Chłopi [The Peasants]. One novel – two operas. A comparative study of libretti

Abstract

After Władysław Reymont was awarded the Nobel Prize for his novel Chłopi [The Peasants], the idea of staging it in America in the form of an opera was conceived. The libretto was written by Jan Sroka, while the music was composed by Eugeniusz Walkiewicz. The premiere failed to happen, though. In 1972, Witold Rudziński composed the opera Chłopi based on a libretto by Krystyna Berwińska and Wanda Wróblewska. The scores cannot be compared as the first one has been lost, but my intention is to compare the libretti. Sroka’s libretto is in verse form, while Berwińska’s and Wróblewska’s work is basically a text crafted from intricately cut fragments of Reymont’s novel. Although both stem from the same source, they differ not only in form, but also in their fidelity and dedication to the nature of the original, both ideologically and linguistically. Sroka’s libretto is a kind of stylization, while Berwinska’s and Wróblewska’s is a multi-layered interpretation of the Nobel Prize winner’s work.