A fat knight, three furious wives, and the greatest 'fool gets owned' opera ever written.
Baritone Michael Volle stars as the caddish knight Falstaff, gleefully tormented by a trio of clever women who deliver his comeuppance, in Verdi’s glorious Shakespearean comedy. Maestro Daniele Rustioni takes the podium to oversee a brilliant ensemble cast that features sopranos Hera Hyesang Park and Ailyn Pérez, mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnson Cano, contralto Marie-Nicole Lemieux, tenor Bogdan Volkov, and baritone Christopher Maltman.
Acting
Volle's Falstaff — pathetic, hilarious, weirdly sympathetic
Direction
Carsen's staging makes the comedy razor-sharp
Score
Verdi's genius farewell, all sparkle and humanity
Director
Robert Carsen
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Verdi composed Falstaff at 79, famously saying 'after having spent twenty-six years in the galleys, I have finally freed myself.' It was his first comic opera since his disastrous early failure.
Robert Carsen's production moves the action to 1950s England, making Ford's jealousy land with postwar suburban anxiety — and Falstaff's tavern scenes feel like a fading empire's last pub crawl.
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