SEEN AND HEARD INTERNATIONAL

New Production Opera National Bordeaux with several other French Theatres.

 

Direction: Nicola Berloffa.

Sets and Costumes: Guia Buzzi.

Lighting: Fiammetta Baldiserri.

 

Cast:

 

Corinna: Hye Miung Kang.

M.Melibea: Kleopatra Papatheologou.

C.Folleville: Elisabeth Bailey.

M.Cortese: Oxana Shilova.

C. Belfiore: James Elliot.

C. Libenskof: Alexey Kudrya.

Lord Sidney: Istvan Kovacs.

Don Profondo: Marco di Sapia.

B.Trombonok: Vladimir Stojanovic.

Don Alvaro: Armando Noguera.

Don Prudenzio: Patrick Bolleire.

Don Luigino: Jean-Christophe Born.

Maddalena: Ekaterina Metlova.

Delia: Celine Kot.

Modestina: Rany Boechat.

Antonio: Yan Toussaint.

Zeffirino: Baltazar Zuñiga.

 

What has been happening with this Rossini opera in recent years is curious. From the splendour of its recovery in 1984 it has come to be a vehicle for young singers: in Pesaro Emilio Sagi’s production was for several years the showcase for young students of the Rossini Academy and something similar happened to this same production in Spain, where it was performed in several cities last year, always by young singers. And now in France, other theatres have followed the same path, having joined forces to build a new production with the same objective. In part, the large cast that this opera requires accounts for this decision, since to cast it with first rank singers would become a chimera, taking into account the financial restrictions on most opera houses.

 

The collective of French opera houses behind this production organised a competition for a new touring production of Il Viaggio a Reims and the winner was the young Italian director Nicola Berloffa, whose work has now arrived now in Bordeaux. This production was premiered in October 2008 in Rheims and since then has been touring throughout France. Already this year, it has already visited St. Etienne, Marseille and Toulouse before this visit to Bordeaux. This is a great initiative from the part of the French opera houses worthy of being imitated in other countries.

 

Nicola Berloffa’s production is simple, colourful. It handles the opera more as an opera buffa than as the drama giocoso that its composer called it. He moves the action to the middle of the 20th century, setting it in a luxurious hotel, where the guests arrive to attend the Coronation at Reims. The sets are simple and there are bright costumes. The stage direction though offers no time for rest and is full of gags, rather too childish now and again but intended to provoke laughter of the audience, which it largely achieves. The best part of the production is the party in the second act, where Berloffa offers fine good work with chorus and extras.

 

Luciano Acocella was in charge of the musical direction and he was not totally successful. His great positive was that he was always in full control of stage and pit, just as he should be, taking into account the number of performances that have already been offered in the tour. But for me, Maestro Acocella was short on the lightness and delicacy so much needed in Rossini operas. In his hands the opera felt very different than on previous occasions when was conducted in Italy and Spain by veteran Maestro Zedda. This was a rather flat reading and it seemed to me that the orchestra was not very used to this kind of music either.

 

The very large vocal cast of young singers, had some members who were promising and others less so. During the tour there was a double cast, as was also the case in Bordeaux, although this is not to reflect any real difference in quality, judging by the reviews I have read from the different venues. Rather doubling simply provided more opportunities for the vocalists available.

 

In general, the female voices were better than the men and among the male voices, tenors seemed better than baritones or basses.

 

At the performance I attended, the singers that left the most positive impressions were, the Greek mezzo soprano Kleopatra Papatheologou who sang Melibea with a wide and sonorous voice that recalled, even physically, Daniella Barcellona. The Russian soprano Oxana Shilova as Madame Cortese produced real amplitude and voice of generall good quality: she seems ready to face other challenges. The Korean soprano Hye Miung Kang was a good Corinna, with a pleasant light soprano, which was easy at the top. The Mexican baritone Armando Noguera was Don Álvaro and he showed off a remarkable voice coupled with apart excellent stage demeanour. The Russian tenor Alexey Kudrya as Count Liebenskof had a light voice, interesting in the middle, but rather too metallic at its top end and much the same can be said - but at a lower level of James Elliot’s performance as Chevalier Belfiore.

 

The rest of the singers were rather less good. British soprano Elizabeth Bailey sang Countess Folleville with a small voice and little interest and the Hungarian Istvan Kovacs sang Lord Sidney with generally poor vocal quality. Don Profondo was played by the Italian baritone Marco di Sapia with a decidecly whitish sound - more Don ‘Surface’ than Profondo. The French baritone Vladimir Stojanovic had the wrong voice for Baron Trombonok.

 

The house was full and the warmest receptions were for Kleopatra Papathelogou, Oxana Shilova and Hye Miung Kang.

José M. Irurzun