Turandot vs Mother Nature

While watching the Turandot HD Telecast on November, 7th, it became apparent that the performance in the house was definitely superior to the one shown in selected movie theaters around the world, or to be specific at the El Con in Tucson, AZ. Just a few minutes into Act One, the audience realized the weather patterns were not going to cooperate with the Satellite in the sky.

The glitches started in Act One when the sound would go off for a second or two accompanied by some visual dropouts, causing the thrust of Puccini’s great music to develop a case of the jitters. In Act Two, after Turandot’s In Questa Regia aria, the first five or six measures of Straniero, Ascolta! went silent, lessening the intensity which soprano Maria Guleghina had so effectively established for her ice princess up to that point. Shorter silence spans along with some horizontal white lines darting across the screen plagued the rest of the telecast.

Critics of Franco Zeffirelli’s opulent production have called it everything from breathtaking to gaudy, depending on their tolerance for the director’s theatrical display. On the other hand, audiences have had nothing but praise for Zeffirelli’s detailed production of Carlo Gozzi’s 1762 fairy tale. And from the smiling faces at the Saturday matinee, their approval will continue as long as the Met wants to keep the director’s money-making 1983 production.

The theater was packed, and it remained so until the opera ended. Luckily, the performance had enough going for it to compensate for the technological blips.

Both Guleghina and tenor Marcello Giordani as Calaf, the unknown prince, are new to their roles this year, with varying results. The soprano, from her first entrance in Act Two for what is described in the libretto as the ‘Riddle’ scene, showed she had a clear vision of the role. Her comportment and gestures were in tune with the music, so she was able to make the called-for transition from the iron-willed princess who was determined not to give in to Calaf’s advances, to finally accepting his love in Act Three. Guleghina’s middle voice was secure and warm, and, for the most part, she hit the many high B’s and C’s that Puccini demanded from his Turandot. During an intermission interview, Guleghina stated the role is hell to sing – an apt description with which many sopranos would agree. The role fits the soprano’s present vocal state, and one she will keep in her repertoire.
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Gounod, Faust

From Seen and Heard International
By: José M Irurzun; picture © E. Moreno Esquibel
Soloists, Orquesta Sinfónica de Euskadi. Coro de Ópera de Bilbao.Conductor: Rani Calderón.Palacio Euskalduna de Bilbao. 14.11.2009 (JMI)

Production from the Théâtre Capitole de Toulouse.

My father used to say: “Days of plenty, nights of famine” and I can hardly find a more appropriate expression to explain the contrast between of the last two operas from ABAO’s current season. From the riches of the recent Billy Budd we progress to the poverty of this Faust.

The combination of several negative factors ultimately explains one the most boring Faust productions I have ever seen but too little time in rehearsal and a few poor artistic choices in the commissioning are the most relevant factors contributing to this poor performance.

Just 12 days between the last performance of Billy Budd and the premiere of Faust was much too short an interval and in fact, the total time available before the dress rehearsal was a mere 9 days. The first unfortunate artistic decision was the choice of a Nicolas Joel production, a choice that perhaps explained the extraordinarily short rehearsal period, since it is absolutely static. I reviewed this production when it was premiered in Toulouse earlier this year and although the stage direction in Bilbao was handled by Gregory Voillemet there was no improvement at all. As it happens, not a single member of the creative team appeared in stage for the final bows. Who knows why?
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Rossini, L’Italiana in Algeri

Soloists, Orquesta Sinfónica de Madrid. Coro de la Comunidad de Madrid. Conductor: Jesús López Cobos. Teatro Real de Madrid. 1 and 3.11.2009 (JMI)

This is the premiere of the new production by Joan Font (Les Comediants) in co -production with three other opera houses in the world. It is worth mentioning the great made by Antonio Moral, the Artistic Director of Teatro Real, in recent years to get partners for new production at his theatre. This time there are four members in the venture, who have commissioned Joan Font and Les Comediants: they have provided a setting which is very reminiscent of much that they offered in La Cenerentola almost two years ago here in Madrid and again at Welsh National Opera in Cardiff. Sets and costumes are very colourful and supoort a very humorous vision of this opera buffa. with lots of slippers, large turbans much lot of colour. Joan Font’s is essentially based on comedy, which in principle seems appropriate for an opera buffa. The only problem is that running continuous gags on stage may not go as well as expected and that is what happened here, at least to my mind. The production seems aimed more at an audience of children than for an adult one. This kind of humour is either a riotous romp or is just plain boring after while. This what happened to me, although the audience seem to enjoy it well enough. The camped-up gay eunuchs seemed very old fashioned for example, but I accept that my taste may not be typical.

The music was in the hands of of Teatro Real’s expert Music director Jesus López Cobos. His reading was as effective and controlled as might be expected and his tempos were highly appropriate in general. If there’s a criticism to be made, it was that some of the lightness of touch that great Rossini playing requires was missing and the orchestra was not quite up to the level demanded by this score. Rossini is one of the top representatives of belcanto of course but he is also one of the most difficult composers to conduct, particularly in this kind of genre. Lopez Cobos was more effective than bright in the pit. The chorus, not the regular one at Teatro Real, was not even good.
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