Tuesday, March 23, 2004

Montpellier, Traetta Antigona

Christophe Rousset and Les Talens Lyriques are frequent visitors to the Opéra National de Montpellier. A concert performance and subsequent recording of Tommaso Traetta's Antigona have now been followed by a staging with Maria Bayo still in the title role. Rousset is here betrayed by his collaborators, the production by Eric Vigner being one of the most inept I have seen recently, blame that must be shared with the sets credited to the Parisian graphic designers M/M (but what then is the meaning of Vigner also being credited with the "scénographie"?) and costumes by Paul Quenson. Vigner and Rousset chose to ignore the happy ending proposed by the compozer and his librettists, while Vigner's decision to have Polynices and Eteocles onstage throughout resulted in some risible moments. Maria Bayo knows how to husband her resources in order to get through such a dramatic role, her stage presence helping enormously. Laura Polverelli (Emone) may not have the velvet she once possessed, but compensates with a heightened sense of drama. Marina Comparato (Ismene) has little to do but be sympathetic and sing well, her bright mezzo meeting the requirements with no difficulty. The two tenors posed some problems. Kobie van Rensburg (Creonte) was announced as indisposed, but offered more polished singing after the announcement was made, while John McVeigh (Adraste) seemed to have some problems summoning up the weight for his more dramatic utterances. Was it truly impossible for Rousset to veto some of the producer's more implausible directions, and at the same time insist that the designer head back to the drawing board, for his conducting and Bayo's performance offered the sole drama in evidence at the performance.

Joel Kasow, Culture Kiosque