Скачать или смотреть Odyssey Opera presents: Henry VIII Act I aria “Ah! c'est la torture supreme”

HENRY VIII
By Camille Saint-Saëns
Libretto by Léonce Détroyat and Armand Silvestre
Presented in concert
September 21, 2019
NEC’s Jordan Hall

In this excerpt, Henry VIII (Michael Chioldi) passionately addresses in his Act I aria the emotional foundation of the love triangle which becomes the “King’s Troubles”.

TRANSLATION:

Ah! it is the supreme torture:
Hope and fear at the same time!
And live, exiled from oneself,
Having whims for laws!
Who is in charge when he loves?
She wants and then no longer wants
She looks for me and then avoids me.
The memory of Marguerite
Does he make my regrets unnecessary?
She looks for me and then avoids me,
She wants and then no longer wants.
Ah! it is the supreme torture:
Hope and fear at the same time!
And live in exile from oneself,
Having whims for laws!
Who is in charge when he loves?
And what empire remains at heart
Where does love put its winning foot?
Who is in charge when he loves?