Pillage, Rape, and William Tell

Warnings: rape and opera

I recently saw two articles discussing a recent Royal Opera House production of William Tell, which garnered boos from the audience during the rape scene the director saw fit to insert. Both articles are noteworthy for their attempts to change the subject.  The one, by talking about booing itself, the other by talking about Placido Domingo, without actually even addressing his point about respect for the subject matter (there is no rape called for or required by the libretto), though it did give the director's rationale (that we have to experience the suffering of the oppressed Swiss). 

Myself, I have seen the opera Guillaume Tell once, as a livestream from the Bayerische Staatsoper, and was not overly impressed with the production.  Like too many of that opera house's productions, it was very dark lighting wise, minimalistic set-wise, and and boringly modern costume-wise. Particularly so on the boring costumes in this case as I am too shallow to believe in the revolutionary ardor of men in sweatervests.  Also, I felt betrayed upon realizing that the melody I know and recognize as the William Tell Overture is not the overture, it is merely the overture to the final act, which is not the same thing.  Despite reaching a point watching the opera where I was rather over the production and not paying much attention, I do not recall any reason why a rape scene would be supported by either the text or the score.  I do, however, recall people telling William not to disrupt a nice wedding with his gloomy speech about oppression, so I think the same narrative logic would apply to replacing a jaunty ballet with a rape scene. 

However, since I don't recall this opera that well, I consulted Andras Batta's Opera.  Batta says that this opera supports a variety of interpretations" which is the artistic equivalent of saying more research is needed--a phrase that is completely meaningless because it is never not true. However, the themes he identifies are those of heroism, an oppressed people rising to an occasion forced upon them, and also a very noble peasantry sort of pastoralism (my phrasing, not his).  This means that a rape scene really does not fit into the ballet, since an uncredited supernumerary who makes no further appearances cannot either have a blissful pastoral appearance or demonstrate heroism in the face of oppression.   One might, in fact, conclude that the raped woman has no narrative purpose other than to be a nameless and faceless victim against a cultural background in which women are seen as property of men, damage to which is damage to the men in their lives and often as justification for further violence.  Mr. Roof shooting a number of women because "you people rape our women" for example. It's a Conan the Barbarian "hear the lamentations of the women" type narrative that demonstrates crimes against women without ever giving women a voice.   Literally, in this case, since this is an uncredited actress with no lines, and no identification.  It sounds a bit unsavory.  I would probably have booed this production as well.