James Hepokoski provides a reliable summary of what is currently known about Otello, along with an interpretation of the significance of the work within Verdi's career. The book begins with a detailed synopsis which interweaves some of the specific stage action from the 1887 Milanese premiere. There follows a close consideration of how the opera was actually written: Arrigo Boito's derivation of the libretto from Shakespeare and the subsequent textual revisions; Verdi's composition of the opera from 1884 to 1887 and an overview of the revisions of the opera for Venice in 1887 and Paris in 1894. A further chapter outlines Verdi's own ideas for the performance of Otello and this is followed by William Ashbrook's summary of the opera's stage history up to the present. Professor Hepokoski continues by suggesting a new model for understanding the musical structure of Otello. The book concludes with a study of the opera as a work of Shakespearean adaptation.

This book is a compact, up-to-date guide to the history and construction of Verdi's last - and possibly greatest - opera. Incorporating the findings of the most recent research, it provides performers, opera enthusiasts, students and scholars alike with a reliable summary of what is currently known about the work. The book gives a full synopsis of the plot and a detailed account both of Verdi's aims in composing the opera and of how he actually composed it: which portions were difficult for him, which he considered crucial, which were afterthoughts, etc. Special attention is given to separating the three versions of Falstaff that Verdi approved - versions that are still confused in almost all performances today. Professor Hepokoski also supplies extensive discussions of Boito's derivation of the plot and text from Shakespeare (and others); of the musical technique and structure of Falstaff; and of Verdi's own guidelines for interpretation, staging and singing. A guide to critical assessments of the opera illustrates the widely differing receptions the opera has had in the twentieth century, and a concluding essay by Graham Bradshaw discusses Shakespearean aspects of both Otello and Falstaff. The book contains a bibliography, a discography (by Malcolm Walker), illustrations of the original stage designs and costumes, and extensive musical examples.