Composer: Maria de Lourdes Martins
Librettist: Maria de Lourdes Martins
Libretto based on As máscaras by José Régio
Date: 1984
Language: Portuguese
Small-scale
Columbina: soprano
Pierrot: tenor
Mefistófeles: baritone
The Lady of the House: mezzo‑soprano
Masked Woman: mezzo‑soprano
Masked Man: guitarist
Chorus¹
The action takes place in the antechamber of a ballroom. Three characters meet: Columbina, Pierrot and Mephistopheles, and a game of seduction by Columbina unfolds. The disguises they wear allow confessions between the characters and reaffirm their identities. The piece takes up classic figures of theatre, from the Commedia dell’Arte and the Faust myth.
The action takes place in the present day, during a masquerade ball, in an elegant house in the capital. The scene represents a small room near the ballroom. Sober and tasteful arrangement. Large glass door at the back, overlooking a terrace. A wide door on the left, another on the right. The room is empty as the curtain rises. Columbina runs in from the left, immediately followed by Pierrot. Mephistopheles comes out to meet her from the right. Columbina runs to the front of the stage and suddenly turns around. She stands with her back to the audience.
Columbina – So, I am between two fires?
Pierrot (advances two steps, both hands on his chest) – That of my heart, Columbina!
Mephistopheles (also advances two steps and bends into a slight bow) – Columbina… that of my desire! (…).²
Fl | Cl | Bsn | Tpt | Gtr | 2 Perc³
The composer’s first foray into the operatic genre came from a commission from the Ministry of Culture. The libretto was written based on the play by José Régio, As máscaras (1940), premiered in 1947 by the Teatro Moderno Group of the Faculty of Arts of the University of Lisbon. An opera in one act for choir and orchestra, it uses an unusual instrumental ensemble, with choir, orchestra and three small instrumental groups (trumpet and drums; percussion; flute, clarinet and bassoon). Underlying the choice of these instrumental ensembles was the composer’s desire to do something different from her own musical language and close to jazz improvisation.⁴
Três máscaras premiered at the Teatro Nacional de São Carlos on July 27, 1986, with the Orchestra and Chorus of the TNSC and featured staging by Mário Feliciano, sets and costumes by António Casimiro and choreography by Vicente Trindade. The performances also included the opera by Antonio Salieri, Prima la musica poi le parole, in a modern premiere in Portugal. The set model for Três Máscaras is part of the collection of the Museu Nacional do Teatro e Dança.⁵
Date: 1986
Venue: Teatro Nacional de São Carlos, Lisbon
Commission: Ministry of Culture
Stage Direction: Mário Feliciano
Music Direction: Manuel Ivo Cruz
Cast: Elsa Saque, Fernando Serafim, Vaz de Carvalho, Manuela Santos, Helena Cláudio, Lopes e Silva, Centro de Formação Profissional da Companhia Nacional de Bailado do Teatro São Carlos and the Conservatório Nacional, Chorus of the Teatro Nacional de São Carlos and Orchestra of the Teatro Nacional de São Carlos
