Sunday, December 02, 2012

Adés' The Tempest




Well, that was a ride and a half.

Seriously, this is one of those operas that takes you, immerses you in its world, and when you come out to the day to day world, you are left thinking, can I go back? That world is much more vital and alive. Not that I would mind you, its just that this is the power of this work, the music, the staging and the performers come together in a complete whole that leaves the natural world seem dull in comparison. Then again, this does seem appropriate for a story with such fantastical elements in it. A storm that is conjured up to wreck a boat and shipwreck the Neapolitan Court on the very island that the man who was deposed by them lives with his daughter? From round one, the story asks you to suspend disbelief. And that does not let up until the end. The fact that we do, says all you need to know about this production. It really does work from go to wow, leaving you feeling you have seen Something Special.

But why? Well, I suspect the music has a lot to do with it. Thomas Adés's music is every thing you could hope for. It ranges from the ferocious for the storm at the start, to just plain gorgeous when the lovers unit, with lyrical, singable lines throughout, unless you are of course Ariel, but more about that later. The music also totally reflects the characters too. The young lovers get beautiful long lines to convey their feelings, Prospero and the other leading court figures tend to be exclamatory, as people used to getting their own way. The chorus tend to spend their time setting mood, not getting big sings, but singing snippets of text that convey how they are feeling.

Oh yes, the text. This was the only weak point in the whole show. Seriously, so many freaking rhyming couplets? Was that REALLY necessary? I mean, I get that having a libretto in verse would make setting it easier for some composers, bringing out an innate music to the language. And, that, Adés has achieved in spades, but, do we really need the continuous rhymes? I suspect if I was not paying attention to them with the subtitles, I would not have noticed, but with some characters it was needed (e.g. Ariel), while others it was not.

Speaking of which, the performers. Really, there were no week links here. (as you would hope with The Met) If all operas were as well cast as this was, I would be a very happy boy. But they are not, so I am going to single out a handful.

First of all, there is no escaping the magisterial performance of Simon Keenleyside as Prospero. He strides the stage overseeing all the action, when he is not taking part in it. Frequently he can not be seen by the performers, but only by the audience, but he makes it work. This is a performance that would make him a star, if he was not already. The man cannot sing a note wrong in this. Then again, it was written with him in mind. It needs a singer who can act without singing, while still being able to sing up a storm on demand. The only person I have heard live I would trust in it would be Teddy Tahu Rhodes, purely because he is that sort of stage animal.

As for Ariel the spirit, well, Audrey Luna is something freaky, in a good way. The writing for the role reflects that Ariel is a creature of the air. Written for a coloratura, this role sends the singer way into the stratosphere vocally, and well beyond what would normally be considered usable. This helps to create the idea of Ariel as not of the normal world. Her line is frequently spiky, reflecting the fact that while she is controlled by Prospero, she is a character who exists beyond that also, and chafes against the restrictions, and longs to be free. It works very well.

On the other hand, Caliban, the other "other than human character" is much more earthbound. His music is more lyrical and human, yet he is clearly not. As played by Alan Oke, he is a tortured creature longing to regain his birthright, as ruler of the island. He also longs to marry Miranda, but when she rejects him near the end, saying basically "look at you, its unthinkable" we realise no one sees him as human, even if we are not sure what he is.

As the two lovers, Alek Shrader and Isabel Leonard sing beautiful music beautifully. They convincingly play the lovers who meet and fall in love after meeting. That we can believe this easily is helped by them being film star gorgeous, and with voices to match. The duet they sing just before the interval is in many ways the heart of this piece. It demonstrates the power of love to overcome all, even the power of Prospero and Ariel's magic, freeing Ferdinand from his prison.










But, ultimately, like any opera, this stands or falls on the quality of the performances. And in this case it really does stand tall. And proud. And, I loved every second.


 

 




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