DONIZETTI

BETLY

(one act, cast of three, STB, with male chorus)

Betly declares her independence from the male sex:

My cabin’s all I’ve got,

No stately mansion.

Quite happy with my lot,

I’m free and single.

No man has ever made

Me throb and tingle.

For love I’d never trade

My carefree days.

If some rude fellow,

All high and mighty,

Orders fidelity

Or even begs it,

I merely say to him,

Flippant and flighty,

“Sir, it’s been charming’

There is the exit!”

After a long absence, Betly’s brother returns to his beloved Switzerland:

Oh, land of the Swiss, land of mountains sublime

And the clean, well-kept hotel!

Where cows are content, and the trains on time,

Home of Heidi and William Tell.

Land where the chocolate and cheese abound,

Home of the secret bank account!

Your clock and your watch to the death we defend,

For time will conquer in the end . . .