from Act I of the Italian opera
Norma by Vincenzo Bellini
Libretto: Felice Romani
Role: Norma, High Priestess of the Druid Temple of Esus
Voice Part: soprano Fach: dramatic coloratura
Setting: Night in the Druid's sacred forest, Gaul, around 50 B.C.
Synopsis: The Druids have come to meet with Norma, their high priestess. They want to revolt against their Roman oppressors but Norma convinces them that their time to rise up has not come yet. The Romans will be defeated by their own failings. Norma then invokes the moon and prays for peace. While the chorus of Druids sings their derison for the Romans, Norma sings her cabaletta, privately worrying that that the hatred for the Romans must also translate to hatred for Pollione, her secret Roman lover.