Review - Les Huguenots (Meyerbeer), Bérénice (Jarrell), Tristan und Isolde (Wagner), La Traviata (Verdi), The Paris Opera

Les Huguenots (Meyerbeer), Opéra Bastille, 1 October 2018
Marguerite de Valois - Lisette Oropesa
Raoul de Nangis - Yosep Kang
Valentine - Ermonela Jaho
Urbain - Karine Deshayes
Marcel - Nicola Teste
Le Comte de Saint-Bris - Paul Gay

Andreas Kriegenburg (director)
Michele Mariotti (conductor)

Bérénice (Jarrell), Palais Garnier, 2 October 2018
Titus - Bo Skovhus
Bérénice - Barbara Hannigan
Antiochus - Ivan Ludlow
Paulin - Alastair Miles
Arsace - Julien Behr
Phenice - Rina Schenfeld

Claus Guth (director)
Philippe Jordan (conductor)

Tristan und Isolde, Opéra Bastille, 3 October 2018
Tristan - Andreas Schager
Isolde - Martina Serafin
King Mark - Rene Pape

Kurwenal - Matthias Goerne
Brangäne - Ekaterina Gubanova
The Young Seaman - Nicky Spence

Peter Sellars (director)
Bill Viola (video)
Philippe Jordan (conductor)

La Traviata, Opéra Bastille, 5 October 2018
Violetta - Aleksandra Kurzak
Alfredo Germont - Jean‑François Borras
Giorgio Germont - George Gagnidze

Benoît Jacquot (director)
Giacomo Sagripanti (conductor)

(Tristan und Isolde)

A big thank you to all that has been following this blog since October 2015. Hopefully more reviews on opera performances and lifestyle too such as a recent champagne sampling of 28 labels.

For the hundredth post, a review of four opera performances I saw at my recent revisit to the Paris Opera. The question of 'loyal to whom' is certainly the common theme that these operas dealt with the question of identity. Social belonging and public duty disrupt the relationship of the protagonist and their love ones. Death is also inevitable in the end but not necessarily a sad ending.

In Les Huguenots, Raoul and Valentine belonged to the rival groups of Catholics and Protestants. Their affection for each other saw them together yet did not escape the religious massacre. Valentine's death served as a poignant reminder to her father that the slaughter came at a painful cost despite attempts to stall the escalation.

There were more complications in Bérénice that Tito tormented by the state rejection of a foreign queen and his affection for her. The love triangle relation with Antiochus as a friend and in knowledge his affection for Bérénice added further headache to the dilemma. Bérénice's frustration by Tito's indecisiveness followed by the hopeless situation showed the three bended to the wheel of the state.

The forbidden love between Tristan and Isolde betrayed the state as the latter supposed to be the wife of King Mark. Their death was a release from the loyal obligation and reunited in after life. Giorgio rejected Violetta because of her social status despite her love for Alfredo was genuine and deep. Her death released her from the unhappy life yet a loss to the Germonts.

In terms of staging, Andreas Kriegenburg's set was the biggest with a mobile structure alike many recent productions. The mass crowd deployed in his production of Rheingold for Munich reappeared at the court of Marguerite. Though as a whole the dramaturgy followed a narrative approach and seems so relax that lacked a build up towards the cruel massacre in the final scene. It did not carry the looming intensity nor effect like his Soldaten.

(Bérénice)

It was my second time to see Bill Viola's video filming as backdrop in Tristan and Isolde. Though I felt the screen size used in Paris was smaller than my first viewing at Birmingham. The artistic filming style gave more fluidness to the background than the often slow motion or even static stage choreography. There were some memorable moments such as the candlelit scene, the underwater shot and the naked male ascended in pouring rain. Some might find the filming distracting and too suggestive while the singers were on stage. Though the problem seems to be Sellar's choreography for the singers rather basic or even random than incorporation them into the film.

However, Benoît Jacquot's production of La Traviata was the most unimaginative of all four. The set was so economically presented that the stage looked rather bare with Violetta's bed station alone. Act three when Violetta and Alfredo confronted at the salon gathering was the only part more interesting to look at. If it was not the music excellence, the evening would have been rather boring to sit long.

The best of all was Claus Guth's production of Bérénice, which had more depth and visual interest. The presentation as a psychological thriller realised the tension, emotional conflict and surrealness vividly. It added the dramatic intensity in displaying the protagonists' vulnerability and torments. Alike Les Huguenots and Tristan und Isolde, there was a lengthy negotiation as the emotional states evolved. Even though it could be tedious and frustrated as the characters seem never able to make up their minds.

(Les Huguenots)

Musically, the male choral parts were magnificent in Les Huguenots, especially the tenors that never seems tired to nail all those top notes and gave a wall of sound that filled the hall with a lot of vocal excitements. At short notice, Lisette Oropesa sang far more successfully than Yosep Kang. Oropesa met the vocal demand with ease, technically confident and also had the sweetness in her timbre. Whereas Kang struggled with the tessitura and he was not comfortable at all in the high vocal range. Diction was also sloppy, and his singing lost the flexibility and brilliancy as he displayed in Lucia di Lammermoor at the Deutsche Oper Berlin few years ago. I was more impressed by Ermonela Jaho, who not only technical brilliancy but also showing Valentine's torment and agony in full.

As a brilliant actress and singer, Barbara Hannigan showed how frustrating and despair of Bérénice in her quarrel with Tito. With Bo Skovhus and Ivan Ludlow, their music phrasing and acting were very natural as if the roles had been sophisticatedly studied and well prepared.

Endless vocal energy from Andrew Schager as a full blooded Tristan. Yet he approached the role alike Siegfried was sometimes overpowering and lacked the dynamic contrast. His counterpart Martina Serafin had mixture of results in her execution of Isolde. She was rather wobble by employing too much vibrato, and sometimes struggled to keep the intonation and even sustaining a phrase. Her vocal energy lost after a rather presentable act one and the rest seems too much for her to handle. Rene Pape was an experienced veteran in the role of King Mark. Though probably due to the staging he and Ekaterina Gubanova seems lacked the attention and merely a singer on stage without much impression. Nicky Spence as the seaman showed vocal promise and worth future listening for his confident and commanding timbre. Though it was annoying that a member of the audience applauded inappropriately after the cor anglais beautiful solo in act three.

Besides Ermonela Jaho, Aleksandra Kurzak also impressed me by her effortless singing and wonderful portrayal of the vulnerable Violetta. Her creamy timbre sustained the vocal smoothness and momentum. Jean‑François Borras managed to match Kurzak's vocal confidence and the audience seems unfairly gave him less appreciation. I was less crazy about George Gagnidze as Giorgio as his voice showed tears and lacked the warmth and body I had in mind.

The Paris Opera orchestra knew the music very well and responded to the ebbs and flows in all four operas. In Tristan und Isolde the orchestra especially kept the music flowing while ably to adjust the tone colour to match the emotions. They shaped the music effectively with a wonderful sense of direction. It was definitely the best orchestral interpretation I encountered in live and kept the evening more memorable than the vocal cast.

(La Traviata)

Review - Lucia di Lammermoor (Donizetti), Deutsche Oper Berlin, 16 October 2015

(Production photo from a previous performance in 2009)

Lucia - Pretty Yende

Enrico - Marco Caria

Edgardo - Yosep Kang

Arturo - Attilio Glaser

Raimondo - Marko Mimica

Alice - Irene Roberts

Normanno - Jörg Schörner

Chor & Orchester der Deutschen Oper Berlin

Conductor - Daniel Cohen

Director - Filippo Sanjust

Among all the opera productions I saw in Berlin, this staging of Lucia by Filippo Sanjust first premièred in 1980 was the most conventional. A predominantly older generations turned out in the audience was not a surprise. It was the kind of evening for connection to the past and 'comfortable' if one rather passive with theatrical experience. At the overture, we saw the painted image of a pale white Lucia in the midst of darkened cloud surrounded by stage curtains. An open field followed with rest of the scenes shown under the high ceiling with a gothic interiors. The clothing fashion was continental orientated at the time of 1600s but we hardly saw any kilt or tartans. The stage sets reminded me the bygone practice of using big cardboard historic informed sceneries, 'park and sing' stage choreography with relatively pale yellow dim lighting. 

(Production photo from a previous performance in 2009)

To put the debate of historical accuracy aside, which probably would go nowhere, scenic wise it might look grand as background, but it did not build the dramatic atmosphere connecting to the emotions and tensions as the opera progressed. The opening scene of Enrico and his knights congregated on an open ground was more a demonstration for rousing chorus than telling why Edgardo was so unwelcoming and revenge in atmosphere. Lucia and Edgardo meet up did not have that secretive impression with the yellowish stage lights maintained the same level throughout. Lucia argument with Enrico in a grand hall was more a vocal duet display than adding the tension and trauma of a disagreement. Edgardo forcing his way into the castle was the only dramatic part with swords displaying in mass and tension between rivalries and false jealousy. The stage light was so dim in the mad scene that one understood the focus was on Lucia dressing in white but none of the oppressed atmosphere when this poor woman was driven to madness, agony, hatred and eventually self destruction. Again Edgardo's suicidal last scene was more a routine display that did not connect devastation to action point, while the appearance of chorus around the royal tombs looked odd as a whole. These were not the fault of the principals or chorus as the dramaturg had made the best out of them being mobile and moved around as much as the choreography could allow, but the limitations of an outdated routine and concept. Thus, this production should have sent to storage in museum than staying on the repertoire list.

(Production photo from a previous performance in 2009)

Fortunately, the musical side was one of the best evenings I experienced this time in Berlin to compensate the theatrical disappointment and boredom. I never heard of Pretty Yende or Yosep Kang until this performance, and their singing made an outstanding impression, particularly in the mad scene and Edgardo's suicide. It is probably quite rare, to my knowledge and opera experience so far, that currently not many bel canto singers could match the purity and smoothness in tone like Yende and Kang. The singing sounded effortless and their timbre and tessitura fit into the part very well. Yende particularly had a beautiful timbre that very pleasant for the ears wanting to hear more. Appropriate coloraturas were employed and not overdoing. On terms of diction, I would say Kang was more Italianate than Yende and one did not need the surtitles to identify the words. Though Yende was more natural with acting and Kang seems too gentle for a passionate Edgardo. The only coordination issue Yende had was with Marco Caria, which the tempo in the duets was not quite together and resulted with hesitation. The flute solo in the mad scene was exquisitely played though I would still prefer the glass harmonica for that unique delicate tone colour. Daniel Cohen's tempo was the most robust among all the conductors I saw this trip and the orchestra was very responsive to his conducting. The orchestral playing kept a good momentum to build up the intensity throughout the evening that enhanced the connections between musical numbers. The only downside was came from the predominantly aged audience, when a sequence of coughing throughout the hall distracted the concentration on spell bounding singing during the mad scene. An update on the staging might have overcome all the problems I dare say.

(Yosep Kang in the front)

(Pretty Yende)