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SEEN AND HEARD INTERNATIONAL OPERA REVIEW

Smetana, The Bartered Bride: Soloists, Orquesta de la Comunitat Valenciana. Cor de la Generalitat Valenciana.Conductor: Tomas Netopil. Palau de les Arts de Valencia. 26.2.2010 (JMI)

Production: Opera North. Leeds.

Director: Daniel Slater.

Sets and Costumes: Robert Innes Hopkins.

Lighting: Simon Mills.

Choreography: Tim Claydon.

Cast:

Marenka: Sabina Cvilak.

Jenik: Ales Briscein.

Kecal: Vladimir Matorin.

Vasek: Vicenç Esteve.

Krusina: Miguel Ángel Zapater.

Ludmila: Pilar Vázquez.

Micha: Ventseslav Anastasov.

Hata: Hanna Esther Minutillo.

Esmeralda: Luca Espinosa.



Picture © Tato Baeza

One of the new features in Valencia’s season was Smetana’s The Bartered Bride, the work that initiated the Czech National Opera. It’s a pretty rare bird in Spain. The last performance there was in the 1970s at Madrid’s Teatro de la Zarzuela where it appeared as part of a tour by an Eastern European opera company.

The production offered by the Palau de les Arts had stage direction by Daniel Slater. It derives from Leeds’ Opera North, where it was premiered in 1998 on the occasion of Mr. Slater’s opera début. The sets are very simple - or low cost, as you prefer - and the stage direction is very good. The stage consists of a big wooden platform, serving as tavern and village party place with lights and flags (Czech and Soviet Union). There’s even a circus. The costumes are rich and colourful. Slater moves the action forward to 1972, in a village in the former Czechoslovakia under the Soviet Union. He does sterling work with chorus members and extras, each treated as an individual. In this regard the production deserves general recognition and acclaim. Its weakest aspect is the mainly routine lighting. In this opera choreography plays an important role and here it worked fine.

Musical direction fell to Czech conductor Tomas Netopil, currently music director of the National Opera in Prague. Netopil has become, at 35, a much sought-after conductor. He is regularly to be found directing pit orchestras in the main opera houses of Europe. His previous performances in Valencia - Nozze di Figaro and Così Fan Tutte – were none too convincing, but this time things have worked much better. Right from the first bars of the Overture his reading was full of potent brilliance yet he supports the singers with evident care. He drew an excellent performance from the outstanding orchestra, whose sound was what you can expect from the number one pit orchestra in the country.

The vocal cast did not offer big names; rather a well balanced team of singers. The main character, who gives her name to the opera, is Marenka, the Bartered Bride. The role was interpreted by the young Slovene soprano Sabina Cvilak, whom I found much improved from her Faust in Pamplona last year. The role suits her much better and her figure is very appropriate in this updated production. Her middle register sounded much better to me in this occasion, going easily to the top, and only her low notes are somewhat weak. She could be an excellent Micaëla in Pamplona next month.

Czech tenor Ales Briscein offered a good Jenik, showing a fairly homogeneous light-lyric tenor. He is totally familiarized with the character, although one could expect a more expressive approach. Russian bass Vladimir Matorin was a truculent Kecal, the matchmaker. Always sonorous he is an excellent actor, although the voice offers more volume than pure quality. If he were more refined, he could be a real reference name in this character. It’s of a type with roles he has assumed in the past (Varlaam and Mendoza) and they fit him like a glove. Catalan tenor Vicenç Esteve was an accomplished Vasek, both as singer and actor - a very pleasant surprise.

In the supporting roles Pilar Vázquez was quite good as Ludmila, Marenka’s mother. Miguel Ángel Zapater was Krusina, Marenka’s father, and he was rather disappointing. Hanna Esther Minutillo was also good in the part of Hata, Jenik’s stepmother. More routine and without interest there was Ventseslav Anastasov as Micha.

I saw the first performance of the run and there was a full house. The artists were well received, the biggest applause being for Tomas Netopil, Sabina Cvilak and Vladimir Matorin. Slater and his team were also warmly received.


José M Irurzun

 

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