Verdi’s Rigoletto is a powerful exploration of love, betrayal and the destructive consequences of revenge. It is based on the 1832 play Le roi s’amuse by Victor Hugo.

The opera opens with the Duke of Mantua, a notorious womanizer, boasting about his conquests. At a lavish court party, he seduces Count Ceprano’s wife as Rigoletto verbally abuses him and the other cuckolded husbands, earning their hatred.

On the way to his death, Count Monterone, a father whose daughter has suffered at the hands of the Duke, curses both him and the Jester, after Rigoletto mocks his grief.

The curse haunts Rigoletto, whose only joy is his daughter Gilda. He keeps her hidden and locked away to protect her from the corrupt world of Mantua. Unbeknownst to Rigoletto, the Duke has already met Gilda and, disguised as a poor student, he has been visiting her with the assistance of her maid, Giovanna. Believing him to be sincere, Gilda has fallen in love. A group of courtiers follow Rigoletto to his home and, thinking Gilda is his mistress, they abduct her and deliver her to the Duke. Rigoletto is devastated to find Gilda at the palace and vows revenge. He hires Sparafucile, a hitman, to kill the Duke. However, Sparafucile’s sister, Maddalena, persuades him to spare the Duke and, instead, kill the next person who arrives at their door. Gilda, still in love with the Duke, overhears the plan and sacrifices herself, disguised as a boy. Rigoletto discovers her dying body and is consumed by grief as Monterone’s curse is finally fulfilled.