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By Joel Kasow
PARIS, 6 January 2003—Robert Wilson's travelling
light show parked itself at the Opéra National de Paris, using
Richard Strauss' Die Frau ohne Schatten for background music.
The Empress glides around the stage, the Dyer's Wife is restricted to
mincing footsteps (extremely ludicrous when executed by the majestic
Luana de Vol), the Emperor has a bow growing out of his back. There
was never a question of the Empress having a shadow, as no one did,
except when we were shown a poor imitation of Japanese shadow play.
The red Falcone, the Emperor (Thomas Moser) and the cellist soloist
(Martine Bailly)
in Richard Strauss' Die Frau ohne Schatten
Photo:
Eric Mahoudeau
Whose choice was it to
have the voices of the minor characters amplified to such an extent
that the atmospheric chant of the Nightwatchmen that ends the first
act closely resembled a brawling beerfest?
Wilson presented
the bare narrative, without the least attempt to tackle any of
Hoffmanstahl's intellectual meanderings, making it difficult to
believe that not only a dramaturge but also an assistant were
necessary for this spectacle which differed so little from its
predecessors.
Of course, the fact that Wilson had just been
promoted Chevalier des Arts et Lettres by the French Government and
that Hugues Gall, the Director of the Opéra, had been elected
to the Académie des Beaux Arts lent a certain intellectual
cachet to the enterprise that is in fact unjustifiable. I would even
go so far as to say that any director of a European opera house who
persists in hiring Wilson for anything but a contemporary opera—where
the composer is able to protest if so minded—is sufficiently
blinded by the man's reputation that he could be accused of misuse of
public funds.
Barak's wife (Luana DeVol), the Nurse (Jane Henschel) and the Empress
(Susan Anthony)
in Richard Strauss' Die Frau ohne Schatten
Photo:
Eric Mahoudeau
In the event, conductor
Ulf Schirmer led a competent performance, but only one of the
principals hired for five of the most demanding roles in the
repertoire was up to snuff. Jane Henschel's expressive face gave life
to her portrayal of the Amme, a truly malevolent portrait. Thomas
Moser's Emperor was well-sung, but never entered the superhuman
dimension that is part of the role. Luana de Vol's wobble and
uncertain high notes had the audience cringing, Susan Anthony's blond
goddess has been singing roles too heavy and too often so that she has
difficulty with the music allotted to the Empress, while Jean-Philippe
Lafont's all too human Barak lacked the vocal assurance he once
displayed in the same role. Once again, Wilson has struck, eliminating
any drama in the work chosen for his pseudo-Oriental manipulation, so
that the audience is left watching a puppet and light show that cost a
fortune and is ineffective.
A revival at the Chatelet of
Ennosuke Ichikawa's 1984 production of Rimsky-Korsakov's Coq d'Or
offered equally stylized movement, but movement that seemed better
integrated into a total concept. Unfortunately, the director's
assistants were responsible for this year's staging and too often the
performers seemed to be walking through the motions without really
knowing why.
Rimsky-Korsakov:
Le Coq d'Or
Photo: © : M.N. Robert
Kent Nagano led the
Orchestre de Paris in a colorful reading, with a largely Russian cast
supplying linguistic authority. Albert Schagidullin's clear baritone
was not exactly the voice one expected for the bass role of King
Dodon, with Ilya Bannik not always audible as General Polkan. Ilya
Levinsky and Andrei Breus (Gvidon and Afron) made much of little as
did Elena Manistina (Amelfa). Olga Trifonova's Queen of Chemakha was
not as playful as some, but the music held no terrors for her, while
Barry Banks's Astrologer once again demonstrated that it is character
roles that best exploit his talents. The peculiar vocal demands of the
role were not shirked (up to E above high C).
Rimsky-Korsakov:
Le Coq d'Or
Photo: © : M.N. Robert
Sumptuous costumes by Tomio
Mohri added to the visual pleasures, while the Maryinsky Chorus
contributed to the aural pleasures. Despite the cast's unfamiliarity
with the stylized movement demanded of them, there was a more
authentic feeling about this performance (19 December) than that of
the previous evening's Wilsonian attitudes.
Joel
Kasow is the Operanet editor of Culturekiosque.com..
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OperaNet: Reviews