Verdi’s work of old age and at the same time the last opera from his pen belongs to the genre of commedia lirica. The premiere of “Falstaff” took place to great acclaim at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan in 1893 and ushered in a renaissance of comic opera at the turn of the century. Falstaff influenced, among others, the cheerful stage works of Richard Strauss and also the brilliant “Gianni Schicchi” by Giacomo Puccini.
The character of Falstaff describes an old man, very obese and fond of drinking, poltrous, who sets out with shrewdness and quick-wittedness to replenish his dwindling financial reserves. This burlesque and entertaining story tells how he succeeds, what intrigues are forged and who ends up happy with whom.
Arrigo Boito wrote a witty libretto based on William Shakespeare’s “The Merry Wives of Windsor” (including scenes from “Henry IV”), which sparkles with wit and wordplay. Verdi composed the opera at the age of almost 80, and perhaps the fact that as a celebrated composer of the century he no longer had anything to prove to anyone may have contributed to the musical realization being so pointed, lively and authentic.