PUCCINI LA RONDINE
(The Swallow)
A comparative review of DVD
recordings by Ian Lace
(N.B.
A comparative review of audio recordings of Puccini’s La
Rondine can be read by following this link - audio recordings. That
file contains much material that will be found below but concentrates
on a detail comparative review of the audio recordings: Act by act synopses with
integrated reviews and Conclusions and Recommended Recording)
This is a large file and contains:-
1.
Cast lists of
main characters of all five DVD recordings
2.
An introductory
article about La Rondine
3.
Act by act synopses with integrated reviews
4.
Conclusions and Recommended
Recording
Recommended biography of Puccini
– Giacomo Puccini by
Conrad Wilson, Phaidon Press, 1997, ISBN: 071483291 X
Click here to see
a general article on the operas of Puccini
Cast Lists and Recordings References
(just follow the links in the
headings of each of the five DVDs below to read the five MusicWeb
reviews).
Giacomo
PUCCINI (1858-1924) La Rondine - Lyrical comedy in three acts
1) The
Historic 1958 Teatro di San Carlo, Naples production
Magda - Rosanna Carteri
Ruggero - Giuseppe Gismondo
Lisette - Ornella Rovero
Prunier - Gino Sinimberghi
Rambaldo - Giuseppe Valdengo
Orchestra and Choir of Teatro di San Carlo,
Naples
Conducted by Michele Lauro
Recorded TV broadcast - 26 January 1958
HARDY VIDEO DVD HCD 4026
2)
The Teatro La Fenice, Venice, 2008 Production
Magda - Fiorenza Cedolins
Ruggero - Fernando Portari
Lisette - Sandra Pastrana
Prunier - Emanuele Giannino
Rambaldo - Stefano Antonucci
Périchaud - George Mosely
Gobin - Iorio Zennaro
Crébillon - Giuseppe Nicodemo
A majordomo - Andrea Zaupa
Yvette - Sabrina Vianello
Bianca - Giacinta Nicotra
Suzy - Annika Kaschenz
Acrobatic Swing Dance, Venezia
Orchestra and Chorus of the Teatro La Fenice/Carlo Rizzi
Directed by Graham Vick
rec. live, Teatro La Fenice, Venice, 2008
ARTHAUS MUSIK 101329
3)
The 2007 production from 53rd
Puccini Festival at Torre del Lago, Italy
Magda
- Svetla Vassileva (soprano)
Ruggero - Fabio Sartori (tenor)
Lisette - Maya Dashuk (soprano)
Pruier
- Emanuele Giannino (tenor)
Rambaldo - Marzio Giossi (baritone)
Orchestra and Chorus of the Puccini Festival/Alberto Veronesi
rec. live, 53rd Puccini Festival,
Torre del Lago, Italy, August
2007.
NAXOS 2.110266
4)
The Washington National
Opera 1998 Production
Magda - Ainhoa Arteta (soprano)
Ruggero - Marcus Haddock (tenor)
Prunier - Richard Troxell (tenor)
Lisette - Inva Mula (soprano)
Rambaldo – William Parcher (baritone)
Washington National Opera Orchestra and Chorus/Emmanuel Villaume
rec. live, Kennedy Center Washington USA, 11, 15 March 1998
DECCA 074 3335 [110:00]
5) The 2009 Metropolitan Opera Production
Magda
- Angela Gheorghiu (soprano)
Ruggero - Roberto Alagna (tenor)
Prunier - Marius Brenciu (tenor)
Lisette - Lisette Oropesa (soprano)
Rambaldo - Samuel Ramey (bass)
Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus/Marco Armiliato
rec. live, HD transmission, 10 January 2009
EMI CLASSICS 6 31618 9 2
This was the first Met production
of Puccini’s La Rondine since 1936. One more piece of
evidence of its scandalous neglect for the better part of the
20th century.
Puccini's La Rondine
(The Swallow)
… Perhaps
like a swallow,
you will migrate towards the sea,
towards a bright land of dreams …
"Child,
love is in bloom!
Take care, take care of your heart!
Kisses and laughter must be paid for with teardrops!
Introduction
[There is a short essay on the
operas of Puccini included in the file on La Bohème which
focuses on comparative reviews of five leading recordings]
A glance at the catalogues,
confirms that La Rondine was, until the 1990s, largely
ignored by the recording companies. The tide began to turn following
the publicity it gained when the big Act I aria, 'Chi il bel
sogno di Doretta' was used in the film, A Room With
A View. Since then, at least four audio recordings and the
five DVDs above have been released. La Rondine is appealing
and accessible. It was highly esteemed by Puccini himself. The
basic problem is that the work is something of a hybrid, neither
opera nor operetta, and as such it has fallen between two stools,
not really appealing to either faction and confusing the too
few production companies who have attempted it. Thus it was
all the more gratifying when the 1997 EMI recording starring
Gheorghiu and Alagna won Gramophone's top award as their
'Recording of the Year'.
The decision to include La
Rondine after La Bohème in our series of reviews
of the operas of Puccini, was deliberate. Both operas are set
in Paris - La Bohème in the 1830s of Louis Philippe,
La Rondine twenty years later in the reign of Louis Napoleon
III. There are similarities in plot and characters to such an
extent that one might regard La Rondine as a sort of
sequel to La Bohème [see inset below].
*****
*****
Giacomo Puccini
The whole concept and composition
of La Rondine was a catalogue of disasters!
La Rondine was
composed as the Great War was raging, another reason for the
failure of such a delicate piece. It was, perhaps, of too little
consequence for such grim times? The Austrians and Italians
were on opposing sides; but war for Puccini was something to
hide from - as 'far away', and as discreetly as possible. The
editor of a French publication went so far as to accuse Puccini
of writing not only an 'enemy opera' but also one which would
be 'treasonable' to stage in war-torn France. In response, the
ever-parsimonious Puccini, uncharacteristically, donated a year's
profits of Tosca performances in Paris, to France's wounded
soldiers. Interestingly, though, the world premiere of La
Rondine took place, in 1917, in neighbouring Monte Carlo!
But Puccini was less inclined to give up his relationship with
a German baroness!
The concept of La Rondine
dated back to when Puccini visited Vienna in the autumn of 1913.
He attended an operetta at the frivolous Karltheater where he
was taken to one side and invited to compose an operetta of
his own. A fat fee and the chance of a flattering award of the
Star of the Order of Franz Joseph were irresistible temptations.
The
Austrians clearly wanted what they were used to: a German operetta,
intermingling spoken words and music in the style of Johann
Strauss and Franz Lehár.
Puccini loved Lehár but what
he had in mind was something different. When he accepted Vienna's
offer of 200,000 kronen along with the property rights, he asserted,
"I will never write an operetta; a comic opera, yes."
It would be something like Der Rosenkavalier but more
diverting and more organic, he maintained. What he actually
produced was more like an elegant but more superficial La
traviata, allowing his courtesan heroine to remain poignantly
but definitely alive at 
the
end. There is also much in La Rondine, in the interweaving
of the relationships of the two pairs of lovers, that echoes
his own La Bohème and Johann Strauss's Die Fledermaus.
One will also detect echoes of Madama Butterfly.
Liaison with potential Austrian
librettists, performers, publishers, translators and backers
while Europe was at war was a nightmare. The death of Puccini's
publisher, Giulio Ricordi, in 1912, had hit Puccini very hard.
Giulio, together with Puccini's librettists Giuseppe Giacosa
and Luigi Illica had formed, with the composer, the quartet
that had produced all the successful popular Puccini operas.
Giulio's son, Tito Ricordi, was of a different calibre - a ruthless
businessman without his father's artistic sensitivities. He
was unsympathetic and made it quite plain that he was totally
uninterested in acquiring the Italian rights to what he called
"Puccini's Austrian folly". Ricordi's old rival, Edoardo
Sonzogno jumped at the chance of adding a Puccini opera to his
stable and he it was who came up with the excellent diplomatic
choice of Monte Carlo for the premiere.
As usual, there was trouble
over the libretto. Puccini rejected the first Austrian attempt
but accepted the second though his ignorance of the German language
meant there was much translation, back-translation and re-translation
necessary before acceptable German and Italian versions of the
work would be attained. Puccini's former librettist, Giuseppe
Giacosa had died, leaving just Illica who was now joined by
a new name, Giuseppe Adami. As usual Puccini was difficult about
the progress of the libretto requesting alteration after alteration.
He could never make up his mind about the ending - alternative
versions of it exist with different routes for Magda to escape
from her amorous predicament
As preparations progressed,
Puccini became more and more concerned about the future of his
creation so he shrewdly re-negotiated with his Austrian contacts
whereby he would retain only a half-share of the rights in exchange
for control of the premiere. In the event, the Monte Carlo premiere
was successful. The critic's were happy with the music and the
audience, to Puccini's delight, found La Rondine 'moving
and comic' just as he had hoped that they would.
Despite such good omens, La
Rondine languished. The Italian critics accused Puccini
of being out of touch with the times. Bologna was not too hostile
but Milan was so vituperative that Puccini was jolted and decided
to rewrite it, but in vain. The problem, never really resolved,
was that last act which was seen to be something of a let-down
after all the good tunes and the two hit numbers of the first
two acts.
La Rondine has
never really advanced beyond the fringes of the Puccini repertoire.
Yet it has the most engaging melodies, sparkling orchestrations
and it is, as Conrad Wilson has said, “an elegant, fastidiously
fashioned opera that enabled Puccini to exploit a side of his
musical personality he was prone to neglect”. In another perceptive
article with the Pappano audio recording, Roger Parker observes,
"There seems no doubt that the unusual plot type … allow(ed)
Puccini to discover some remarkably fresh musical colours, (and
so to release himself from that always-threatening sense of
creative paralysis) … most noticeable is the overall emotional
restraint of the score. In a few places we can hear a vocal
intensity reminiscent of Tosca, Butterfly and Fanciulla.
Far more typical, are the gentle endings to Acts I and III,
no fortissimo enunciation of "the big tune" and no
brass-reinforced whole-tone scales. Instead we hear delicate
orchestral combinations that we need all our attention to appreciate.
With this new tone often comes a new harmonic language, sometimes
a kind of chromaticism that startlingly anticipates the style
of American musicals decades later …"
It would be nice to think that
we could look forward to sparkling stage productions of La
Rondine. For impresarios and producers, a sympathetic
production, not heavy-handed can be immensely rewarding. (This
last paragraph was originally written in the year 2000. Since
then stage productions of La Rondine have increased dramatically
in Europe and in America (Dallas, Washington and New York to
mention only three)).
| La Rondine –
a sequel to La Bohème?
Many commentators have remarked
upon the similarity of plot and character between La
Bohème and La Rondine, including comments
in an intelligent essay by Barrymore Laurence Scherer,
entitled "A Bird in a Gilded Cage".
Scherer remarks upon the resemblance
between the two operas and suggests that Magda might be
Musetta twenty years on. She is now street-wise and recognises
that her love affair with Ruggero is probably her last
fling. She is also shrewd enough to realise, in Act III,
that the writing is on the wall when the money begins
to run out, and she must face the more open-eyed assessment
of the mother of the love-blind Ruggero if she decides
to go to his village as his wife. Besides, she has the
opportunity to return to her Parisian comforts offered
by her older, richer protector Rambaldo, who would be
delighted to take her back.
Scherer also suggests that
Prunier is really Rodolfo, older and more cynical but
still "content to find amusement and gratification
wherever it presents itself. True to form, however, he
remains powerfully attracted to pretty women of the working
class [Lisette]. Consciously or unconsciously, Puccini
carried through the Rodolfo-Prunier lineage by means of
his vocal assignment of the latter role: The full-throated
tenor of La Bohème has become a lighter, less powerful
voice. Twenty years of sybaritic living have taken their
toll."
Then, finally, the merry crowds
that thronged Bohème's Café Momus during the reign of
Louis Philippe now find their outlet at Bullier's. But
the music has become mellower and there is an underlying
bitter-sweetness. |
Act by Act Synopses and Integrated Reviews
Act I - Magda's salon, Paris
early evening - during the time of Louis Napoleon circa 1855-60.
As the sun sets, courtesan Magda
is hosting a party for a number of friends including Rambaldo,
her protector, and Prunier, a poet.
There is an air of ennui. Then
Prunier sets all the ladies aflutter when he asserts that there
is a new fashion in Paris for romance and if they are not careful
they will catch the love bug. There follows some mutual flippant
teasing between Prunier and the ladies, but Magda is inclined
to take the idea of love more seriously. Prunier then mentions
Doretta, the heroine of his latest lyric who has caught this
bug. The ladies press him to sing of her. There follows, as
darkness descends and soft lights illuminate the room, the famous
'Chi il bel sogno di Doretta' (Who can interpret Doretta's lovely
dream). Prunier sings of Doretta who is approached by a king
who promises her great riches if she will be his but she refuses
"for gold cannot bestow happiness". This lovely song
is taken up by Magda who gives her interpretation of Doretta's
dream, about how she was made blissfully happy by a student's
kiss. Her guests are enchanted.
The role of Prunier demands
a singer who can convey wry irony, pomposity but with an urbane
air, and yet tenderness too. All five tenors are very good,
all larger than life and all nicely expressive. If I had to
make a choice it would be a difficult decision between Brenciu
(Armilato/EMI) and Troxell (Villaume/Decca). Puccini very cleverly
gives his hit tune, 'Chi il bel sogno di Doretta' to Prunier
first thus stoking up the emotional temperature in anticipation
of Magda's glorious rendering. [Compilation producers please
note, and include both tenor and soprano roles when contemplating
this enchanting aria.] Of the five Magdas, Carteri enchants,
but it is Gheorghiu that sends tingles up your spine followed
not far behind by the rapture of Arteta.
Magda is gently mocked by her
friends. Her banker protector Rambaldo then gives her an expensive
pearl necklace. Magda is slightly taken aback, but his generosity
does not shake her faith in the thought of true romance. Lisette,
Magda's maid enters like a whirlwind and tells Rambaldo that
a young man is outside seeking him. With 
Magda's
permission, Rambaldo agrees to see him. This exchange is accompanied
by music very reminiscent of Richard Strauss in Der Rosenkavalier
mode. It should be said, at this point, that Puccini's music
for La Rondine is very much based on waltz rhythms in
deference to Viennese tradition. The role of Lisette calls for
an outgoing streetwise charmer. I was least impressed with the
rather matronly Rovero and most impressed with the youthful
and naughty cheekiness of Mula (Villaume/Decca) and, most of
all, Oropesa (Armiliato/EMI).
Magda's friends say she is very
lucky to have Rambaldo but she replies in another wonderful
extended melodic aria, 'Denaro! Nient' altro che denaro!' (Money,
money, money). In it, she remembers, with affection, a brief
romantic meeting, long ago, with a student at Bullier's, a popular
Parisian nightclub. Gheorghiu reminisces tenderly, lightly as
if in a dream, recalling the evening and vaguely wondering how
she got there and how she left - a radiant reading with Pappano
contributing a spellbinding atmosphere.
The ladies are disappointed
at the inconclusive ending to Magda's story and so the conversation
turns to fortune-telling. A screen is brought out and to some
oriental-sounding music Prunier begins to tell the ladies' fortunes.
He tells Magda, somewhat ambiguously, that like the swallow
she might find a brighter future in the sun but there could
also be impending tragedy. Puccini's scoring for this brief
delicate aria is sublime in its intimation of anticipated joy
and sadness. Earlier, there had also been another brief but
fascinating aria for Prunier when he had enthused about famous
femme fatales that he would liked to have known including Salome
at which point, Puccini slyly quotes from Richard Strauss's
opera.
In the meantime, Ruggero has
entered with a letter of introduction from his father to Rambaldo.
This is Ruggero's first visit to Paris and he is eager to know
where to go to celebrate on his first evening. At this point
the fortune-telling session concludes and many of the guests
come forward to see Ruggero. Prunier cynically recommends that
Ruggero goes to bed on his first night. Lisette and the ladies
remonstrate heatedly and advise the young man to go to Bullier's.
The appearance of the opera's hero, Ruggero, in Act I, is unusually
brief, very brief even; for after receiving this advice, he
leaves the stage until Act II. But in the original 1917 version,
the one used by Pappano, an extra aria is included allowing
Ruggero to enthuse on the anticipated delights of the City of
Lights. But this frankly is a rather thin opportunity.
Rambaldo and the other guests
then leave. Magda tells Lisette she will be staying in and that
she can take the evening off. Magda muses over her fortune as
foretold by Prunier and notices the list of nightclubs that
was drawn up while she was out of the room. She spots Bulliers
and runs out excitedly. Now, Lisette, smartly dressed after
borrowing some of her mistress's clothes, furtively returns
to meet Prunier whose earlier taunting of her has really been
a smoke screen, for he is her lover. He criticises bits of her
costume and makeup and while she is attending to them, he confides
that he is slumming in associating with her but, despite himself,
he loves her madly. At length, they leave billing and cooing.
This is an amusing and charming duet.
The first act ends with Magda
now dressed almost unrecognisably as a grisette hurriedly leaving
after them to the bitter-sweet strains, in the orchestra, of
Doretta's song.
Act II - later that evening
at Bullier's night club, Paris
The second act opens ebulliently with merrymaking at Bullier's.
Crowds dance, drink champagne, romance and flirt. Puccini's
sparkling high-spirited music, for chorus and orchestra, is
performed brilliantly by Villaume's team aided by sparkling
performances from the full supporting cast and some ravishing
sets and costumes. The Metropolitan production has sets and
costumes of an era around about the end of the Great War and
these too are appealing The music quietens as Magda, in her
disguise, enters, immediately attracting the amorous attentions
of a group of students. When she catches the eye of Ruggero,
they escort her to his table thinking she is his 'date'. Puccini
writes some deliciously tender and 'mock' innocent music for
her entrance and all conductors catch the mood well.
Ruggero invites Magda to sit
with him and he tells her that she seems timid and alone and
that she reminds him of the girls of Montauban, his village
- "beautiful, simple and modest." to a charming little
tune that has a delightfully subtle rustic flavour. He then
invites her to dance to the lovely strains of 'Nella dolce carezza
della danza' (In the soft caresses of the dance). Gheorghiu
and Alagna sing as though they are transported, with a ravishing
dream-like accompaniment from Armiliato. Arteta and Haddock
enchant too in this delicate scene of love's first blooming.
Haddock’s shy and tentative first approaches to Magda are very
affecting The following dance reaches a huge ecstatic climax
as Lisette and Prunier arrive and, immediately, the possessive
Prunier accuses Lisette of flirting provocatively.
Somewhat
exhausted Magda and Ruggero return to their seats. Ruggero orders
drinks and Magda asks him to give the waiter twenty sous and
let him keep the change - her reminiscences of the young student
she had met all those years before are being awakened to become
reality. Ruggero is captivated and declares that when he falls
in love it will be for life. They write their names on the table
but Magda, ever practical, says the image will rub off. Ruggero
responds by saying, "something quite different will stay
with me your secret." Clearly deeply moved, Magda pleads
with him "to accept me as fate has brought me to you."
Gheorghiu is deeply touching here, tenderly and just slightly
motherly, a beautiful moment. This leads into another gorgeous
duet. Ruggero leads by replying "Io non so chi siate voi…'
("I don't know who you are or how you came to be here with
me but…"). The orchestra takes up the melody of this short
but exquisite duet with whispering on-lookers noticing how the
pair are falling deeply in love. Both Gheorgiu and Alagna and
Arteta and Haddock impress here.
Then Lisette and Prunier notice
them. Comedy follows with Magda determined to conceal her true
identity from Ruggero and indulging in a deliciously farcical
and ironic exchange with Lisette about the clothes that her
maid has 'borrowed' from her wardrobe to wear to Bullier's.
Brenciu and Oropesa excel at this point. Now follows yet another
highlight - an ecstatic quartet between the two pairs of lovers
with the on-looking revellers again forming a chorus. Both the
Decca and EMI readings thrill.
But things are brought back
to earth with the arrival of Magda's protector, Rambaldo. Prunier
espying him, and anxious to protect Magda's new love, gets Ruggero
to take Lisette out of sight on the pretext that Rambaldo is
her master and would not want to find her there. Prunier also
warns Magda to escape too but she stands firm and faces Rambaldo
to declare her new love and to tell him that all is over between
them. Dejectedly Rambaldo leaves warning her she will regret
her decision.
The stage empties. The revellers
leave as dawn approaches. Drained, Magda sinks into a chair
and stares fixedly ahead as if questioning her destiny. The
hall is now empty. The first cold rays of morning show uncleared
tables, crushed flowers and upset glasses. "All the infinite
sadness of a party which is over is caught in this early morning
light." Now Puccini delivers a masterstroke. A voice is
heard singing in the street as the sounds of an awakening Paris
are heard. At just the right distance, and accompanied by a
whistling companion, so as to add just that heightened bit of
poignancy, Pappano's female off-stage singer touches on the
inevitable sadness of love:-
"I
am the dawn, which is born only to dispel any magic of the moonlit
night!
Do not
trust in love!"
But the final moments of Act
II end on a happier note as Ruggero rejoins Magda and they embrace.
But Magda shivers and murmurs "I'm afraid! I'm too happy!"
Act III A villa on the Riviera
Magda and Ruggero have fled
to a haven in the South of France. Act III opens with a short
Debussy-like orchestral evocation of a languid scented garden
overlooking a heat-hazed sea. As if echoing this evocation,
Magda muses contentedly, "Do you hear? Even the sea breathes
quietly. The air drinks in the perfume of the flowers".
The two lovers relax contentedly. Puccini recapitulates much
of the music that he has used in Acts I and II but the sense
of urgency has been dispelled; one gets the impression that
their love has softened but deepened, yet Ruggero seems as ardent
as ever but is now eager to settle down.
In their bliss, Ruggero, reveals
that he has written to his father asking for money - the couple's
creditors are pressing in - but more importantly for permission
to marry. Ruggero reaffirms that he wants one love for life
and in a warmly sentimental aria, sung with sensitivity and
tenderness by all three tenors, he looks forward to them living
in the village of his parents and starting a family. At first
Magda is enraptured and snuggles up to her lover, but when he
goes off to see if a letter has arrived, she hesitates and is
filled with fear. What about her past as a kept woman? Should
she conceal it or confess. She exits in anguish.
Lisette and Prunier now make
an appearance. At once they begin to squabble. They had come
to Nice to pursue an on-stage singing career for Lisette. Alas,
she had failed hopelessly and they had fled the town with derision
ringing in their ears. Lisette is paranoid about this and thinks
there are more people deriding her around every corner. Prunier
is unsympathetic and bitterly disappointed that his woman has
failed him. As for Lisette, herself, all she wants is peace
and a return to the simple life of a maid. This rather inflated
scene tends to slow up the action, although Brenciu and Oropesa
compel.
Prunier then espies the Maitre
D'Hotel and asks to see Magda. When she comes, he first of all
suggests that Lisette resumes duties as Magda's maid, an arrangement
that suits both women, and then he reveals the real reason for
wanting to see Magda. He tells her he thinks she is living in
a fool's paradise, that her real place is back in Paris and
that "someone is waiting for you, who knows your troubles
and is ready to serve you in any way!" - clearly, this
is Rambaldo. Having delivered his message he prepares to depart.
Even though both he and Lisette have sworn they never want to
see each other again, they arrange to meet at 10 o'clock that
evening. Now, in a happier frame of mind, Lisette dons her maid's
uniform, fusses around a bit and exits.
Ruggero returns in great excitement
with a letter from his mother. He persuades Magda to read it.
She does so and is greatly moved by its sentiments, his mother
wanting Ruggero to kiss his chosen bride for her. Carteri and
Gheorghiu both wring one’s heart. But Magda shrinks from accepting
the mother's kiss and confesses, "I have passed in triumph
between shame and gold". Ruggero, at first cannot believe
her and is then torn between anger and anguish. The music becomes
more dramatic and anguished, culminating in Ruggero's heartrendingly
beautiful aria ‘Ma come puoi lasciarmi’ (But how can you leave
me) with Alagna bringing tears to the eyes. But Magda is resolute
in her sacrifice of love and she persuades him to forget her
and let her take the sorrow on herself. Lisette enters and guesses
intuitively what has happened. She comes forward to support
and lead away a distraught and tearful Magda. The curtain falls
with Ruggero sunken, head in hands and Magda, off-stage sadly
murmuring Ah!…
But Puccini was not happy with
his Act III ending and after the successful Monte Carlo premiere
he could not resist tinkering with it. Both The Washington Opera
and the Torre del Lago productions choose to stage this revision.
In both versions Rambaldo appears in person and attempts to
seduce Magda back to Paris. In the meantime an angry Ruggero
has now learnt of Magda’s deception through an anonymous letter
addressed to him. Ruggero turns on Magda in a rage and curses
her. In Marta Domingo’s Washington production, which includes
newly-discovered music, Magda, in despair, wanders into the
sea and oblivion.
Conclusions
and Recommended Recording
Of the five DVDs, two disappoint and two enchant. One is a fascinating
historic document in mono sound and vision starring the lovely
Rosanna Carteri and
including some imaginative production values. Strange that the
two disappointments – both ugly modern treatments - came from
European opera houses while the two winning ones came from America.
Perhaps bigger American budgets allow more sumptuous productions?
Of the two modern European issues, the Naxos DVD of the production
from the Puccini Festival Opera at Torre del Lago was
quite simply too dreadful to contemplate and frankly I would
prefer to spare readers by not drawing attention to it. The
other from Venice’s La Fenice Opera
was not so bad but it was disappointing; one of my complaints
concerned the nightmarish vision of Bullier’s nightclub - the
setting for Act II - which really disturbs. Surely Puccini envisaged
the 19th century elegance and romance of Bullier’s
chandelier-illuminated ballroom leading out onto lantern-lit,
perfumed gardens. Instead we have a crass mid-20th
century realization: huge neon figures of half-naked dancing
girls and an on-stage VW van dispensing food and drink. To add
to the incongruity the stage is invaded by Vespas and Lambrettas
and men and women looking, for the most part, too old to pass
as students.
Quite the opposite of these awful realisations is the 1998 Washington Opera
production with Ainhoa Arteta as Magda and Marcus Haddock as
Ruggero on a 2009 Decca DVD (074 3335). Sets and costumes are
traditional; Puccini would have approved. As my colleague, Nick
Barnard remarked, “Truly magnificent singing allied to finely
detailed acting in a brilliantly staged production caught on
film with customary alertness to musical and dramatic detail
by Brian Large. I do not find myself returning to my operatic
DVDs very often but this is an exception – an excellent way
of discovering the hidden jewel that is La Rondine.”
Quite so. Just a pity about the dark ending.
The overall winner has to be
the 2009 Metropolitan Opera production with Gheorghiu and Alagna
Ian Lace
