #Duke #Tenor #Soprano #OperaSingersOfInstagram #Sing #Museum #VocalGlory #Encore #MetOpera See Less." Facebook. Dec. 16, 2020.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/TheSembrich/photos/a.481908958541300/3485083808223785/