“Barbari noi / Chiama la vostra Europa”. Il personaggio esotico nella librettistica italiana ottocentesca

Abstract

The focus of this article is on the exotic character as an intruder in both oriental and western contexts; it involves an analysis of three kinds of librettos: those having plots that are wholly exotic and where some characters are exotic with respect to the general background; exotic dramas in which at least one non-exotic character appears; plots that are not exotic but in which at least one exotic character is present. The essay evaluates these characters as they evolve in a ‘different’ world. Librettos that describe exotic landscapes are not considered in the study. The paper examines both opera seria and opera buffa, chiefly in early nineteenth century productions written for Rossini, Bellini, Donizetti and Verdi, but going so far as Puccini; it also includes some librettos written for other composers such as Spontini, Gomes, Franchetti and Busoni.