When I write these pages I’m usually listening to opera. And very often it is Piotr Illych Tchaikovsky‘s The Queen of Spades, which—in one sense—can be viewed as a cautionary tale of what happens when one takes their gambling obsession too far. The story revolves around the antihero Gherman, an army officer who is fixated upon winning the hand of the aristocratic beauty Lisa once he makes a big score at the gaming tables. He thinks he has found the way after he hears Count Tomsky (here sung by Alexey Markov) tell the story of the Old Countess, the onetime ‘Venus of Moscow’ and her secret of the three cards:
After seducing Lisa, Gherman sneaks into the Old Countess’ boudoir, where he tries to threaten her into revealing the identity of the three winning cards. When he pulls a gun on the old woman, he frightens her to death. Later, in his quarters, Gherman (Placido Domingo) gets an unexpected visitor …
… but the ghost of the Old Countess had a secret card up her sleeve …
Dying, Gherman (Vladimir Galouzine) has a vision of Lisa, whom he has driven to suicide, and asks her forgiveness. Even the dissolute gamblers are shocked into a moment of piety. It’s a great yarn and if this whets your appetite for the whole music drama you can find a great Vienna production here:
Think of it as my Christmas present to you.
