Burkhard Fritz (Die Kaiser)
Camilla Nylund (Die Kaiserin)
Michaela Schuster (Die Amme)
Wolfgang Koch (Barak)
Irene Theorin (Baraks frau)
Roman Trekel (Die Geisterbote)
Staatsopernchor & Kinderchor
Staatskapelle Berlin
Zubin Mehta (Conductor)
Claus Guth (Director)
Although this opera is often regarded as the magic flute of Richard Strauss, its metaphorical symbolism is more complex than a relative straight forward fairy tale of redemption. It examines how the empress discovers herself through the mystery of birth and death, and the search for a shadow is the key witness to life. Like Salome and Elektra, the dealing of death is the rite of passage to prove oneself existence. Yet by resisting tricks and redemption, she gains the shadow eventually than slaughtering.
Claus Guth's production conceived the tale as the empress negotiated her conscience within a surreal world of nightmare and illusions. She was first seen as a dying patient being unconscious in a sanatorium. Her nurse became a devil figure that manipulated and possessed her mind. She left no room for the empress to consider an alternative, but put her under the spell to lure Barak's wife into a moral trap that would lead to renounce her shadow. Though the temptation was presented alike a fantasy with parallel figure of Barak's wife in glittering outfit while the fishes as infants sang the enchanting chorus, and later a naked young man covered in gold appeared as a physical wonder. On the other hand, the nurse was the aggressive option which the empress could take to become mortal and avoided from separating from the emperor. Yet that contradict with her original and pure form as gazelle, which we noticed from the animal headed figure appeared throughout in parallel.
The animals added to the mysterious and dream like impression, also reinforced the fantasy side of the story. They appeared as mortals but their actual forms were the shadow itself and never separate, at least from the empress's perspective. The falcon represented the messenger of the empress's father, who did not appear until the judgement scene. It also became a haunted reminder to the empress that her fate was hold by him. They sometimes also became the silent companion as she reflected alone. Their existence realised the inner thoughts and emotions delicately that what the empress would have desired. Like Guth's staging of Der Rosenkavalier before, the abstract recalling of the past, present and future magnified the psychological state of the protagonist bounded by doubts and contradictions. Rest were as sequence of her decision making, which constituted the process of self examination.
The question in the room though was whether the empress actually had any affection for the emperor. It seems not when she appeared in agony by the emperor's declaration of love for her, and her gazelle collapsed on the ground with wounds the same time . Later in the second act after the falcon warned again, the emperor even wanted to straggle the empress as he thought she was being unfaithful by lurking into a human household. Neither in the third act they appeared together again but stayed in distance, though their gazelles showed forgiveness to each other. Claus probably felt was never the empress's intention to mend the broken relationship and the past encounter resolved subtly.
Yet through Barak and his wife did the empress discovered what true love could lead to the happiness of fertility and satisfaction in life. Even the two had a rocky relation as the wife being dissatisfied and despised anything associated to Barak at first. She managed to resist the temptation of a young man in golden outlook that the nurse conjured up to tempt her. Barak himself was genuinely tried to save the relationship from falling apart despite the emotional frustration and rejection. At the judging chamber they rediscovered each other and in support of the other one finally. The reconciliation inspired the empress to fling off the mental control from the nurse, emperor and her father. She threw away the potion that the doctor gave to her and confronted her mental depression directly. It was an emotional transformation as she saw her gazelle dead but then a spear reminded her the past alike hearing voices in her head. The recollection motivated her to put on the animal head as a metaphorical connection of her body and shadow by gaining it eventually. The dreamy world collapsed and the empress awaken from the hallucination, where she saw her nurse again. She appeared to feel the peace and supported by her who was no longer the devil as before.
A strong cast of singers were assembled that elevated the performance to a most satisfying vocal feast. Camilla Nylund showed no sign of tiredness or strain throughout the demanding vocal part as the protagonist. Not only she had a powerful and rich projection, her diction was very clear with the smoothness in switching register. The ascending vocal cries were gloriously sung in sheer intensity. Her characterisation of the empress progressed naturally and displayed the complex emotions as it evolved. Although Burkhard Fritz did not have an extensive singing part in the role of the emperor, the love theme of act one was romantically and expressively rendered. His timbre carried the warmth and rich tone, with the legato sustained throughout. Michaela Schuster had a more dramatic vocal style as the nurse compare to other roles which were more lyrical orientated except Barak's wife. Her mezzo timbre was rich with a healthy voice, also carried the urgency and intensity during violent moments. She also had the devilish outlook with the chilling gaze, and realised the aggressiveness of the nurse by being a controlling figure.
Wolfgang Koch phrased the words and music poetically in his smooth and pleasant timbre. His singing never become over sentimental, remained majesty in style and carried the depth in the characterisation. He saw Barak as a sensitive figure who tried to be reasonable and patient with his difficult and temperamental wife. I was also amazed by the powerful singing from Irene Theorin who was in a different vocal level from her approach to Brünnhilde. She brightened up her diction for clarity and her tessitura sat comfortably within the vocal range. Her dramatic singing sustained the emotional impact at the romantically expressive passages. The reconciling duet between her and Koch in act three was intimately passionate and rich that created a powerful sonic climax.
Under the baton of Zubin Mehta, bright and beautiful tone sustained among the orchestral playing and not overtly dramatic yet still carried the excitement. Majestic and beautiful brass playing echoed the woodwind's ethereal passage towards the end of act one, a contrast from the strange and grotesque torments perceived before. Sorrowful cello solo realised the sadness as the empress reflected, while the lower strings played the love theme tenderly. They drove the emotions forward as later the music became increasingly violent and devastating. Such emotional contrast again was spellbindingly effective in the sublime violin solo as the forgiveness was marked symbolically. The orchestra in turn gave a crushing blow as the empress shook her dead gazelle in distraught. Then bell like strings' playing responded to the dream and surreal state as the past been recalled when the emperor met the empress for the first time. Musically the standard as a whole was high and equally balanced for a glorious performance. The staatsoper should consider revivals than the current tame season being offered at the renovated opera house.
(Photo credits: Clive Barda/Royal Opera House London; Hans Jörg Michel/Staatsoper Berlin)
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