End of term report! Royal Opera Season 2013-14

Wow!  What a season that was...and how quickly time has gone by.  Doesn't seem five minutes since I was compiling the 2012/13 highlights but here we are again.  For me this has been a very positive season at ROH where the highs have definitely outweighed the lows.  Of course live theatre isn't perfect but I really feel that this has been such a great season - great singers, interesting productions and a good mix of new experiences and revisiting old favourites.  Here's what I saw at ROH this season:

Turandot (rehearsal)
Le Nozze di Figaro (rehearsal and 1 performance)
Les Vepres Siciliennes (twice) New Production
Wozzeck
Parsifal (rehearsal) New Production
Carmen
Manon (rehearsal and 2 performances)
Don Giovanni New Production
Faust
Jonas Kaufmann - Wintereisse
La Traviata - twice
Dialogues des Carmelites (new to Royal Opera but I have classed this as a revival)
Tosca
Manon Lescaut - (rehearsal and 2 performances)  New Production
La Boheme - twice
Ariadne auf Naxos
Maria Stuarda  New Production
JPYA Summer Performance

Productions I missed this season in the main house were La Fille du Regiment and Die Frau ohne Schatten - which isn't bad going really.


Best New Production
Once again this was a really hard decision. I find new productions quite frustrating for the most part.  Quite often they are so nearly perfect (Manon Lescaut) but then something goes awry.  In other cases I am baffled and sometimes quite angry (Don Giovanni).  But in the end I have to make a decision and its probably not the one you think...

Yes, considering the Wagner-phobe I claim myself to be, Parsifal won me over to such an extent that even my love for tenors and Jonas Kaufmann couldn't sway me!  The combination of production and Wagner's music completely transformed my opinion. Not saying I love everything about Wagner (I don't) but for some reason this particular opera hits the spot.  Now, if ROH would only entice Mr Kaufmann to come sing it, I'd be an even happier woman!


Worst New Production.
Sigh.  For some reason this category is one of the easiest to judge although I have to say that on balance, the new productions this year were slightly less annoying than last seasons but there is a clear winner for me....

Yes, I'm afraid Kasper Holten's production of Don Giovanni left me less than impressed.  The combination of whirling set, constantly flashing lights and borderline misogynistic concept meant that although I wanted to like this production, I didn't.  At all.

Best Production Revival
Once again, spoilt for choice amongst the many commendable revivals.  Some great performances from singers enlivened even the most venerable and staid of productions.  Honourable mentions go to Faust, Manon and Ariadne auf Naxos.  But, the surprise winner is.....

La Boheme.  I know!  All the more surprising as this time last year I chose this opera (reluctantly) as my 'worst production revival'.  Well all I can say is, what a difference a year makes.  John Copley once again returned to breath new life into this veteran production, but it was the casting of Ermonela Jaho and Charles Castronovo which made all of the difference.  Subtle and believable actors, they instantly convinced as star-crossed lovers Mimi and Rodolfo.  And not only that, their musicality and willingness to live the drama on stage totally convinced. Mesmerising and magical.


Worst Production Revival
Once again this category was very hard to pick. Most of the revivals I have seen these season have had their  merits, be it in individual performances (Tosca) or the production itself (Nozze di Figaro).  But for better or worse the winner is....

Carmen. It wasn't bad.  But it wasn't really a stand out either.  Individual performances were okay but frankly this just seemed like another routine revival of an old warhorse.  The production now seems tired and lacking in verve.  Alagna was good but brought no special insights into Don Jose.  Next!

Best Male Singer Performance
Ah. Now I know what you think.  She's going to pick that tenor again.  You're right but quite frankly when you have a tenor who is currently performing at the very top of his game, then there is no choice.  The winner is....

Yes, its that man again.  Jonas Kaufmann.  Although as you may gather from the picture, I'm actually choosing him for his magnificent performance of Wintereisse, rather than his performance in Manon Lescaut. Not that his Des Grieux wasn't good - it was fantastic.  But it is rather his ability to totally entrance in lieder and then switch to full-blooded and passionate operatic singing that has me hooked.

Very honourable mentions go to Charles Castronovo, Gerald Finley and Bryn Terfel.


Best Female Singer Performance.
This has been the season of some very great and wonderful soprano singing.  I've encountered voices new to me and revisited some favourites.  Honourable mentions to Lise Lindstrom, Ailyn Perez, Joyce di Donato and Karita Mattila.  But my winner for this season is....

Wow!  Just wow!  I was almost left speechless by my first encounter with the Tosca of Sondra Radvanovsky.  Where has this soprano been all of my life?  Well not at ROH very often to be sure.  This voice is the real deal.  And her assumption of the role of diva of all diva's was just perfection.  Brava Sondra - please come back soon.

And finally...

Operatic Highlight of the Season.
I've had so many highlights this season that I really consider myself very lucky to live near London and have the opportunity to see and hear some wonderful opera.  There were many highlights for me, not least Manon Lescaut which was wonderful and frustrating at the same time. Mentions must also go to Ariadne auf Naxos, Faust and Turandot.  But my highlight of the season was....

Yes it was actually Dialogues des Carmelites.  I have waited so many years to see this opera but it was worth the wait.  Musically and dramatically satisfying and emotionally overwhelming.  Just wonderful.

So that's it for another season and I'm already missing the place already!  My next scheduled visit is in September to see Barbiere di Siviglia...here's a little taster of what lies ahead...

This is not a Review - Tosca Dress Rehearsal at the Royal Opera House 6th July 2013

There is an unwritten convention that you don't review a dress rehearsal, probably due to the fact that singers may or may not choose to sing out or 'mark' their parts depending on their state of health, time of day, etc etc.  So this is definitely NOT a review - merely some observations from today's dress of Tosca at the Royal Opera House.

However, having said that there was very little to differentiate today's rehearsal from a full performance; all voices were in place, free and ringing and high notes all belted out into the auditorium; there were no interruptions for technical details and the only differences from a normal performance were the casual dress of orchestra and conductor, some camera clicking as the official ROH photographer took shots of the performers and the fact that it was less than a full house.

It was my first experience of a rehearsal, mainly due to the fact that the majority take place during the working week, so when I saw this one fell on a Saturday I grabbed at ticket at the first opportunity.

Tosca you see is one of my favourite opera and I simply cannot resist an opportunity to see a live performance.  I actually saw this production earlier in the season with a different cast but I was keen to see the singers in this revival - Scott Hendricks as Scarpia, Martina Serafin as Tosca and finally Aleksandrs Antonenko as Cavaradossi.  As a bit of a tenor maven I was particularly keen to hear (and see) Antonenko who I last saw as Otello last year, and I was curious to hear him in Puccini.

Let me say first and foremost that I found this performance head and shoulders above the one I experienced earlier this year with Kristine Opolais, Younghoun Lee and Michael Volle.  Comparisons are indeed odious, and it's not that I found the previous cast particularly lacking, but simply that the performance as a whole did not gel and was a slight disappointment.

In contrast, today's rehearsal, while not perfect by any means, was thrilling in parts with a real sense of theatre - something I felt the previous performance lacked.  Antonenko does not have a typical Puccini voice but he certainly knows how to thrill - high notes were secure and exciting and he made a convincing Republican sympathiser.  If I was slightly less convinced by his persona as a romantic leading man and his relationship with Tosca then I admit I have very high standards and it's almost impossible to erase the image of a Certain Other Tenor is this role and this production.  My benchmarks as Cavaradossi are Domingo (in  his prime) and Kaufmann, and if E Lucevan le Stelle doesn't make me cry I feel slightly cheated.  It didn't today but I still felt the performance as a whole worked.

Martina Serafin is no stranger to this production and it showed.  She does not really play the diva, but rather a genuine woman, jealous, insecure and in love, but no over the top diva - and her performance was all the better for it.  She came into her own in the second act with Scarpia and the performance moved onto another level.  Her Vissi d'Arte was beautiful without being show-stopping and I felt she went from strength to strength as the opera progressed.

Scott Hendricks was a pleasant surprise as Scarpia.  With less physical presence that most Scarpia I have come across, he has to dominate by sheer force of personality and voice. In the main I would say that he succeeds, especially in his confused relationship with Tosca.  I almost wish that this production did not show Scarpia primarily as facist bully-boy - I would like to see a production where Scarpia is a real possible rival to Cavaradossi, a smooth handsome charmer masking evil intent, someone who Tosca might feel a fleeting desire for.

I am sure that this cast will improve with each performance and so in short, I can heartily recommend this revival and although it looks like a sell-out, I for one will be keeping an eye out for any returns.