Toute mon âme est là! - Werther Met HD Broadcast

After reading so many reviews and blogs and tweets about the current run of Werther at the Met Opera, needless to say I was practically champing at the bit to experience this production, if not live, then probably the next best thing.  The fact that Werther is portrayed by the 'tenor du jour' Jonas Kaufmann only added to the anticipation.  I'll try not to let this blog post descend into 'fan girl' gushing but its going to be hard!  As it happens, this was also to be my very first experience of a Met HD broadcast in the cinema which was also an intriguing prospect, so I'll expand a bit more about that aspect of my experience.

My cinema of choice was the Curzon in Mayfair, a little gem with only two screens and a world away from the large multi-screen cinemas more commonly found.  Seating just over 300 in total, the auditorium was ample without being oversized, with comfortable seats, attentive staff and a nice line in Prosecco, Chardonnay and Merlot which you could sip at your seats - very civilised indeed!  The auditorium was about three-quarters full as a guess - not bad for a 5pm start I thought.  My fellow opera fans were slightly more 'mature' than I...which is quite something given that I'm not exactly a spring chicken myself!

My once concern before the broadcast started, was the thought of the possibly overwhelming volume levels.  Don't get me wrong, I don't mind my opera loud when it needs to be, but this is Werther, and something a little more subtle is required, rather than the normal volume at cinemas which tend to rattle the walls!  Luckily my doubts about the quality of the picture and volume were soon put to one side - I couldn't really fault either, apart from a couple of little 'glitches' in the stream, but they only last for a couple of seconds.

So, to the opera itself.

I don't really have a big history with Werther.  I know the most famous tenor aria of course, but I've never seen a live performance before.  I have seen the DVD of the 2010 Paris production, also coincidentally starring Jonas Kaufmann and Sophie Koch as his Charlotte. I enjoyed the performances of both very much but the actual direction of this DVD I find annoying in the extreme.  Unfortunately the director shows us shots of the singers waiting in the wings, the back of the conductor and the orchestra and more or less kills the mood that the singers are working so hard to establish.  Bizarre.

Luckily this new production by Sir Richard Eyre was filmed in a pretty straightforward way for the broadcast.  Close-ups were more or less on-cue and appropriate, the singers always totally in character, the larger picture also lovingly detailed.  The production itself was in the traditional mould but none the worse for that.  There were a lot of projections - this seems to be a 'thing' now and I think that directors are still getting the hang of how to use and more importantly how much to use!  My recent Don Giovanni at ROH, used them a little too frequently I thought.  Here they were used sparingly but effectively, especially when they eased transition from one scene to another, the house and garden of Charlotte and her family, magically transforming into a ballroom where Charlotte and Werther dance and fall in love.  I would be interested to know how effective the projections were in the theatre as opposed to the broadcast - they certainly seemed impressive on the big screen.

This was the last performance in this particular run of Werther and I think it probably showed in the performances.  Rarely was there a moment when any of the cast were not totally committed and in character - a difficult feat to pull off when the camera is constantly on you.  And yet I believed in all of the characters - even the annoying ones!

This opera is a slow burner - there is a lot of scene-setting in Acts 1 and 2 and Sophie Koch as Charlotte paced her performance accordingly, only allowing us a glimpse into her changing emotions in Act 3 and then the ultimately tragic consequences in Act 4.  She is a believable warm presence as Charlotte, with a voice to match and an utterly convincing actress in this part.  David Bizic as her husband Albert was new to me and his voice was smooth and darkly coloured. But this is not an especially grateful singing role for a baritone, with few opportunities to shine.  Lisette Oropesa has a bright-voiced winning soprano and in the role of Sophie she is sweet without being saccharine, suggesting hidden depths and empathy with her sister's plight.

But let's face facts here - Werther is all about the tenor.  And when the tenor is Jonas Kaufmann you can be sure you are in for an emotional roller coaster ride.  The voice of course is wonderful, perhaps darker and more burnished than before, which is unusual itself when this role has traditionally been sung by the likes of Alfredo Kraus, Nicolai Gedda and more recently Roberto Alagna.  Kaufmann makes it work though, his darker tones suggesting a more brooding presence from the start. But its not just the voice - wonderful as that was - its the full commitment to the role that impresses.

The final act is a master-class in acting from both singers as Werther commits suicide (quite graphically here) and Charlotte arrives too late to save him - but not too late to comfort him and finally admit her love.  There were moments here when I was quite literally holding my breath.  And, strange as it sounds, there were also moments when I actually forgot that they were singing and everything was just the drama being played out. That for me is the ultimate in operatic acting.

So for me, my first Met Live HD experience was a thrilling one and one I'm definitely going to repeat at some stage.  No it can't replace the special thrill of being in the opera house and hearing singers live, but when that's just not possible then this is the next best thing.

Another moral maze - Don Giovanni, Royal Opera, 14 January 2014

I'm not sure that scheduling Don Giovanni on Valentine's Day isn't asking for trouble - or perhaps the Royal Opera was actually tipping us the wink that this Don wasn't the heartless seducer of old?  Either way, and despite mixed reviews, I was looking forward to this production with some anticipation.

First of all let me just say that even when I go to a performance some time after the premier, as in this case, I make a point of trying to avoid formal reviews and blogs, lest they cloud my judgement in some way. Twitter however is almost impossible to avoid and there were some fairly vociferous reactions on my timeline including hints of dire goings-on at the finale.  This notwithstanding, I was suitably intrigued and if nothing else, it would be a chance to catch up with the glorious music of Mozart, who can withstand most, of not all of any directorial shenanigans.

While the overture is still playing, the curtain opens on a fairly bland facade of a house, somewhat reminiscent of the set of Kasper Holten's previous directorial outing here, Eugene Onegin.  Given my reaction to that production, I wasn't entirely encouraged but things soon picked up as the highly vaunted light show sprang into life.  Soon dozens of names had been artfully inscribed on the grey background, testament to the Don's many conquests.    I thought the visual aspects of the production were very good and in the most part effective.  Splashes of colour at the appropriate moments worked well and the visual effects were stunning in places.  But....and its a big but...I'm not entirely sure that the visual effects didn't overshadow or overwhelm the singers at times.  While the so-called 'Champagne Aria' was visually stunning (if a little vertigo-inducing) I do wonder if the applause was for the singer or the effect?

And not only did we have the constant changes of lighting but also the ever-whirling cuboid set.  Its a wonder that none of the singers got lost or emerged from the wrong door.  While this was quite effective to begin with, the novelty wore off and towards the end I was just wishing the singers would all stand still for a minute instead of constantly whirling or going upstairs and down.  So on the whole I enjoyed the visuals (including the gorgeous costumes) but felt that perhaps less is more.

So much for the visuals.

The story you would think is a fairly straightforward one - after all the subtitle to Don Giovanni is Il dissoluto punito - The rake punished.  However no modern day director worth his salt can resist tweaking the story to fit a concept and sure enough here our Don is less of a vicious if charming rapist, murderer and seducer...more of a middle-aged rake having a mid-life crisis.  He bounces from woman to woman and none put up even the most token resistance....all fall to his charms including Donna Anna, who right from the start has enjoyed her fling with the charming Don and then finds herself lying to all and sundry about the nature of their relationship, crying rape and then calling for revenge for her father's death.  Donna Elvira and Zerlina barely come off much better in this production, with Zerlina portrayed as a girl on the make and willing to throw over her husband on her wedding day, and Elvira moping about constantly believing she can change the Don's wicked ways.

The Don himself is just a man having a bad day - although given that he at least gets to have sex a couple of times in this production (at least suggested) then he does okay.  Oh and he also murders Donna Anna's father but that seems less of a problem in this production. My problem with the concept (apart from the treatment of women) is that if the Don is not the hell-bent dissolute who murders and deceives...then who is he?  And what is the point of the Commendatore reappearing to extract justice if in fact he doesn't?  Or at least he didn't seem to - hard to tell with the fudged ending.

To be honest, I'm not as up in arms as some about the abbreviated ending as some appear to be.  Given what had gone one beforehand then it actually fit with the directors concept.  From what I can gather the Don doesn't get dragged down to hell but is left in some sort of limbo while the rest of the cast sing from the orchestra pit.   Go figure.

I thought the musical values were very high indeed and for me this (and the music of Mozart) was the saving grace.  Mariusz Kwiecien was on form as the eponymous Don, his voice robust and he cut a lithe and athletic figure.  I much preferred him here than when I saw him as Posa in Don Carlo.  He was well matched in his Leporello here played by Alex Esposito and the two singers struck up a beleivable partnership, less master and servant, more equal partners in crime.  Antonio Poli had the unenviable task of making Don Ottavio interesting or sympathetic...and failed.  Not his fault and his voice was pleasant and mostly up to the task that Mozart set him.  But I have yet to see a production of Don Giovanni where the Ottatvio is anything more than a dramatic cipher.

Malin Bystrom as Donna Anna was a revelation for me.  Her voice was agile, creamy and yet with plenty of dramatic heft when required. Veronique Gens as Elvira was similarly impressive if not quite in the same league - although Elvira has less vocal 'fireworks' than Anna.  Her characterisation of Elvira was dignified and restrained.  Elizabeth Watts and Dawid Kimberg as Zerlina and Masetto were fine but not outstanding.

Final verdict?  I didn't exactly hate the production but found some of the concepts a bit questionable.  The physical production and light show were novel but perhaps a little less would be easier on the eye.  On a side note I do wonder if the full effects of this production will come out well on DVD - which I presume will be on the way?

Mad about the Girl - Manon, Royal Opera House, 24 January

Having missed my scheduled visit to the dress rehearsal of this production of Manon, I decided to treat myself to a discounted seat in one of the 'posh' areas of the auditorium - my usual seats either being restricted view or up in the amphitheatre!  But it wasn't just the thought of a good seat that had me greatly anticipating this visit.

Ermonela Jaho has quickly become a house favourite, a reputation initially gained by subbing for various ailing sopranos until she is now invited in her own right.   I had not heard her live before the performance but was greatly impressed by her performance as Suor Angelica which I caught when broadcast on the BBC.  So all in all this had all the makings of a great night at the opera.  Which it was.  Sort of.

First the good things.  This opera lives or dies on the performance of its soprano and it is no exaggeration to say that Ermonela Jaho is Manon...or became Manon, or whatever.  She totally embodied the part from start to finish, and although I found her particularly effective as the 16 year old schoolgirl (her petite frame lending credence to the illusion), she also found her hidden hedonist as Manon discovers pleasure and money.  And as I expected she was perhaps most compelling in the final tragic tableau - although it was the Chevalier des Grieux who finally managed to pluck at my  heartstrings.

Matthew Polenzani as the lovestruck young hero Des Grieux, may not initially strike many as the embodiment of love's young dream, but he uses that to his advantage, playing Des Grieux as gauche and inexperienced and totally under the thrall of Manon, hardly believing his luck that such a beautiful girl would look at him, never mind run away with him to Paris. Don't get me wrong, Polenzani is not unattractive at all, just a 'regular Joe' sort of attractiveness. More importantly, he has a wonderful lyric voice ideally suited to this role and his 'Ah Fuyez douce image' was one of the many vocal highlights for me.  And as I mentioned, it was his tragic cry at Manon's death that finally had me stifling a sob.

And yet.

And yet I still walked away from the performance not really knowing whether I'd enjoyed it or not! For a while I simply couldn't put my finger on why this hadn't been a totally involving experience for me.  Generally speaking I love French opera, have no particular problem with Massenet and the romantic/tragic nature of the story of Manon was one which should have guaranteed satisfaction.  And yet I came away with a definite feeling of dissatisfaction.

This is the first production of Manon I have ever seen (either live or on stage) so I have nothing really to compare it to, so I still don''t really know whether it's the opera I don't like or this particular production.  The thing that did occur me as I was watching, was that there was an awful lot of 'humour' scattered willy-nilly throughout, which to me seemed at odds with the tragedy unfolding.  Perhaps its because I am more familiar with Puccini's take on the story which concentrates on the passion and the tragedy.  Don't get me wrong, I don't mind a little lightness amongst the tragedy but it's so difficult to get right and I just felt the timing and quantity was a little 'off' here - again, I would have to see another production to know if this was a production issue or that Manon really is that funny!

The other disconcerting issue was that at one point I thought I had dozed off and woken up in a production of La Traviata.  In act 4 of Manon, we find ourselves at a big party with gambling, lots of chorus singing lustily, and finally to top it all of the hero's father turns up to berate his son, doing a reasonably good impression of Georgio Germont!  I'm surprised Verdi didn't sue Massenet for plagiarism.

The production itself, by Laurent Pelly, verges on the twee in Act 1, while the rest is suitably abstract for no good reason, although this has the affect of being able to concentrate on the singers.  The St Sulspice scene has the almost obligatory leaning pillars which add nothing to the story, and inserts a handy bed in the church, for the lovers to romp on at the end.   So all in all, a typical Pelly production.

Looking back at what I've written, it sounds like I didn't enjoy it.  I did, but I just felt I could have enjoyed it more.  The singing was fantastic without a doubt and for that I give thanks but I just left feeling a little deflated about the opera and/or the production.  Luckily I have another chance to revisit Manon, with another soprano in the title role.  I'm looking forward to hearing Ailyn Perez for the first time - and I'm going to give this opera another chance to win me over.

Tu es le diable, Carmen.

While hardly festive fair, the Royal Opera's reliable production of Carmen has been playing to packed houses over the Christmas period and I managed to catch a performance on 3rd January to get my opera-going New Year off to a tuneful if predictable start.

As my regular readers may recall, this blog started with a DVD review of the very same production starring Jonas Kaufmann and Anna Caterina Antonacci, so I was especially pleased to see the return of the Anna Caterina who replaced the originally scheduled Elina Garanca, who withdrew when she became pregnant.  The initial attraction for me was actually the chance to catch up with Roberto Alagna who I have not seen perform live for quite some time. A chance to see him in last year's L'Elisir d'Amore had to be abandoned so I was even more keen to see how the passage of time had treated him...or more specifically his voice.

I'll preface my review by saying that I actually like Roberto Alagna quite a lot. I remember being overwhelmed by his performance in Romeo et Juliette at Covent Garden way back in 1994 and thinking that this was definitely a star in the making.  And so it proved although I think it would be fair to say that there have been some ups and downs along the way.

Luckily, Don Jose is I think, one of his most congenial roles and it was for the most part well sung and reasonably acted.  I wouldn't say it was one of the most dramatically intense performances I have ever seen, but within his limits he creates a believable character and carries it through to the end.  I would say that his portrayal of Jose here is of the more conventional 'romantic hero' type but whether that is down to choice, or lack of rehearsal time I don't really know. His Jose, is the good guy led astray by a 'wicked' woman who then tires of him, leading him to the final desperate act of this opera.  Actually the final act duo was very well done as it slowly built from Jose's low key remorse and desperation up to his final terrible act of violence.

Anna Caterina Antonacci's Carmen is well known from the DVD and she didn't disappoint here, with her very earthy, sensual, sexual portrayal of Carmen. The voice is an unusual one, seemingly lacking the obvious dark sultry chest tones of a 'typical' mezzo and yet still utterly convincing. The chemistry with Alagna also worked well...I'm not sure how much rehearsal time they had together but they gave a game, professional performance.  Carmen can be many things to many people, but once again I came away with the slightly disconcerting feeling that I didn't really know who Carmen was.  One thing I did pick up on was the fact that (at least in this performance) Carmen did still seem to harbour some real affection for Jose even in the final act.  That fitted in well with Alagna's more restrained, less demented portrayal of Jose.

The rest of the cast were acceptable but probably that's the most that can be said. Veronica Cangemi as Micaela managed not to annoy too much (more the character's fault than hers) but Escamillo as played by Vito Priante was a charisma-free zone both in characterisation and voice.  Would it hurt to get actually get someone in to play Escamillo who can actually act and/or sing? Doesn't have to be a big name (although I wouldn't say no) just someone who can inject a bit of life into the part.

I'm not going to say that much about the actual production itself as it was pretty standard stuff.  I have to say though that it looks a lot better in close-up on DVD.  And while having Escamillo enter on horseback sounds like a good idea - it very rarely is.

So, all in in all, it was an enjoyable experience, even though in many ways this was a routine performance of a repertory standard.  Alagna is still in pretty good voice - even if he does lapse into some tenorial showing off.  Anna Caterina totally convinces as Carmen and brought the whole production to life - as every good Carmen should.

For those wondering what Alagna might be like in a less conventional production of Carmen, I see that Sky Arts2 are showing the Bieto production on Monday 6th January at 8pm,  which also features Beatrice Uria-Monzon as Carmen and Marina Poplavskya as Micaela.  Should be interesting

The Best and the Worst of 2013

Following in the footsteps of so many bloggers, tweeters and opera critics I offer my own thoughts on the highs and lows of the live performances I attended in the year 2013.  I've restricted myself to five categories - as inspired by Opera Britannia's own review of the year.

Outstanding New Production

Amongst some lean pickings, my very first experience of a staged Parsifal won by a long margin. Apparently I may be going against the grain, but for a Parsifal virgin such as I, this was the ideal production to start with. It wasn't perfect by any means...but then I don't seek perfection in live performances.  Amongst the many glories was Gerald Finley as Amfortas, surely one of the greatest singing actors we currently have.

Best Revival

Of course it must be Don Carlo -  hardly surprising I hear you cry.  But quite apart from my predilection for Jonas Kaufmann, I must admit that Don Carlo is rapidly becoming my favourite Verdi opera. This revival, with a top notch cast was a real treat - if only the production itself was a little more inspiring but that is a minor cavil when you have such superb musical values on display.

Best Male Performance

All things considered this has to be Gerald Finley for his amazing performance as Amfortas in Parsifal. Simply stunning.  Close contenders were Erwin Schrott in Les Vepres Siciliennes (almost clinched by the infamous black dress) and Jonas Kaufmann in Don Carlo.

Best Female Performance

Another difficult choice but in the end I was so blown away by Lise Lindstrom's performance as Turandot that she emerged as the outright winner.  While I found the production itself a little disappointing (surely time for a new one?) she took the role by the throat and made her house debut in very fine style indeed.  I can't wait until I get the chance to see her again.

Honourable mention must go to Joyce di Donato in La Donna del Lago - again while I didn't love the production, she could do no wrong in my eyes.

Biggest Disappointment

Oh dear - where to start?  I suppose my biggest disappointments (apart from Anja Harteros cancellations) have been with most of the new productions I have seen at ROH - especially Nabucco and Eugene Onegin. Uninspiring, dreary and sometimes just plain weird, I have had some of my most disappointing evenings when attending a new production - with the honourable exception of the new Parsifal and I do hope that is an encouraging start to the 2013-14 rosta of new productions.  I'm certainly looking forward to Don Giovanni, Manon Lescaut and Maria Stuarda and Die Frau ohne Schatten but only time will tell if there has been an improvement.

So there it is - my highlights and lowlights of 2013.  It only remains for me to wish you a very Happy New Year and to wish you happy opera-going wherever you may be.

Parsifal, Wagner and other assorted ramblings...

Its been a while since my last blog post...mainly due to real life getting in the way of opera-going but also a slow down in my operatic activity at ROH. My last excursion was to see my first Wozzeck with Karita Mattila and Simon Keenleyside.  It was a disturbing but yet invigorating experience but one that I didn't feel remotely qualified to blog about except to say that I want to see it again.  Its the sort of peice you need to see more than once before commenting on!

I'm going to apologise in advance about the rambling nature of this post which has been provoked by my first experience of a fully staged Parsifal at the ROH. Let me make this clear - this is absolutely not a review of the production.  For even though the first night has come and gone, the 'performance' I saw was in fact the final rehearsal and the ROH have asked me nicely not to blog about it...and on reflection they are probably right.  Although nice to know that my blog is being read in high places.

I had absolutely not intended to see this new production at all. Regular readers and Twitter followers will know that I'm not exactly the world's biggest Wagner fan although I have been making a distinct effort in this anniversary year - especially as there were so many riches on offer at this years BBC Proms.  But still, even after some great concert versions at the Albert Hall, I felt frustrated that I still didn't really 'get' Wagner in the way that I do Verdi or even Puccini.

So it was in the spirit of adventure that I snapped up a last minute rehearsal ticket to Parsifal and sallied forth. While not exactly reviewing the detail of what I saw on stage, I can say that I was utterly overwhelmed, intrigued and finally won over by the 'evil genius' that is Wagner.  I will explain 'evil genius' in a while but my reaction to this opera really puzzled and intrigued me.  What was it about this particular work that finally won me over? After all this is not an easy work....surely Lohengrin and Tannhauser are more accessible? Certainly it terms of length (5 and half hours including intervals) its the sort of thing that usually has me running for the exit.  And yet....

And yet this is where Wagner's evil genius kicks in.  There is something in the music of this work, in the story and in the absolute totality that reaches out and resonates with audience if only they let it.  Let me explain. Normally when I go to the opera I go for the emotional hit rather than the intellectual high, although both is good of course.  But if I don't get the emotional impact of a piece then you've lost me and I come away disappointed.  And most of the time the emotional high comes from a specific situation i.e. tragic love story gone wrong, combined with sublime music etc..  Verdi, Puccini et al are masters of this, and in years of opera going/listening I more or less know exactly where my own personal 'lump in the throat' moments occur, for example, Mimi's death, 'Amami Alfredo' in Traviata, end of Otello, etc etc.  Big emotional wallop moments.

Now this is where the evil genius of Wagner kicks in for me.  For he doesn't really do those obvious tear-jerking moments in opera.  So why did I find myself with tears running down my cheeks in the second act of Parsifal?  It did catch me rather by surprise as there was nothing really obvious going on in the music or on stage that I thought would warrant such a reaction.  And yet I believe that in this opera Wagner and his music just suck you in, make you slow down and give in...and that whatever is uppermost in your mind is given voice.  Sorry if that sounds bizarre and sentimental but that is the only explanation I have.  I finally figured out that what had triggered my emotional reaction was the scene with  Kundry talking about Parsifal's mother.  I lost my own mother to cancer this time last year but I wasn't really aware of that being a trigger until the tears were running down my face.  Like I said, 'evil genius'.

Now that the official first night of this production has been and gone, I'm also intrigued by the many and varied reactions to it, and it got me to thinking about how we experience live performance, what we compare it to and how we critically appraise it...not only for those who blog or those get paid to critique for a living, but just the audience in general.  Most of the time I like to pride myself that I don't pre-judge a performance and take each new or old production on its own merits.  But I now ask myself....is that really possible?

I came to this Parsifal with no previous preconceptions of performance history or even vocal history.  The only experience I've had is a few YouTube clips with Jonas Kaufmann and half of a concert performance at the Proms this year....and I really didn't like it enough to stick around for the second half.  So I was a fairly blank canvas.  Now with the best will in the world, if you are turning up for your 20th performance of Boheme or Traviata, it is very difficult NOT to compare with previous singers or productions, and this does colour your perception of what you are seeing on stage TODAY!.  For me, seeing my first staged Parsifal was almost like seeing a brand new opera - I had no history, no idea of what had gone in the past, but only a total involvement in what was happening on stage, right here, right now.  It was thrilling.

And so if nothing else, this Parsifal has given me a determination to experience opera differently if at all possible, to mentally wipe clean those memories of vocal and production's gone by, and just experience the performance in the here and now.  It might still be a disappointment or it might be a triumph, but at least I hope I will be judging it on its own merits.

And a final word about this particular production - please go see it, the cast are wonderful, committed and thrilling and the production, even if it doesn't succeed on all levels, is certainly one that will get the brain ticking.  I loved it.

Brilliantly Bonkers - Les Vêpres Siciliennes – First Night, Royal Opera House, 17th October 2013

I don’t normally do first nights.  While the great and the good (and the not so good) like to see and be seen, and critics of course need to be first off the block to publish their thoughts, by and large I much prefer to wait and let the performance ‘bed in’ first.  I already had a ticket booked for mid-run so what on earth made me run to the box office to secure another?

Well, many things as it happens, but primarily the announcement that the first three performances (at least) were to be sung by Lianna Haroutounian due to the indisposition of Marina Poplavskya.  I was lucky enough to catch Lianna singing Elisabetta in Don Carlos (standing in for another indisposed soprano) last year and was impressed by secure, rich-toned voice and the sensitive acting.  A first class Verdi soprano in the making.  Not willing to take a gamble on Ms Poplavskya’s non-return (and I’d quite like to hear her too) I decided to go for a first night ticket.  I managed to bag one of my favourite stalls circle bench-seats  and so I had a nice clear view of most of the proceedings.

As has been written about ad-infinitum elsewhere, Les Vepres Siciliennes is one of Verdi’s neglected masterpieces and even more rarely performed in the original French.  Another good reason to don the glad rags and head off to Covent Garden for the unreasonably (but necessary) early start of 6pm.  I also spotted a few familiar faces amongst the crowds; Norma Major, David Mellor, Mark Elder and Kasper Holten.

So it was with a really keen sense of anticipation that I finally settled into my seat and waited for the overture to begin and the curtain to rise.

Things did not start well – for me at least. 

One of my pet peeves is having some sort of dumb show on stage during overtures, as though the director cannot trust the audience to let the music do the explaining or that he cannot abide music having primacy over drama perhaps? For whatever reason a dumb-show we were treated to.  Which quickly brings me to my second pet peeve and that is the gratuitous depiction of rape on the opera stage – and this all before the overture was even finished.  But for some strange reason I was in a forgiving mood and I decided to give Stefan Herheim a pass for both transgressions just this once.  Given the rarity with which this opera is performed, a little back story for those in the audience who had come rushing in straight from work did not go amiss.

Ah yes, Stefan Herheim, one of the 'enfant terribles' of the operatic ‘regie-theatre’ world.  The audience must have been half-afraid, half-hoping that some shocking piece of lèse-majesté would be let loose upon the stage.  I for one was just hoping for excellent music making and hopefully a coherent piece of story-telling.  Well I'm happy to report that I certainly got my first wish – and nearly all of my second.

If you did not happen to know that the original opera was set in the 13^th century  then on the surface it looked as traditional as they come.  But the action had been transposed to the time of the opera’s composition – a not entirely original idea it has to be said, but the sets and costumes were gorgeous indeed.  Also included was the ‘stage with in a stage’ concept, this time the stage was the Paris opera house where this opera first debuted. Apparently all of this was supposed to illustrate the ‘rape of art’.  I'm not sure that it entirely succeeded but it didn't interfere with the actual story being played out in music and words so I went with it.  The final act is where Herheim lost me completely, but so completely and utterly bonkers was it, that really you just couldn't help smiling.

If the production values were of the highest, then so was most of the singing.  The four cast principles were pretty evenly matched with perhaps Michael Volle standing out as a dramatically and vocally superb de Montfort.  Erwin Schrott was a hoot as an especially effete but essentially dangerous Procida – here played as a Ballet Master. I though that the chemistry with Lianna Haroutounian was especially close.  Lianna started off well with gorgeous dark-toned and luscious singing but to my ears at least, she audibly tired towards the end  - which is unfortunately where Verdi placed her big aria of the night.  Trills and coloratura were approximate in ‘Merci jeunes amies’  but it was never unmusical.  I was trying to think who would be up to the task of this role today and must admit I can’t really think of anyone – not even Anja Harteros who seems to be the pre-eminent Verdi soprano of today.  However I really enjoyed Lianna’s singing and I hope the Royal Opera has signed her up in her own right, rather than as a replacement for ailing sopranos.

Now, anyone who knows me, or reads this blog, will know that my favourite voice type is tenor.  I have heard Bryn Hymel before in Les Troyens where he stepped in for Jonas Kaufmann and did a very competent job indeed.  And while he did another sterling job here (in a very demanding role) I still can’t say that I enjoyed his singing.  There’s nothing wrong with it, indeed there is much to admire, including his facility in the upper ranges of the tenor voice.  It is simply that the basic tone doesn't really appeal to me.  There’s a lack of ‘glamour’ in the voice – vocal glamour I hasten to add, not personal.  Indeed Mr Hymel is a good looking chap who obviously knows his way around the stage and is a decent actor to boot.  But I just didn't ‘feel’ it – but that only goes to show that reaction to voices is a very individual thing.

So all in all, a very enjoyable night indeed.  It was a treat to hear such good singing in an all too rare performance of a Verdi opera.  Tony Pappano was of course the ultimate star of the show, leading the orchestra in a sensitive but thrilling rendition of the score.

The production, far from being outlandish and unmusical (as some might have feared) was sure-footed, thought provoking and entirely at one with the music.  The production team was certainly greeted with enthusiasm at curtain-call time, which has not always been the case with new productions at ROH recently.  There was really nothing here to scare the children as it were (unless you count Erwin Schrott in a frock), which is why I suspect the audience lapped it up.

In fact at times it all seemed a bit too familiar.  There was a hint of Ballo in Maschera in the ball scene (musically as well as scenically) and I was struck by a resemblance in parts to the 1982 Ernani at La Scala with Domingo.  And speaking of Ernani, now what wouldn’t I give to see a new production of that at Covent Garden?

But in the meantime, I would heartily recommend that if you possibly can, go see this.  You won’t regret it.