Opera Comics: Rigoletto
4 stunning moments from the opera as imagined by illustrator Barry Ekko
Illustrations by Barry Ekko
Few operas capture the duality of splendour and sorrow quite like Rigoletto. In this new suite of artworks by Barry Ekko, the world of Verdi’s masterpiece unfolds in painterly gradients of dusk and desire—each panel illuminating not just a story, but a state of mind.
These images accompany Vancouver Opera’s 2025-2026 season opener production of Rigoletto, reimagined in Victorian London, where fog and gaslight meet the fever of Verdi’s score.
La donna è mobile
The Duke, full of swagger and self-delusion, raises his arm to the night—a man intoxicated by his own voice. Behind him, the spectre of desire looms larger than life, her gaze both distant and knowing.
Ekko crafts this scene like a fever dream: amber light, defiance, the rose curling in shadow. Here is seduction as theatre, as ritual, as cruelty disguised in charm.
Rigoletto and Gilda: A Quiet Moment at Home
Father and daughter, bound by love and silence.
Inside their small world, tenderness flickers like the candle between them. Outside the window, London hums—carriages, lamplight, the indifferent city.
In this moment, Ekko reminds us that tragedy is never far from domestic peace. The candle burns low; innocence reads her book; the man already mourns what he cannot protect.
The Duke’s Seduction
A ballroom of danger. A man in command of his own myth.
She kneels, caught between awe and unease, as the Duke leans in—his voice a spell, his eyes a mirror.
Ekko’s palette glows like old film stock: crimson fading to gold. The social theatre of seduction is on full display here, the cruelty of class and power dressed in beauty and poise.
The Tragic Finale
Night over London. The river glimmers darkly.
Rigoletto kneels beside his daughter’s body, his own reflection trembling in the water.
Ekko’s final panel distills the opera’s essence: the collapse of disguise, the quiet after the storm.
Where the Duke’s laughter fades, only a father remains—a man who mistook vengeance for love.
About Barry Ekko
Barry Ekko is a Vancouver-based illustrator and graphic designer whose work features retro-futuristic poster aesthetics. He collaborates with cultural institutions—including Vancouver Opera—and applies striking, nostalgic graphics to contemporary storytelling. His style evokes vintage cinema and bold geometry, reimagining dramatic narratives through modern visual language.
GET TICKETS TO RIGOLETTO
Revenge. What could possibly go wrong? Verdi’s thrilling tragedy, Rigoletto, opens Vancouver Opera’s 2025–2026 season October 25, 30, and November 2 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. Get tickets here
Extraordinary! Bravo!!
Such amazing drawings, it really captures the opera’s emotion!