music is also particularly well suited
to the human voice, and Norma was always one of the most brilliant
parts of our first dramatic singers.

The contents are as follows:

Norma, daughter of Orovist, chief of the Druids and High-priestess
herself, has broken her vows and secretly married Pollio, the Roman
Proconsul. They have two children. But Pollio's love has vanished.
In the first act he confides to his companion Flavius, that he is
enamoured of Adalgisa, a young priestess in the temple of Irminsul, the
Druid's god.

Norma, whose secret nobody knows but her friend Clothilde, is
worshipped by the people, being the only one able to interpret the
oracles of their god. She prophesies Rome's fall, which she declares
will be brought about, not by the prowess of Gallic warriors, but by
its own weakness. She sends away the people to invoke alone the
benediction of the god. When she also is gone, Adalgisa appears and is
persuaded by Pollio to fly with him to Rome. But remorse and fear
induce her to confess her sinful love to Norma, whom she like the
others adores. Norma however, seeing the resemblance to her own fate,
promises to {236} release her from her vows and give her back to the
world and to happiness, but hearing from Adalgisa the name of her
lover, who, as it happens, just then approaches, she of course reviles
the traitor, telling the poor young maiden, that Pollio is her own
spouse. The latter defies her, but she bids him leave. Though as he
goes he begs Adalgisa to follow him, the young priestess turns from the
faithless lover, and craves Norma's pardon for the offence she has
unwittingly been guilty of.

In the second act Norma, full of despair at Pollio's treason, resolves
to kill her sleeping boys. But they awake and the mother's heart
shudders as she thinks of her purpose; then she calls for Clothilde,
and bids her fetch Adalgisa.

When she appears, Norma entreats her to be a mother to her children,
and to take them to their father Pollio, because she has determined to
free herself from shame and sorrow by a voluntary death. But the
noble-hearted Adalgisa will not hear of this sacrifice and promises to
bring Pollio back to his first love. After a touching duet, in which
they swear eternal friendship to each other, Norma takes courage again.
Her hopes are vain however, for Clothilde enters to tell her that
Adalgisa's prayers were of no avail.--Norma distrusting her rival,
calls her people