Whether you’re a veteran opera buff or a novice, chances are that you’ve heard the tenor showpiece “La donna è mobile.”
“La donna è mobile,” Rigoletto’s best-known aria, is featured in such diverse commercials as Leggo’s tomato sauce, a goofy Doritos Super Bowl ad where a baby is slingshotted through the air in an attempt to steal his brother’s chips, and a steamy Argentinean ad for Axe body spray. It was the score for a “Prince of Pizza” commercial in the Prairie Home Companion movie and was included in the soundtrack for the Grand Theft Auto computer game.
And that’s only a sampling.
Let us embark on a YouTube tour of Rigoletto’s famous aria “La donna è mobile,” shall we?
Doritos Commercials
Doritos used the famed aria as the soundtrack to not one, but two Super Bowl ads. Extending beyond the role of background music, the commercial takes place at the opera theater. In the second Doritos Super Bowl ad, a family feud takes place over a bag of chips.
AXE Commercial
In a soft rock adaptation of the Verdi aria, this AXE ad highlights the trials of romantic relationships… with a twist (and a happy ending).
Nestle Choco Crossies
For this Nestle commercial, the pleasure of cookie-sharing is amplified by the aria.
Leggo’s Tomato Paste
The art of music meets the culinary arts in this expressive commercial for tomato paste.
Scrubbing Bubbles Commercial
Singing bubbles replace opera tenors in this commercial jingle.
Other commercial uses of “La donna è mobile” include Olive Garden, the Sopranos television show, and many food commercials for frozen pizza, spaghetti, olive oil and pasta.
RIGOLETTO
by Giuseppe Verdi
Considered to be the birth of Italian grand opera and one of Verdi’s most memorable creations, Rigoletto is a heartrending journey of unrelenting force powered by one recognizable melody after another. Learn more about the upcoming production.