The Flying Dutchman Synopsis
Centuries ago, the captain of “The Flying Dutchman” attempted to sail through a storm around the Cape of Good Hope. In his fury, he cried, “I will sail ever forward even if it takes an eternity.” Satan took him at his word. The captain and his crew were cursed to forever roam the world. However, an angel took pity on the Capitan, and once every seven years, “The Flying Dutchman” is allowed to make landfall. If the captain can find someone who will remain true to him until death, the curse will be lifted, and their souls will at last be free…
Act I
On the coast of Norway, a merchant ship is blown off course by a terrible storm. Daland, the ship’s captain, laments that they should be home by now, greeting his daughter, Senta. As the storm abates, Daland sends his men below to rest, leaving his steersman to keep watch.
The steersman falls asleep as the ghostship, The Flying Dutchman, docks. The captain, the Dutchman, disembarks for the first time in seven years. Alone, he rails against his fate. Despairing, he wonders if the angel’s blessing was yet another curse in disguise. He has lost hope of finding anyone who will be true unto death, and he resigns himself to ceaseless wandering until Judgement Day.
Daland enters and chides the steersman for not alerting him to the arrival of the strange ship. Soon, Daland and the Dutchman make a deal: Since the Dutchman has no wife or children, he will give Daland all the treasure in his hold for a night’s rest. Daland cannot believe his luck and is suspicious of the stranger. However, the treasure is too much of a temptation, and Daland promises to give the foreigner his daughter in marriage. Privately, the Dutchman wonders if this woman may be his savior. As the skies clear and Daland’s ship makes its way home again, the sailors cheer, unable to believe their windfall.
INTERMISSION
Act II
Meanwhile, the women wait for the ship’s return. They dutifully keep busy song as Senta obsessively stares at a portrait of the legendary Dutchman. Since she was a child, she has loved the story of The Flying Dutchman. As someone who doesn’t fit into the conformist world around her, she empathizes with the cursed, mythical wanderer. Her maid, Mary, reprimands her for not joining the other women. However, Senta soon takes matters into her own hands and sings the ballad of The Flying Dutchman, proclaiming that she will be the one who will redeem him and lift his curse.
Erik, the hunter, arrives and is horrified by what he has overheard. He pursues Senta and when they are left alone, he pleads with her speak to her father on his behalf. Erik desperately wants to marry her, but he is afraid that Daland will reject his claim. Senta rebuffs him and tries to flee, but Erik only becomes more desperate. He is afraid of her obsession with the Dutchman, and he recounts a dream where Daland arrived with the Dutchman, himself. Senta is thrown into ecstasy as she escapes, and Erik fears that “his dream is coming true.”
At this moment, the Dutchman enters. Senta is stunned. Daland misreads her stillness for timidity, and he encourages Senta to accept the Dutchman. Daland leaves them alone, hoping that time together will kindle the fire of their love. Time stops as Senta and the Dutchman are confronted by their heart’s desire. Though the Dutchman is wary, Senta pledges to be true to him until death. As Daland reenters, Senta accepts the Dutchman’s proposal, and they exit to join the villagers for their festivities.
Act III
The village celebrates the return of the sailors, and as they all drink and dance, they notice that the foreign ship remains as silent and still as the grave. As tension rises, the ghost crew of The Flying Dutchman reveal themselves. The villagers are immediately hostile and everyone flees.
Senta is confronted by Erik who once again pleads for Senta’s hand. He begs her not to marry the strange foreigner, since Erik believes he and Senta are already betrothed. The Dutchman overhears, and he is thrown into despair. However, since any woman who is unfaithful will be cursed as well, the Dutchman resolves to leave without Senta, forgoing his own salvation for the sake of her soul. As the Dutchman calls his crew and prepares to depart, he reveals his identity to the village: He is the ghost ship captain of The Flying Dutchman. As he sails away, Senta wrenches herself away from the controlling villagers and reiterates her promise to remain true until death as she leaps from the cliff overlooking the port. Through their mutual sacrifices, the souls of the Dutchman and Senta are finally free from curses and constraints.