a fine bromance
Some of you cher public will no doubt see the pendulum as swinging too far in the other direction, but La Cieca finds this particularly convincing and exciting deptiction of the relationship between Don Giovanni and Leporello a refreshing change of pace after the listless staging of Mozart’s masterpiece currently in the Met’s repertory. The men are Simon Keenlyside and Kyle Ketelsen; they are eventually joined by Veronique Gens as Donna Elvira.
[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/rJ9ZkPBV5-A" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]
Points taken, Gundryggia (or should that be Gunter Ground?) I’m just not sure those absurdist ideas have been taken on board by Bieito (curious to know if you, too, have seen his show from start to finish).
Well, I like the way this has become a chapter-and-verse debate. We’d gone through a rather soggy time, hadn’t we? And I know La Cieca is more than able to hold her own, so to speak.
La Cieca wrote:
And yet, LeonidasLover, I wonder how authentic the “redolence†is — after all, to Mozart’s audience this music sounded (in general terms) like all the music they knew. Back then there was little sense of historical performance practice as we think about it today. All music was played by the same sort of orchestra in the same style, and sung by the same voices. So this idea of hearing the music of Don Giovanni as “quaint†or “old-fashioned†is essentially a modern mistaken notion.”
I thought it worthy to paste from an earlier response…
La Cieca, you’re absolutely right. Mozart wasn’t thinking of redolence at all, just what was there at the time.
In reference to your comment on acting with an apropos nod to Marlon Brando, I couldn’t agree more. Brando was incapable of bullshit “technique,” he just cut through the rot and gave us not acting, but honest “reacting.” So many actors have attempted to replicate him, but the attempt and the insecurity come through. Many actors are “aware” but not really in tune with being natural. One of Brando’s really great performances is in “Reflections In a Golden Eye,” where he takes risks of self-exposure that ring so painfully real, you understand why the movie failed: mass audiences don’t like this kind of scrutiny, and in the 60s, no less.
Based on the discussion here, I feel compelled to buy this Giovanni and see Bieto’s vision in full.
I actually like the concept of this production quite alot, but it’s a perfect example of what drives me crazy about this stuff as well – the music becomes a conduit for a concept, and nothing more. While it’s interesting to see Anna getting f*cked during Non mi dir, how can a singer possibly concentrate on musical attributes while it’s happening? Her wirey tone and rough approximations of the fioritura are beside the point – the singing and the score literally have nothing to do with what’s going on, aside from “oh look, he’s pounding her during the stacatti”. Opera isn’t theatre – it’s a theatrical musical performance, and in oh-so-many of these interpretations, the music is non-existent, as it is here.
the singing and the score literally have nothing to do with what’s going on, aside from “oh look, he’s pounding her during the stacattiâ€.
See, I think you are exactly wrong. The point of the scene is that Ottavio wants Anna to put her father’s death behind her and to respond to him emotionally. She is willing go so far as to say, “Perhaps Heaven will one day take pity on me.” Bieito’s staging has Ottavio trying to force a response out of Anna by mounting her roughly. She wants to have sex with him but she cannot become aroused and eventually Ottavio’s humping becomes uncomfortable and even painful to her. The brilliant roulades are interpreted as stylized whimpers.
Not to create a false dichotomy here, but isn’t so specific an interpretation (whether you agree with it or not) a better choice than the generalized stand-and-sing business you get from 99% of Annas who look like they’re doing a concert version of “The Italian Street Song?”
I can appreciate your interpretation of the events in this scene, but I think it’s a huge stretch to get ” Bieito’s staging has Ottavio trying to force a response out of Anna by mounting her roughly. She wants to have sex with him but she cannot become aroused and eventually Ottavio’s humping becomes uncomfortable and even painful to her. The brilliant roulades are interpreted as stylized whimpers” out of whats happening on stage. but whatever, we agree to disagree there. I’m more concerned that due to all of these shenanigans, the vocal line and musical integrity of the aria are being badly abused, and it doesn’t matter – she sings it badly, but if she were singing it perfectly, it would be completely beside the point, and would add nothing to whats going on. That’s a huge problem in an opera.
Oh, and just to answer your question Cieca – absolutely – I love a definite theatrical POV, whether I agree with it or not, and this entire production obviously has one, which is great. I just wish that the music/vocal performance weren’t getting such short shrift in the middle of it.
Well, then we can agree to disagree. I think the staging adds enormously to “what is going on” and for that matter the soprano sings the piece better than most recent interpreters.
And naturally if you start from the position that the staging is “shenanigans” you don’t leave yourself much room to be convinced, no matter how well or how poorly the ideas are executed.
Regie- funny that you should mention old posters under new names *has his suspicions*
armerjacquino: La Cieca’s policy on new names is based on the spirit of the following verse:
re ; “old posters under new names”
not entirely inappropriate to have a couple of “maskers” on a Don Giovanni thread, either