Joyce DiDonato, Vittorio Grigòlo - Werther, The Royal Opera © 2016 ROH. Photograph by Bill Cooper |
Reviewed by Robert Hugill on Jul 6 13 2016
Star rating:
Role debuts Joyce DiDonato and Vittorio Grigòlo bring interest to an otherwise plain production
Vittorio Grigòlo - Werther, The Royal Opera © 2016 ROH. Photograph by Bill Cooper |
Charles Edwards sets create a sense of cool realism with the monumental set for Act One completely removing any sense of intimacy from the setting, and the sense of abundant nature was vestigial. As such the production relies very much on the two principals to generate the right electricity. It helped that Antonio Pappano in the pit drew a richly passionate and highly detailed performance from the orchestra, in this most symphonic of Massenet's scores. The orchestra plays a role as important as the two principals, and here we had just the right sort of intense drama.
Though a lyric part, the title role is one of the heavier in the French repertoire; the first Werther at the premiere in Vienna, Ernest van Dyck sang a lot of Wagner, and the first French Werther, Guillaume Ibos, was also a notable Lohengrin. I heard Alfredo Kraus in the role at Covent Garden in the 1970s and this was probably one of the heaviest roles that this most elegant of tenors sang.
Joyce DiDonato, David Bizic - Werther, The Royal Opera © 2016 ROH. Photograph by Bill Cooper |
We are used to Charlotte being sung by singers with rich, refulgent voices (think of Janet Baker or Agnes Baltsa) but it does not have to be the case. Joyce DiDonato sang with a sense of style and focus which recalled the older French, Opera Comique-style of performance. She made a fine pairing with Grigòlo, as both combined a sense of style with a feeling of the role pushing them to the edge. This was a finely detailed performance, in Acts One and Two she positively quivered with suppressed passion. The letter scene was profoundly moving, as well as being beautifully sung. Rather than relying on gut passion, this was a superbly crafted performance with a fine sense of style. It made you wonder which other roles in the French repertoire DiDonato could take on, certainly I would love to hear her in the Opera Comique version of Ambroise Thomas' Mignon.
David Bizic's Albert was well sung, giving a believable sense of Albert's love for Charlotte in the first half, becoming harsh and intense in he second. This was a very traditional view of the character and performances by Simon Wallfisch at Grimeborn and at English Touring Opera have shown that a more sympathetic reading is possible. Heather Engebretson was a delightful Sophie, giving a lovely account of her Act Two solo and really wrenching the heart when she realises Werther is going. Jonathan Summers gave a vivid account of Le Bailli. The other roles were equally fine, with Yuriy Yurchuk and Francois Piolino making a great double act as Johann and Schmidt, Rick Zwart as Brühlmann and Emily Edmonds as Kätchen. The children in Act One were a complete delight, singing strongly.
Yuriy Yurchuk, François Piolino, Joyce DiDonato, David Bizic - Werther The Royal Opera © 2016 ROH. Photograph by Bill Cooper |
I doubt that Covent Garden will replace Benoît Jacquot's production soon, which is a shame. It is a decent enough back-drop for strong principals but performances of this opera can be very much more. As it was, Joyce DiDonato, Vittorio Grigòlo and Antonio Pappano ensured that we had a stylish and passionate evening.
Elsewhere on this blog:
- Exploring Heine: Benjamin Appl and James Baillieu - CD review
- Sheer magic: Ancient music from Scotland - Cd review
- At home with the beautiful people: Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro at Glyndebourne - opera review
- Sexily seductive: Henk Neven & Hans Eijsackers are dreaming of Spain - CD review
- Bringing David Jones' vision to musical life: Iain Bell's In Parenthesis - Opera review
- Scorching performances, grey production: Nabucco at Covent Garden - Opera review
- Stunning: Stephen McNeff's Banished at Trinity Laban - opera review
- Two visionaries: Stockhausen & Scriabin from Vanessa Benelli Mosell - CD review
- Short & bitter-sweet: Yaniv d'Or at the Wigmore Hall - concert review
- Filling the shoes of Handel's favourite tenor: Where'er you walk from Allan Clayton, Ian Page & Classical Opera - CD review
- Emotional punch: Puccini's La fanciulla del West at Grange Park Opera - opera review
- Grandeur and intimacy: Verdi's Don Carlo at Grange Park Opera - opera review
- Home
No comments:
Post a Comment