Mezzo-Soprano Alice Coote was among those who joined in the condemnation of these critics, citing the principle that opera is all about the music and beauty of the voice and nothing to do with the visual appearance or staging.
Whilst I agree that these descriptions of Ms Erraught were frankly out of order, veering away from just criticism and landing squarely in insult territory, I cannot agree with the idea that the appearance of a production is irrelevant. If it were, then opera companies would save themselves a whole lot of time, effort and money and would perform everything in concert versions and forget about the expense of sets, costumes and stage movement, concentrating entirely on blending voices and orchestra.
Or we could all just buy the recording and stop at home.
The USP of opera on stage is that it synthesises together the two expressive art-forms of music and theatre. If stage director and music director work together well, then this can result in something that suspends our disbelief and transports us into the world of the librettist’s imagination. Good opera production uses a seamless blend of the visual and the aural to deliver storytelling on a grand, sweeping scale. It is when the stage director and their design team forget about telling the story that things go awry. Too often, in their search for a new concept for a new production, directors make the assumption that their audience already know the intricacies of the plot beforehand.
When the curtain went up on the first performance in 1911, Rosenkavalier startled its audience with the sight of the Marschallin reclining in the embrace of her teenage lover Octavian. This new production finds her taking a shower, with Octavian looking on from the bedroom and her young page Mohammed sneaking a peek from the doorway, and the audience hardly bats an eyelid. This probably says something about modern audiences, although I’m not sure what. Director Richard Jones has taken a few such liberties over stage directions, but he understands the music and the narrative flow and his staging works well.
Sadly the same cannot be said of set and costume designers Paul Steinberg and Nicky Gillibrand. In common with Julia Hansen’s designs for last year’s Don Pasquale, some of the furniture and many of the characters have been upholstered in fabrics that exactly match the wallpaper on the broad and featureless flats of the set. Just when we think that Act 2 is going to be confined to the forestage, a blank wall flies into the tower to reveal the hall in Faninal’s palace, which has somehow transformed itself into something looking like the lobby of a tasteless modern hotel.
Costume design is a mixture of heavy damask upholstery and chintzy loose covers. Whilst some of the lead characters’ costumes hint at the piece being re-set at the time of the opera’s composition, the majority appear to have raided the dressing-up box and appear in an ill-fitting, garish miscellany of styles and colours. In an attempt to highlight the pantomime element of the storyline they have produced a result that is both visually confusing and deeply unattractive and which sets the piece nowhere at all. The footmen in Act 1 look like refugee playing cards from a school play of Alice in Wonderland.
Worst of all is the sequence of sartorial indignities piled upon the unfortunate Octavian. Both the first act dressing gown and the second act silver suit fall into the rococo furniture category, whilst the dress that makes him into Mariandel is back into Alice territory. Throughout, Tara Erraught was made to wear the most abominable wig that was more King Charles spaniel than teenage boy. The only concession to masculinity was a pair of ludicrous mutton-chop sideburns. Little wonder that many of the critics struggled with her appearance, but this had nothing to do with Ms Erraught herself and everything to do with the costume and make-up department. There is no rule that says Octavian needs to be tall and lanky – Tara Erraught could have easily pulled off the requisite boyish looks of the trouser-role if she had been suitably dressed for the part.
So much for the visual aspects, that are the reason we do these things in an opera house rather than the concert hall.
Musically, this is a very fine achievement. Kate Royal, Tara Erraught and Teodora Gheorghiu are splendid as the central triumvirate of Marie-Therese, Octavian and Sophie with their duets and the radiant Act 3 trio balanced beautifully. Others have noted that Gheorghiu was just a little forced at one or two moments when pitted against full orchestra, but from her first entry in act 2 she showed a beautiful evenness of tone and colour. Erraught shows herself as a great character singer, with a lovely sound and the ability to play a nasal, petulant girl when disguising herself as Mariandel. Royal has a dignity and poise in her voice to match her bearing, and if this debut in the role is anything to go by it won’t be the last time she is asked to take it. Lars Woldt is no stranger to Baron Ochs and is ideal for the part, with great comic timing and presence, while Michael Kraus is a suitably imperious, bemused Faninal.
Robin Ticciati drew some silken playing from the London Philharmonic and the richness of the score came across well in the relay to cinemas, which is where I saw this production in Sunday’s live transmission, also simultaneously streamed online.
The visual aspects of opera are not superfluous, and the blend of sight and sound is unsurpassed when it really works well. This, however, is a production with the perfect look for radio. It continues at Glyndebourne until 3rd July.
On 22nd July the same team will find its way to the Royal Albert Hall for the sixth concert of this year’s BBC Prom concerts. The concert stage will afford an opportunity to appreciate the musicality in isolation.
Or wait for the recording…
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