
Fun Facts About The Rake's Progress
Think you know The Rake's Progress?
Boost your opera trivia knowledge with these tid bits on the history and creation of Stravinsky's neo-classical opera.
Opera Omaha's production will be the first time The Rake's Progress is performed in Omaha, and will mark the 50th anniversary of David Hockney's iconic production.
Igor Stravinsky wrote 8 operas in his lifetime, The Rake’s Progress is his only full-length opera
The Rake's Progress is often seen as a pastiche of Mozart’s operas, particularly Don Giovanni. It also incorporates elements from other classical composers like Rossini and Verdi.
Stravinsky and his librettists, W.H. Auden and Chester Kallman, embedded subtle references to psychoanalytic theory, particularly the ideas of Sigmund Freud.
When writing The Rake’s Progress, Stravinsky claimed that he used a roulette wheel to determine certain rhythmic and melodic patterns in the opera, reflecting the theme of fate and fortune that runs throughout the story
The famous writer Aldous Huxley played an indirect yet pivotal role in the creation of The Rake's Progress. It was Huxley who suggested to Stravinsky that he collaborate with W.H. Auden
David Hockney, prior to ever creating his iconic designs for the opera, created an autobiographical series of paintings titled, "A Rake's Progress," inspired by William Hogarth's original engravings.
Director Roy Rallo has directed every revival of this production of The Rake's Progress since it was re-built for San Francisco.
Auden and Kallman’s partnership was also deeply personal; the opera is often seen as a reflection of their relationship, with Auden embodying the steady, faithful Anne, and Kallman as the more impulsive, rakish Tom.
The storyline of The Rake's Progress is directly inspired by William Hogarth's series of eight paintings and engravings, titled A Rake's Progress
The parallels between Tom Rakewell and Don Giovanni—both of whom embark on self-destructive paths driven by hedonism—are deliberate, underscoring Stravinsky’s homage to the classical master, Mozart.
The world premiere of The Rake's Progress in Venice in 1951 was conducted by Stravinsky himself.
