Final tableau--Don José has murdered Carmen
Carmen is Bizet's most successful opera and also one of the most famous in the canon. There is no mystery to explain. The characters are compelling, the plot moves swiftly, and the tunes are eminently hummable. France saw its birth in 1875, at which time it was known as an "opéra comique" due to the use of spoken dialogue instead of sung recitativo.
The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The two librettists made essential changes to the original story, as you can see if you read his novella.
The story is a tragic one but not equal to the tragedy of Bizet dying without knowing how beloved and enduring his final work would become. Even folks who know nothing about opera will recognize the "Habanera" and "The Toreador Song".
Another tragedy is the contamination of the work we have witnessed so many times as self-serving directors have tampered with the time and place of the opera, the authenticity of which, we believe, is essential to the story. In its time it scandalized the public and broke ground for future verismo operas.
Last night we saw an authentic production, so authentic that we thought the trek to Brooklyn was worth every mile. Fortunately the good folks at Regina Opera have never succumbed to the fad of "making opera relevant". Opera is relevant because it shows us naked passions expressed through memorable melodies!
The three major figures of this dramatic triangle are a naîve soldier from the countryside, a gypsy who works in a tobacco factory with a side hustle as a smuggler, and a famous toreador. The non human character of the story is the belief in the occult. Probably in the 19th century, audiences would have believed in curses and fortune telling. We had no trouble putting ourself in their place!
The opera is called Carmen but it might as well have been called Don José since it is his tragedy as well. Unlike the Don José of the Merimée novella, this man is a simple country boy who has been enchanted by a bruja. Once Carmen has thrown a flower at him and cast her spell, the plot has been set in motion and his fate is sealed. Think of the "fate theme" expressed so eloquently in the overture, a brilliant overture we might add.
Carmen, often trivialized as a hedonistic "free spirit", is actually a narcissistic sociopath who uses one man after another with no regard for the damage she wreaks. Micaëla, on the other hand, is imbued with a genuine caring nature, venturing into the scary city of Sevilla to relay messages from Don José's mother. She is by no means a wimp because she manages to escape from a group of horny soldiers in Act I, and in Act III she screws her courage to the sticking post, as they say, and makes her way into the scary mountains.
Perhaps it was due to the superb performance of soprano Yujin Zeng that our strongest memory from last night was her aria "Je dis que rien ne m'épouvante". She may be a shy country girl but she is spunky and loyal and will complete her mission come hell or high water. Her faith in God is as strong as Carmen's faith in her occult powers..
The rest of the cast was effective with the fine-voiced mezzo-soprano Melina Jaharis portraying Carmen in a manner that we found excessively and contemporaneously seductive. This might be the intention of the director Helen Van Tine. Our perception of the character leans more to an intensity of will rather than overly obvious signaling of sexiness
Tenor Christopher Trapani did a fine job of conveying Don José's
vulnerability to Carmen's wiles and his desperation at the prospect of losing her. Veteran baritone Robert Garner (whom we have reviewed many times) portrayed Escamillo, who is always portrayed as the equivalent of a modern day rock star; we see things differently. In Spain, killing the bull is seen as an art, almost a religious ritual, somehow tied to the martyrdom of Jesus. His casual manner when meeting his rival in Act III is confident but not arrogant and showy. He is a rather good natured chap who enjoys his success with women.
We enjoyed the scene with the smugglers and their accomplices, both musically and dramatically. Frasquita was played by soprano Veronica Mak and Mercedes was sung by mezzo-soprano Grace Verbic. Their card reading scene brought some lightness into the scene, contrasting with the death predicting reading of Carmen. The quintet involving Dancaïro (baritone Daniel Chu) and Remendado (tenor Ethan Ellis) was a musical highlight of the evening. The role of Zuniga was performed by Victor Jaquez and Warren B. Harding sang the role of Morales.
Maestro Scott Jackson Wiley conducted the orchestra with his usual fine hand and we particularly appreciated the wind section. The harp and flute accompaniment to Micaëla's aria was a highlight
We were not impressed with the sets. The stage is a shallow one and their bulk detracted from the playing area. Strangely, there were sets of steps that contributed nothing and looked out of place in every scene. We would have wished for better staging.
Let us close by saying that we attended the dress rehearsal and if the lighting was not perfect it will be by tomorrow. It appears that every performance has a different cast; so you, Dear Reader, will probably not experience the same performances as we did. You will probably never miss the long parade of the costumed participants nor the cheering crowds of Act IV. This production is a more intimate one, focusing on the relationship between the principals; we do hope you will appreciate the traditional nature of the production as much as we did. And if your interpretation of the characters is different from ours, we hope you will comment below.
© meche kroop
No comments:
Post a Comment