I saw this nearly two weeks ago and for some strange reason I haven't got round to blogging it yet. During the interval I was approached by someone who introduced herself as blog lurker and gave me her name, but my memory is terrible, and I can't remember, which is very very rude (my pathetic excuse is I'd had two meetings that afternoon and have spent the time since in a whirl of meetings involving lots of introductions and being told who else to contact so I'm going slightly loopy on names).
By Donizetti.
As I remarked elsewhere, I only go to operas because of the star pull of the singers, and, yet despite a cast without an obvious star name, and despite not being a trained musician, and thus not entitled to an opinion about music, for some foolish reason I booked this - for the opera.
Cast:
Ernesto: Eric Cutler
Don Pasquale: Alessandro Corbelli
Doctor Malatesta: Christopher Maltman
Norina: Aleksandra Kurzak
Stick waver: Bruno Campanella
Cut a long silly story short, old Don Pasquale wants to disinherit his nephew Ernesto by marrying a wife, and also wants to prevent Ernesto from marrying Norina, so a plot is hatched, initially behind Ernesto's back, that DP marries Norina disguised as Malatesta's sister fresh out of a convent, and as soon as she marries, she turns into a nagging floozy with very expensive tastes. And it all ends happily ever after.
Some people find the story 'problematic'. I say 'get over it', it's a silly story, not intended to be a social comment nor an analysis of human behaviour, but a bel canto opera, a vehicle for beautiful music and beautiful singing. And fun!
I saw the original production in 2004, and produced a brief and not very enlightening summary review. My hesitation on both occasions is probably because other than saying 'it was an enjoyable piece of entertainment gloriously performed' what else is there to say, unless one is intimately familiar with the work from recordings or the score (so many operas, so little time...!). It seemed at the end of the evening, everyone had a smile on their face!
I wouldn't say any if the singers stood out as having given great performances but they were all good. Eric Cutler made his ROH debut and was justifiably received well, not just in the warm enthusiastic applause at curtain call, but also in the all-important overheard conversation stakes. "His name's very Anglo-Saxon, so he's not Latin,
but he's very good..."
At first I couldn't quite decide. I thought his voice had some beauty within it but seemed a bit rough around the edges. In the first act I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt, and decided I would wait for Com'e gentil to judge. His Povero Ernesto was beautifully sung; by the time he got to Com'e Gentil, I had quite forgotten about 'judging'.
He will most certainly do!
I had to feel sorry for him a bit because he didn't look right in the costume at all. I don't know if it was specifically designed for Juan Diego Florez, but in any case, Eric Cutler is a tall man with a proportionately full frame, and I'm afraid in the 18th century dandy's costume he was perfect drag queen. I mentioned this to a couple of
people, who agreed wholeheartedly. Faye saw it last night and used the expression 'Charles Kennedy in drag...'
Aleksandra Kurzak was also impressive although IMHO I preferred Tatiana Lisnic in the role. I think when Tatiana played the role, the stroppy demanding Norina was an act; with Aleksandra I thought it was just an extension of the default Norina personality. I quite liked her voice although it was a bit quiet in places and a bit shrieky towards the top (but I'm a bit love-or-hate when it comes to sops)
Alessandro Corbelli played Don Pasquale, and while I wouldn't rave over the voice, the characterisation was excellent. Christopher Maltman gave an engaging and memorable performance as Dr Malatesta. I thought he looked surprisingly scrumptious in ringlets. I don't especially go for the voice, but he has a wonderful stage presence and
was so obviously enjoying himself.
What came over was how much everybody enjoyed it; the orchestra, the singers (who all acted and interacted to a high standard) and most of all the audience. I was surprised, with the tourist season being at its height, there was no clapping of the scenery (but Faye's seat neighbours, from the land where they clap scenery did so!); I was also surprised and a bit disappointed that there was no applause after Com'e gentil.
Re-reading my review I realise it's praise praise praise all the way, and that is a fair reflection. Again, stressing that there was nothing outstanding or great about it but it was good to very good all the way through. No doubt there were many technical flaws but I'm not sufficiently familiar with the opera to identify them or enable them to spoil my enjoyment.
As a PS, I am becoming more and more of a fan of the Lower Slips as a place to sit. Although something is lost because of the restricted view, much is gained by proximity to the stage. Again, the overhang causes some acoustic loss, but in this production, it was really fantastic to be so close to them when they were in the attic of the Dolls house.
Comments