Lohengrin, Scala opening night

Lohengrin, Richard Wagner

Daniel Barenboim, conductor

Claus Guth, staging

Christian Schmidt, sets and costumes

Olaf Winter, lights

Ronny Dietrich, dramaturgy

 

Jonas Kaufmann, Lohengrin

Ann Petersen, Elsa von Brabant

René Pape, Heinrich der Vogler

Tómas Tómasson, Friedrich von Telramund

Evelyn Herlitzius, Ortrud

Zeljko Lucic, Der Heerrufer des Königs

 

I may not have understood everything in Claus Guth's interpretation of Lohengrin (especially the entrance of Lohengrin and his initial behavior) but overall, as usual, I was transported in his unique world, full of grace, subtility, humor and childhood references.

The only disruptive image was the half-swan/half-child costume, not quite the same standard, I thought, as everything else.

Ann Petersen, a last minute replacement for the role of Elsa was phenomenal, both on the acting and singing part: she portrayed uniquely the madness Guth put in Elsa and to be able to apprehend the staging in less than 24 hour was a miracle in itself. 

Her singing, moreover, was a joy to listen to.

René Pape and Tómas Tómasson both sang admirably; Tómasson's stage presence really sold his character in a level I had rarely seen before (especially for Telramund).

 Evelyn Herlitzius portrayed a demoniac Ortrud but her singing was a bit of a let down.

And Jonas Kaufmann was, of course, to no surprise, the king of the night.
His singing is exquisite, and the role of Lohengrin is perfect for his voice, because the darkness he has is the first perfect step toward seeing Lohengrin as anything but the white knight on his gigantic swan.

Several mistakes were heard in the orchestra pit, especially a lack of unisson at times.

The interpretation of Daniel Barenboim was anything but flamboyant (a quality he deeply lacks, I think), but decent enough not to get in the way of the singers.

A word on the Scala chorus: I must say it does not live up to the standards the Scala name is synonym with.

Their diction was quite awful (and if I, whose german is anything but fluent, can hear it, I can only imagine what native german speakers endured there) and there was something missing in their stage presence: discipline is the first word that comes to mind.

 

 Overall, a very good evening.

Personal ratings

Singers : A

Staging : A

Conductor: B

Orchestra: B-

Chorus : C

 

 

All photographs Foto Ufficio Stampa

Evelino Pido: Otello / La Sonnambula - 2010

Otello ossia Il Moro di Venezia

Giaocchino Rossini

John Osborn : Otello

Anna Caterina Antonacci : Desdémone

Marco Vinco : Elmiro

Dmitry Korchak : Rodrigo

José Manuel Zapata : Iago

Orchestre et Chœurs de l'Opéra de Lyon

Evelino Pidò, conductor

Nov.7, 2010 - Concert version

La Sonnambula

Vincenzo Bellini

Michele Pertusi - Il Conte Rodolfo

Cornelia Oncioiu - Teresa

Natalie Dessay - Amina

Javier Camarena - Elvino

Orchestre et choeur de l'Opéra national de Paris

Evelino Pidò, conductor

Opéra National de Paris

Feb.15, 2010 - Mezzo broadcast

Great: Schubert's 9th by Muti

Riccardo Muti
Berliner Philarmoniker
Teatro S.Carlo di Napoli
Mezzo broadcast, May 1st, 2009
"Concert Europa 2009"

Schubert
Symphony #9 in C Major, "The Great", D944

Mesmerizing.
Hypnotizing.
Fascinating.

Perfect Muti, in a nutshell.

Concert éducatif Haydn - Pleyel

Orchestre Les Siècles
Conduction - François-Xavier Roth
Host - Pierre Charvet
Giovanni von Essen

Joseph Haydn
Symphonie n°8 "Le Soir" (extrait)
Symphonie n°45 "Les Adieux" (extrait)
Symphonie n°88 (extrait)
Concerto pour violoncelle n°2 en ré Majeur (extrait)
Trio de Londres, 2 flûtes et violoncelle (extrait)
Libre adaptation de l'hymne allemand

W.A. Mozart
Réduction pour 2 flûtes de la Flûte Enchantée

Salle Pleyel, Dec. 6, 2009
Program here
Concert available for the next two months on Arte Live Web.

A "concert éducatif" at the Salle Pleyel in Paris is not something I would normally attend, but I jumped on the opportunity to watch it via Arte Live Web, and I did enjoy this hour of music very much.

The concert was centered around Joseph Haydn's music, with extracts from symphonies, concerti, chamber music, with two Mozart extracts and even a traditional Irish piece, all that played in a casual, friendly and joyful manner by the orchestra and conductor.

Such concerts are commendable and necessary, to educate children about the beauty and depth of classical music (even if Haydn is not really the master of multi-layered scores, but his music is simple enough to be understood by children). It shows them how fun it really is, and how easy it is to get caught into it - an experience they'll hopefully never forget.

That Arte decided to broadcast is yet another brilliant idea, because broadening the audience of such quality learning experiences is also broadening the accessibility of classical music, and hopefully engraved these emotions into even more children of all ages.

Carmen - Barenboim / Kusej - 2006

Georges Bizet (1875)


Carmen - Marina Domashenko
Don José - Rolando Villazón
Escamillo - Alexander Vinogradov
Micaëla - Norah Amsellem

Conduction - Daniel Barenboim
Berlin Staatskapelle Orchestra, Staatsopernchor

Direction - Martin Kusej
Coproduction Berlin Staatsoper / Théâtre du Chatelet

Berlin Staatsoper Under den Linden
July 1st 2006
ZDF broadcast

An all-dark and heavy atmosphere for this production of Carmen.

Lust and violence are the two axis Kusej chose to emphasize - and he did push his concept to the extreme, since not only Carmen, but also Don José and Micaëla turn out dead at the end of it.

But since the libretto didn't convey to such an extend the intentions Kusej wanted to showcase, he also took the liberty of rewriting the spoken dialogues, and in a very poorly manner.

All and all, I think this production is a failure.

Somewhere during its genesis, the concept became poisoned by its essence, Kusej lost all sense of balance, and the production became a mix of zombies and psychopaths (the zombies do appear quite litteraly during the children chorus "Avec la garde montante" in Act I, and are so disconnected from the music you can hardly escape the images of mediocre horror movies).

The other huge issue with this production is the cast.

Villazon is supposed to portray a dark, violent and nihilist Don José, but the result on stage is a disaster. There's no way he can identify with such a character, and he also has the tendency to forget his stage presence when singing a solo; "La fleur que tu m'avais jetée" is the quintessential example of such a tendency; after a while, he wants so much to showcase his voice he enters the [wild-and-ridiculous gestures]-mode, that obviously fails even more the concept of Kusej.

Domashenko's Carmen is also a disaster.

She has no sex-appeal whatsoever and her stage presence is so cold and distant it's hard to see any inch of Carmen in her. The singing is also disappointing: bad projection, ugly high notes, and no modulation (between none and too much like Villazon, I'm afraid I can't pick one over the other).

Norah Ansellem's Micaëla and Alexander Vinogradov's Escamillo are also vocally weak, and the only ray of light comes from the chorus, though its performance is not flawless as well.

I'm also very critical of Barenboim's conduction; I understand his view, I just don't agree with it, and I think he doesn't serve the score as well as he could be.

Barenboim's idea is to shape the rhythmn of the score to display all the colors Bizet injected in each individual instrumental score but, in doing so, he loses the cohesive rhythm of the score as a whole - and the opera itself.

The result is a performance in which you can distinctly hear all the instruments, but that is overall quite feeble, lacking brightness and intensity.

I wonder if he'll keep this idea when Barenboim conducts Carmen in a few days for the Opening Night at La Scala...

Further reading : Mostly Opera's review

Guth's Cosi - Salzburg 2009

Act 2, Last scene

 

Cosi fan tutte
 W. A. Mozart


Fiordiligi - Miah Persson
Dorabella - Isabel Leonard
Ferrando - Topi Lehtipuu
Guglielmo - Florian Boesch
Don Alfonso - Bo Skovhus
Despina - Patricia Petibon
Wiener Philharmoniker & Staatsopernchor
Adam Fischer Musikalische Leitung
Claus Guth Regie

Salzburg, July 30 2009, ORF2 broadcast

Claus Guth's Cosi, that was performed this summer in Salzburg, is set in a modern house near the woods where Don Giovanni was wandering in last year. The dark atmosphere is pretty similar in both productions but Don Giovanni was a masterpiece - and Cosi is just an accumulation of awkward moments.

The fault is on Guth obviously, who saturated this production with German expressionism, but also on the cast, who was not able - Isabel Leonard excepted - to convey Guth's vision.
But since the singing was overall good, I blame Guth again on that subject - for not simplifying his direction. If your ideas don't work with the cast you have, you must adapt. Mustn't you? The most obvious example lies with Don Alfonso. Guth's idea of Cosi is focused around Don Alfonso - portrayed as Gounod's Méphitophélès from Faust : dark and manipulative.

This concept first lost credibility when he added tons of expressionism - Konwitschny-style.
It then sank when Bo Skovhus was cast for the role - no insult intended, but he's definitely no Erwin Schrott. And I'm pretty sure this production could only have worked with Schrott as Don Alfonso. Well, I suppose this only means you can't be a genius all the time. Better luck next time.

Isabel Leonard

[superb "Amore è un ladroncello" in Act 2]
  Patricia Petibon
  Florian Boesch & Miah Persson

Further reading:

" Au Festival de Salzbourg, un "Cosi" sous hypnose mais peu hypnotique ", Renaud Machart for Le Monde with once again a brilliant review (Aug.8). Chosen extracts: " On pourrait dire que Claus Guth a les idées frappées au coin du nonsense : mais ses excentricités ont toujours un sens, caché ou évident, qui finit par convertir les sceptiques et par le distinguer des metteurs en scène dont l'art du détournement aboutit au cul-de-sac du raccourci abusif. A première vue, ce Cosi est de la même trempe. Il tente de boucler la boucle par des liens récurrents avec les deux autres spectacles salzbourgeois : Eros mène toujours les personnages au doigt et à la braguette ; la forêt de Don Giovanni, lieu de mystère et de sortilèges, est rappelée ; l'escalier monumental des Noces est réinstallé, mais dans une version de l'architecte allemand Mies van der Rohe pour une villa californienne des bords du Pacifique.
(...) Guth a eu l'idée de faire de Don Alfonso un hypnotiseur, vaguement sorcier, un peu John Travolta (mais pourquoi ces mouvements de danse ?), qui claque des doigts, frappe dans les mains (se reprend si cela ne marche pas) et manipule tout le monde.
(...) Cosi, apparemment si simple et si binaire, est pourtant le plus difficile à monter de la trilogie Da Ponte. De très grands, comme Patrice Chéreau, s'y sont même cassé les dents. La lecture de Guth semble plaquée artificiellement sur l'oeuvre, alors qu'elle semblait découler naturellement d'elle dans les deux précédents volets.
(...) En fosse, Adam Fischer (...) souligne adroitement les détails cachés de la partie orchestrale, ménage un cantabile permanent et des tempos sans excès. Tout cela est raisonnable, bien sous tout rapport, mais d'un ennui redoutable."

A few words about Py's Idomeneo - Aix 2009

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Idomeneo, Re di Creta

Idomeneo Richard Croft
Idamante Yann Beuron
Ilia Sophie Karthäuser
Elettra Mireille Delunsch

Rundfunkchor Berlin
Musiciens du Louvre Grenoble
Direction musicale Marc Minkowski

Mise en scène et lumières Olivier Py
Scénographie et costumes Pierre André Weitz

Aix-en-Provence - 10th July 2009 Arte live broadcast

Olivier Py's production of Mozart's Idomeneo for the 2009 Aix Festival, though pleasant and easy to follow, leaves me a bit disappointed. The staging, a mix of Pierre Audi-like aesthetics and Nikolaus Lehnhoff's iconography, lacks depth and is nothing close to a groundbreaking experience. Fantastic craftsmanship is on display continuously, but the staging remains desperately emotionless. And Neptune and his kitchen knife and hairy chest fails to bring any edginess to it. The ideas are all well-thought and well-polished, but the sets and costumes, all in B&W, create a cold scenery that is reinforced by the lack of any truly vivid actor's direction.

More on the subject:
- "Olivier Py en fait un peu trop avec sa mise en scène d'"Idoménée" de Mozart, à Aix-en-Provence", Le Monde, Marie-Aude Roux
- "Festival d'Aix: Olivier Py débute dans Mozart avec un "Idoménée" bien bâti", Le Point
- "L’«Idoménée» choc d’Olivier Py", Libération, Eric Dahan
- "La frénésie d'“Idoménée” selon Py", Télérama, Fabienne Pascaud
- Olivier Py's interview by France Soir

Pagliacci, Orange

I Pagliacci
Ruggiero Leoncavallo
Dramma in due atti (1892)
Libretto Ruggiero Leoncavallo

Nedda - Inva Mula
Canio - Roberto Alagna
Tonio - Seng-Hyou Ko
Silvio - Stéphane Degout
Beppe - Florian Laconi
Orchestre National de France
Choeurs des opéras de région
Georges Prêtre, direction
Mise en scène, Jean-Claude Auvray

France 3 live broadcast of the Aug.4 performance
Chorégies d'Orange

 

If I had the opportunity to choose an opera to stage, I would choose Pagliacci.
First of all, for very personal reasons, I love "le Théâtre dans le Théâtre" or, in this case, "le cirque dans l'opéra". It automatically carries, for me, a deep sense of Absurd that is longing to be explored. Yet I haven't seen any production of Pagliacci that focuses on this aspect. This one included.

Can you imagine what a director familiar with Harold Pinter's work would do with such a piece? Clearly Jean-Claude Auvray never heard of Pinter.

His one big idea, changing the end of the opera by having Canio kill himself is the ultimate misreading of the libretto. This is not an opera about death, although Nedda and Silvio actually die, this is about life. Canio's life. And his rebirth, after killing his unfaithful wife and her lover.

There is so much to explore in this piece without altering its meaning, and yet Auvray chose the easy path - making it more dramatic (or totally idiotic) by having Canio commit suicide. Les mots me manquent. How did he dare? It is so hard to really read the libretto, written by Leoncavallo himself, and try to play with lines such as Canio's "Il teatro e la vita, Non son la stessa cosa." ?


The conduction of Georges Prêtre was fortunately on a whole different level. There was a very cinematographic feel to it and it blended the music perfectly with Orange's Théâtre Antique.
At one point during the love scene between Nedda and Silvio, with the wind blowing in Inva Mula's hair, I felt like I was watching a movie from the sixties (which only shows how different a live performance and a broadcast really are, regardless of the size of the TV screen).

In any case, Prêtre's conduction was fresh and truly vibrant. The contrast between his music and the physical appearance of this now very old man is really mind-blowing.

As for the cast, Inva Mula gave a forgettable performance - not bad, but not particularly exciting as well. Roberto Alagna was not very convincing either, but substituting singing with shouting hardly ever is. And his "Recitar... vesti la giubba", the highlight of the score for me, fell terribly short I'm afraid.

Song Hyon Ko was the best of the cast. His singing was full of colours and nuances, the voice was well-placed, and the acting was convincing enough. A really interesting portrayal of Tonio by Ko.

Muti's Requiem

Giuseppe Verdi
Requiem
Barbara Frittoli, soprano
Olga Borodina, mezzo-soprano
Ramon Vargas, tenor
Ildar Abdrazakov, bass

Choeurs de Radio France, Matthias Brauer chorus master
Orchestre National de France
Riccardo Muti, conduction

Basilique de Saint-Denis
Medici.tv broadcast
June 8, 2009

Riccardo Muti & l'Orchestre National de France, Saint-Denis, 2006 © AFP

 

I initially didn't intend to review the Verdi's Requiem that Muti conducted yesterday, but, since I've been asked to, how can I resist sharing here the marvels Riccardo Muti once again accomplished in Saint-Denis?
Ultimately, the true star of any of Muti's performances is the composer, and he's uniquely talented, I think, especially when it comes to Verdi (and Berlioz too, and Gluck, and Mozart, ... you get the point) to extract the quintessential beauty of the score. Verdi's music can indeed be quite magical when performed in such a manner.

His requiem sure sounded amazingly well under the baton of Muti.

The chorus led by Matthias Brauer delivered a fantastic performance throughout the piece, to the level of the one they gave in February, with beautiful pianissimi and a splendid performance of the famous Dies irae.

The orchestra was overall also very good, and the conduction of Muti elevated Verdi's music to a heavenly level, with all the flamboyant tempi and gorgeous nuances one dreams of hearing.

Although she looked like she was floating in an alternate universe, Olga Borodina delivered a stunning performance as well. I was less impressed by Barbara Frittoli, who didn't quite deliver adequately the low notes (not loud enough) and Ramon Vargas, who had a few ugly high notes and was closely monitored all concert long by Riccardo Muti, to prevent him from yelling his notes. But overall, both of them were good.

Ildar Abdrazakov was the angel of the basilique, with his velvety timbre and delicate phrasing. He delivered such an exquisite performance he almost shadowed Muti. If that's not the ultimate compliment, coming from me...


Le Monde, Marie-Aude Roux, June 10 Riccardo Muti transcende le Requiem de Verdi
" A bientôt 68 ans (il est né le 28 juillet 1941), le maestro italien est au zénith de son art. Sa Missa da Requiem est une véritable leçon de style et d'élégance, qui n'exclut pas l'émotion mais la transcende.
(...) Le Choeur de Radio France, galvanisé, quoique fermement tenu, s'est surpassé en intelligibilité et en intelligence.
(...) On oubliera vite quelques imperfections de Barbara Frittoli (vibrato un peu large) dans la petite cantate pour soprano solo qu'est le "Libera me" ("Délivre-moi Seigneur de la mort éternelle"). Suspendu à la baguette de Riccardo Muti, soucieux de ses moindres intentions, donné à lui dans ce qu'il faut bien appeler une communion en musique et en esprit, l'Orchestre national a confirmé qu'il est bien le meilleur des deux orchestres de Radio France. "

Der Freischütz, Baden Baden 2009

Der Freischütz 
Carl Maria von Weber

Klaus Kuttler - Ottokar
Reinhard Dorn - Cuno
Juliane Banse - Agathe
Julia Kleiter - Ännchen
Dimitry Ivashchenko - Kaspar
Steve Davislim - Max
Paata Burchuladze - Ein Eremit
Ronald Spiess - Samiel
Matjaz Robavs - Kilian

Festspielhaus Chorus Baden-Baden
Mahler Chamber Orchestra
Thomas Hengelbrock Musical Direction

Robert Wilson Direction, Stage Design and Lighting
Viktor und Rolf Costumes

Arte live broadcast June 1, 2009

Bob Wilson's new production of Weber's masterpiece is an heteroclite mix of bad taste (Viktor & Rolf's ugly costumes) and subtle aesthetics (especially the lights) that conveys the usual minimalist atmosphere what is really his one and only signature.

Apparently my dislike for naïve representations of fairy tales is no match for my deep attraction to minimalism, as I was overall quite disappointed by this production.

The actor's direction also didn't appeal at all to me, even if I liked the idea that the characters are all puppets of the providence (I just can't stand the way Wilson expressed it).

Adding an interlude before the scene of the Wolf's Gen (Wolfsschlucht) at the end of Act II with Baudelaire's Lithanies de Satan was, to my view, not quintessential to emphasize Samiel's presence (Viktor & Rolf's costume was more than enough) and I don't really think Baudelaire's world is somehow close to Weber's, even in that particular occasion.

The musical execution of the Mahler chamber orchestra was not really impressive (the French horns were horrendous) but Thomas Hengelbrock's conduction was interesting most of the time (though sporadically laborious and strained, especially during the overture).

The Festspielhaus Chorus Baden-Baden was spectacular on the other hand, each time they had any note to sing (the huntsmen chorus generated a well-deserved ovation and was encored). A truly superb and memorable performance.

Julia Kleiter as Ännchen was brilliant, both singing and acting (the only one who actually embraced Wilson's direction); her middle register is just superb and perfectly under control. The same thing can't be said about Juliane Banse as Agathe (too weak and hiding behind way too many vibratos), nor about Steve Davislim as Max (ugly high notes). Dimitry Ivashchenko was a very decent and colourful Kaspar.

Further readings:
- "Eine trifft, die andere äffet", I Hear Voices
- MusicalCritiscim.com, Francis Shelton

Sonnambula, Met HD

Met HD Simulcast

March 21, 2009

Pathé Vaise

Amina - Natalie Dessay

Elvino- Juan Diego Flòrez

Rodolfo - Michele Pertusi

Lisa - Jennifer Black

Conductor - Evelino Pidò

Director - Mary Zimmerman

Let's not waste any time on Mary Zimmerman's production: it's a total failure. In every aspect of it. On every level.

In a sense, she made it quite mandatory to focus on the music and the singers, which is actually pretty fine with me with this particular piece.

I've said it before, and I haven't changed my mind, I like Pidò's reading of the score, and the Met orchestra did a spectacular job to carry it through. I was pretty impressed by the four major roles; Jennifer Black was a delight to watch and listen to, and Michele Pertusi and Natalie Dessay were superb.

I'm sorry to say however that I only had eyes and ears for Juan Diego Flòrez.

Here he was, as perfect as I had hoped he would be. The first act reached a whole different level when he finally appeared onstage, and he already had left me extatic at the intermission (he did deliver an exquisite "Prendi: l'anel ti dono").

But his "perche non posso odiarti" and especially his five "infedel" overwhelmed me so vividly I couldn't really concentrate after that on anything but his lines.

Even Dessay's "ah non credea... ah! non giunge" couldn't really move me... until his two lines "Io più non reggo, a tanto duolo" that prompted yet another burst of tears. All that via a Met HD simulcast.

All photographs Ken Howard for the Metropolitan Opera.

About this Sonnambula's production at the Met:
- "Can't quite let it go yet", Maury D'Annato, My Favorite Intermissions
- "The Blunder" ; "The fallen idol", An Umamplified Voice

Damnation de Faust, Met 2008

Hector Berlioz  

légende dramatique en quatre parties

livret Hector Berlioz et Almire Gandonnière

Faust - Marcello Giordani

Marguerite - Susan Graham

Méphistophélès - John Relyea

Brander - Patrick Carfizzi

Conductor: James Levine

Production: Robert Lepage

Metropolitan Opera House

November 22, 2008 Matinee broadcast

The more I listen to Berlioz, the more convinced I am that his music is indeed unique. There's an overwhelming atmosphere to it, that I would compare to Schubert's. Muti's interpretation of Episodes de la vie d'un artiste in Paris certainly unlocked new doors. Berlioz is so much more than one of those XIXth-century French composers.

 
The production

Robert's Lepage's production at the Met is, in my opinion, a beautiful one. It suits Berlioz's score brilliantly and is very cohesive overall, quite an accomplishment considering the piece. It also does capture pretty well the spirit of the XIXth-century Paris atmosphere Berlioz lived in. By all means, Lepage's production was really the key to immerse myself into Berlioz's music.

 
The music

On the other hand, I was disappointed by James Levine's performance. His conduction was too fast and not vivid enough for me. Krivine's performance last June was on such a different level.
The whole musical performance really comes to the way "Ange adoré" and the duet with Marguerite following Faust's aria (Part 2) is handled - or not handled, rather. Marcello Giordani's high notes were so hideous (they were horrendous all evening long) he sounded more like a yorshire barking, and Levine just left him to his misery. He could have had the orchestra help, for instance.

The only true shining moment came with "D'amour l'ardente flamme". For once, the orchestra and the singer were actually sharing something. Susan Graham was overall an interesting Marguerite, though she had trouble coping with her breath on that particular aria. John Relyea was a very good Méphistophélès.

All photographs Ken Howard for the Metropolitan Opera.

Rondine from the Met

La Rondine 

Giacomo Puccini

Opera in 3 acts

Libretto Giuseppe Adami

Premiere Théâtre de Monte Carlo, March 27 1917

Magda: Angela Gheorghiu

Lisette: Lisette Oropesa

Ruggero: Roberto Alagna

Prunier: Marius Brenciu

Rambaldo: James Courtney

Conductor: Marco Armiliato

Production: Nicolas Joël

Set Designer: Ezio Frigerio

Costume Designer: Franca Squarciapino

Lighting Designer: Duane Schuler

Premiere in Toulouse in March 2005, performed in San Francisco in Nov. 2008

Jan.10 Arte broadcast live from the Met

Synopsis here and there, libretto (Italian only) here

 

Act 1, Terrence McCarthy
 

Act 2, Terrence McCarthy

 

Not much to say about this production of Nicolas Joël, except for the obvious word that comes to mind: boring. The set, the costumes, the lights, the actors' direction, everything is very very forgettable.

His dollhouse version of La Rondine lacks any kind of statement, exploration of characters, work on the relationships between the characters, any kind of analysis really. As for the muscial performance, Marco Armiliato's reading of the score is also especially boring, as it lacks passion, emotions and life (so basically, he missed the whole point of the score there).

The cast was also pretty forgettable; Gheorghiu was out of breath from the start, displayed no real emotion and struggled with her voice all evening; Marius Brenciu' singing was inexpressive as well and his high notes were not particularly successful; James Courtney's use of vibrato was excessive; Lisette Oropesa's Lisette was energetic and full of life, but her diction was well, lost from the beginning.

The only one that stood out for me was Roberto Alagna. His diction is so refined he's the only one I know who can sing perfectly such lines as "Cosi timida e sola assomigliate alle ragazze di Montauban" (Act 2) with the perfect pronunciation, both in Italian and in French on "Montauban". His expressivity could have been better, but it was so much better than the rest of the cast, it felt like he was the only one really trying to portray his character. A rather disappointing evening.

Der Vampyr, Mezzo Competition 2008

Heinrisch Marschner, 1828

Live Nov.15 2008 broadcast from the Szeged National Theatre

Opera Competition and Festival with Mezzo Television

Hungarian premiere

Pannon Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Olari Elts

The Vampire, Ruthven: Nabil Suliman

Janthe/Emmy : Helen Kearns

Malwina : Vanessa Le Charlès

Aubry : Marc Haffner

Stage direction : Zoltán Balázs

Production of the Opéra de Rennes

Vanessa Le Charles (right), Marc Haffner (left) & Christophe Fel (middle) © afp Rennes, Oct. 28 2008, dress rehearsal

 

There are a lot if elements quite appealing about this piece I knew nothing about - most of them having to do with its similarities with both Weber's Freischütz and Gounod's Faust.
Marschner's score is indeed very reminiscent of Weber's musical construction: the harmonics, the use of spoken dialogues, the sometimes very unbalanced vocal lines (especially in Act I) and, most of all, the rhythm and orchestration, that is a clear signature of the XIXth century.

The libretto is a mix between manichaeism (thus the Gounod's feel to it - though musically there is a lot to be said about the influence Weber had on Gounod's music) and a Perrault's tale (specifically Barbe bleue); the happy ending that is a key element of the Freischütz is also present here, as the lovers defeat the vampire, get married and live happily ever after.

© afp Rennes, Oct. 28 2008, dress rehearsal

 

As for the production itself, there are much more bad choices to comment than praises to make. Basically, the concept doesn't work at all with this piece, that tells the quest of a vampire for the blood of three virgins before the end of the night. 

One could argue my main problem is that I am deeply formatted by my education - and that there's no reason why a vampire should live somewhere in Romania and not on a Japanese island, with the ad hoc aesthetics of the land of the Samurais and Geisha (set and costumes). The fact that director Zoltán Balázs added some awkward and peremptory gestures that don't have anything to do with the libretto obviously doesn't help, nor does the lack of expressivity from all the singers.

This actors direction is all to familiar with the recent Braunschweig's Don Carlo production in Milan (beautiful set lines on an empty stage) with ugly costumes and make-up, that doesn't use the scenic space at all. 

The cast is decent especially Nabil Suliman and Helen Kearns (who started slow but did well a great Act II), "only" lacking the vocal expressivity required nowadays; the conduction is inspired at times and overall serves Marschner's music quite well. The musical execution is indeed the driving force of this performance.