The work of Richard Strauss encompasses a setting of the story that best fit a mythological setting. The merriment created by the five-comedy troupe appears to disregard the desolation that consumes the entire island of Naxos including its mourning inhabitants. The contrast between the two emotions seems to provide emphasis on the effect of inconsolable grief that consumes the main character names Ariadne. The introduction of the characters also demonstrates the nature of Ariadne’s mythical world. A deeper interpretation of isolation and emotions of that of a princess was highlighted in the piece providing an insight to the pain and resulting behavior that allows a deeper connection with the audience. Ariadne’s desire for death encompasses the interconnectedness of her relationship with Bacchus and Theseus. Strauss demonstrates a great deal of elaboration on the arrival of Bacchus on Naxos Island and meeting with Ariadne.
There was an insertion of the part where Bacchus was accompanied by Circe in her island where the latter reached an epiphany about the visions of beauty. Bacchus finds himself in love with Ariadne, but hesitations arise due to the notion that such beauty was a result of sorcery just as he had seen with Circe. Ariadne’s cries of desolation are only answered by the rocks on the shore, which the composer symbolizes by placing three nymphs including Echo who sympathizes with her in silence. Since the princess of Minoa does not hear the sympathy, there is always a feeling of isolation. In the objective to cheer up Ariadne, the composer includes the five-member comedy group to help consolidate Ariadne’s sorrows led by Zerbinetta.
B. Reading Reaction
My first reaction to the piece is that it’s quite complicated to understand at the beginning. There are several conflicts in the theme that will make an average audience to have difficulties consolidating the emotions that the story wants to convey. The primary reading shows a recurring theme among several popular Opera, which is the conflict between two emotions, and the highs and lows of public attention. Furthermore, it appears to me that the Opera was divided into two parts. The first part is referred to as the prologue, which leads to the second part. It seems to that Ariadne auf Naxos is an Opera within an Opera. It is like looking at a picture within a picture, which encompasses the nature of conflict between two different settings. From the notion of conflict stems out the idea of chaos in the plot, which introduced me to the next them of the Opera. The idea of Chaos was discretely encapsulated in the story going back to the analogy of looking at a picture within a picture.
I came to realize how the sense of chaos began to emerge in the program, first is that chaos breaks loose in the dressing room as the first part of the Opera transitions into the next. There was a sense of confusion at first while reading the program text particularly in the stylistics applied in the costume, the set, and the way the story transcends from one scene to another. I have noticed a few inconsistencies such as the role of comedy in a thematically tragic tale of sorrow and isolation. On one side is the sad depiction of Ariadne’s life while on the other side is the laughter that the comedy troupe intends to provide. To the eyes of an average viewer, the entire opera is a clash of elements in itself. If only I could hear the songs performed in the program, I could assume to remain on my seat until the program ends. However, while going through the text, the hidden side of the story appears in a rather more mystical nature. The mythology in which the story was supposed to have rooted from appears only on the sidelines and was not very prominent because of the perceived chaos.
