Amahl and the Night Visitors
Amahl and the Night Visitors is an opera in one act by Gian Carlo Menotti to an original English libretto by the composer. It was first performed on 24 December 1951 in New York City, at the NBC studios, where it was broadcast on television.
The opera is now a popular Christmas classic, broadcast, as it was on its premiere, on Christmas Eve. Amahl is full of humour, and the music is tuneful and charming. These qualities make it a favorite to introduce opera, as a genre, to children.
Characters
- Principal roles
- Other
- Page - Baritone
- Shepherd, villagers - Chorus
Plot
- Time: The 1st century.
- Place: Near Bethlehem.
Amahl is a young boy with a crippled leg who, although he has a kind and pleasent heart, has a problem with telling imaginary tails that are taken as lies. Because of this his mother does not beleive him when he tells her that there is an amazing star with a "tail as big as a window." The night that the star appeared, there is a knock at the door and his mother tells him to go see who it is. He is amazed when he sees three kings who happen to be the Three Wise Men. They reveal to the mother and Amahl that they are on a long journy to give gifts to a child, who happens to be Jesus and that they would like to rest at Amahl's house. His mother, since she is poor and is sickened at the thought of her child being a begger, attempts to steal some gold that was meant for the Christ child, but is thwarted by the Kings' Page. Nevertheless, she is told she may keep the gold since the Child will not need the gold to build his kingdom. However, after hearing of the child's virtues, she returns it in shame. Amahl and his mother have nothing to give the Christ child except his crutch, which he offers. As he does so, his leg is healed, and he leaves his mother and goes off with the three kings to see the child and give thanks for being healed.
Trivia
A fragment of special effects footage created for an early 1960s BBC Television production of Amahl and the Night Visitors was used as the first shot of the opening title sequence of the famous science-fiction series Doctor Who for its first three years from 1963 to 1966.