By Elke Porter | WBN News Vancouver | October 28, 2025
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A 150-year-old opera feels uncomfortably relevant in 2025

Vancouver Opera launched its 2025-2026 season Saturday night at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre with a visually stunning production of Verdi's Rigoletto. The performance showcased exceptional talent, lavish props, and masterful vocal performances. Yet beneath the artistic brilliance lies a deeply troubling question: why are some families bringing children to witness a story steeped in sexual assault, kidnapping, and murder?

Written in 1851, Rigoletto tells the story of a lecherous Duke who boasts about avoiding monogamy "at all costs" (a line that drew uncomfortable laughter through the surtitles). The Duke seduces women indiscriminately, including Gilda, the innocent daughter of his court jester Rigoletto. What follows is a nightmare: Gilda is abducted, assaulted, yet inexplicably still loves her abuser. The opera concludes with her sacrificing herself for the Duke, dying in her father's arms while the perpetrator remains unpunished.

In the #MeToo era, this narrative feels disturbingly relevant rather than safely historical. The production's excellence—and it truly was excellent—somehow makes the content more unsettling. The cast delivered powerfully, the staging was impeccable, and the orchestra soared. This wasn't amateur hour; this was world-class artistry devoted to depicting tragedy.

Tragedy, of course, is opera's cornerstone. But perhaps that's the problem. The opera world has long traded on the assumption that "culture" and "art" provide immunity from content warnings. Singing in Italian doesn't make sexual violence less graphic; historical distance doesn't make trauma less triggering.

The pre-show talk at 6:30 p.m. offered valuable context, but context isn't a trigger warning. Many parents, eager to expose children to "culture," sat with young audience members who witnessed this R-rated story unfold.

Did I enjoy it? Yes and no. The artistry was undeniable. Yet the story was reprehensible. Yet for adults who are 19+, I'd still recommend seeing Rigoletto. One unexpected delight was recognizing melodies I'd heard countless times in movies and TV shows, finally discovering their operatic origins. That moment of connection—"so that's where that comes from!"—added unexpected joy to the evening.

Perhaps that's opera's eternal paradox—finding beauty in tragedy, art in horror. But in 2025, content warnings seem reasonable, especially when promoting family attendance.

The good news? Vancouver Opera's next production is Mozart's Così fan tutte in February, promising a light-hearted, fun story. After Rigoletto's darkness, the timing couldn't be better. Dates are Feb 7, 12, 15M, 2026. Learn more here: https://www.vancouveropera.ca/whats-on/cosi-fan-tutte/

Basic Storyline of Rigoletto - The men in the Duke’s court kidnapped Gilda because they wanted revenge on Rigoletto.

Earlier in the story, Rigoletto cruelly mocked these courtiers when the Duke seduced their wives and daughters. So, when they saw Rigoletto acting mysteriously protective about a young woman (his daughter Gilda, though they thought she was his secret mistress), they decided to get even.

They tricked Rigoletto into helping them with the kidnapping — telling him they were abducting Countess Ceprano, another courtier’s wife — by having him hold a ladder against what he believed was her balcony. Only later does Rigoletto realize, in horror, that he had unknowingly helped them kidnap his own daughter.

It’s one of the most shocking and cruel ironies in Rigoletto — the jester who mocked everyone else becomes the victim of his own blindness and others’ cruelty.

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 TAGS: #Vancouver Opera #Rigoletto #Opera Review #Classical Music #YVR Arts #Opera Night #WBN News Vancouver #Elke Porter

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