The Scarlet Letter (Damrosch opera)
# The Scarlet Letter (Damrosch opera)

The Scarlet Letter is an opera by Walter Damrosch, based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's 1850 novel of the same name. The libretto was by George Parsons Lathrop, son-in-law of the author. The work is Wagnerian in style, Damrosch being a great enthusiast and champion of the composer. Excerpts from the opera first premiered at Carnegie Hall on January 4 and 5, 1895; the first fully staged performance was February 10, 1896 (127 years ago) (1896-02-10), in Boston. Among those present at the premiere were Charles Eliot Norton, Prince Serge Wolkonsky, Julia Ward Howe, and Nellie Melba.

## Roles

| Role | Voice type | Concert premiere cast, January 4–5, 1895 (the composer conducting) | Full premiere cast, February 10, 1896 (the composer conducting) |
| - | - | - | - |
| Hester Prynne, a young Puritan woman | soprano | Lillian Nordica | Johanna Gadski |
| Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale, an eloquent young minister | tenor | William H. Rieger | Barron Berthold |
| Roger Chillingworth, Hester's husband | baritone | Giuseppe Campanari | Wilhelm Mertens |
| Rev. John Wilson, an elderly and revered minister | baritone | Ericsson F. Bushnell | Gerhard Stehmann |
| Governor Bellingham, governor of Boston | bass | Conrad Behrens | Conrad Behrens |
| Brackett, a jailer | bass | James F. Thomson | Julius von Putlitz |
| A Shipmaster | baritone | presumably Ericsson F. Bushnell | Gerhard Stehmann |
| Chorus: Puritans ||||

## Differences from the novel

* Pearl, Hester's daughter, is absent.
* Instead of living a solitary life after Dimmesdale dies at the end, Hester takes poison and dies with him.
