Act 1 Scene 1
A courtyard in the Duke of Mantua’s Palace
A masquerade is in progress. The Duke tells Borsa of a girl he has seen at church. He has followed her home, and has seen a man visit her late at night. The Duke determines to pursue her. He then notices the Countess Ceprano and flirts with her, much to the annoyance of her husband, the Count. Marullo announces that he has a great secret: Rigoletto, the hunchback jester, has a mistress. Rigoletto, meanwhile, encourages the Duke to taunt Count Ceprano and goads the Count into a fury. The courtiers agree to get their revenge on Rigoletto, as they have all suffered from his verbal abuse. Monterone enters, demanding to talk with the Duke, who has dishonoured his daughter. Rigoletto taunts him, and Monterone is arrested. Monterone denounces the Duke and goes on to curse Rigoletto for mocking at the grief of a father. Rigoletto is visibly moved by the curse, and the courtiers turn on Monterone.
Act 1 Scene 2
A deserted street, between Rigoletto’s house and Ceprano’s palace.
Rigoletto, returning home troubled by Monterone’s curse, is accosted by Sparafucile, a professional assassin who offers his services should Rigoletto ever need them. They discuss terms, and Sparafucile goes on his way. Rigoletto wonders at their equal roles: ‘I kill with my tongue, he with his sword.’ As a jester he must make use of his deformity to entertain the Duke and his courtiers. He cannot resort to tears. Only at home can he be true to himself.
Gilda greets him, and asks what troubles him. She asks to be told about her mother and family, and wonders what his name is. He will not tell her, only saying that she is everything to him. He tells her not to leave the house and checks with the maid Giovanna that nobody saw him entering and that the other door is always locked. He tells her to guard Gilda carefully. As Rigoletto rushes out on hearing a noise in the street, the Duke slips in and bribes Giovanna to keep quiet. When Rigoletto returns to say goodbye to Gilda, the Duke realises that the girl he has been pursuing is the jester’s daughter. Gilda wonders who the young man she saw might be, and the Duke steps out and identifies himself as the poor student Gaultier Maldé. They declare their love for one another. Hearing someone coming, he panics and runs off. Gilda left alone, muses on the name she loves.
The courtiers have gathered to abduct Rigoletto’s ‘mistress’ and he surprises them in the street outside his house. They tell him that they are planning to abduct Countess Ceprano and take her to the Ducal palace. Rigoletto agrees to help them, and they blindfold him and make him hold a ladder agains this own garden wall. They abduct Gilda, and Rigoletto realises too late that he has been tricked. Monterone’s curse has come upon him.