Reverse Father's Day in Opera

Janos Gereben on June 17, 2014

Apropos the past Sunday: Against a few decent dads in opera — Peter of Hansel und Gretel, William Tell, Gianni Schicchi — the genre is teeming with bad ones, such as Giorgio Germont in La traviata, Alberich in Wagner's The Ring of the Nibelung (Wotan at least has some feelings for his dozens of offsprings), King Philip II in Verdi's Don Carlo, Cenerentola's father, Senta's pimp father, Daland, and so on.

I don't include Rigoletto because he means well and cares for Gilda, she just ends up dead through unfortunate circumstances (and repugnant royalty and courtiers).

Those bad dads should be made to attend Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari's 1906 I quattro rusteghi, with the English title of "The School for Fathers."

Please feel free to add both good and bad dads to what is an initial, from-the-top-of-the-head list by Lisa Hirsch and me.