A simple opera review may be largely positive - despite the soprano failing to sing her most important high notes adequately. But more needs to be said (see below).
On this opening night none of the singers seemed quite right for their
respective jobs, most notably Cio-cio-san.
Ms Voulgaridou simply does not have the top notes for this role. She also clipped the final notes of Vissi
d’arte in last year’s Tosca when she stood in at short notice. Few dramatic sopranos have the optional but
enormously exciting D flat at the end of Butterfly’s entrance. But to clip the final note of the love duet
ending the same act (and a related melodic line) is unacceptable. The tenor, Mr Egglestone, continued singing
his notes long after the soprano’s voice had expired. Even more disappointing was the ending of ‘Un
bel di’ (One fine day) when Ms Voulgaridou simply ‘sqeaked’ a final note,
standing arms extended for the remainder of the orchestral ending looking like
a statue waiting for the applause (which came in polite abundance). To give her credit, the singing was mostly
tasteful, strong and effective. One pianissimo
high note after the flower scene in Act 2 was particularly impressive. Her death scene was also creditable. But was she playing a geisha or was she
playing herself? I have still never
worked out why Cio-cio-san is called Madama and not Mademoiselle/a. Was she betrothed to another before the age
of 15?
Mr Egglestone had all the notes for this American ‘cad’ role … as did Mr
Honeyman playing the US consul in Nagasaki.
Yet neither seemed to be truly comfortable in their parts and at times I
wondered if they actually knew what words they were singing. Sian Pendry as Suzuki was excellent.
An honest reviewer needs to put a tolerable performance into
context. Why are we hearing this
production of Butterfly yet again? And
why the fine production of Tosca by John Bell again after just 18 months? And why is Tosca using three overseas
principal artists and a foreign conductor, aged 28? And why repeats of La Boheme and Magic Flute
in the same month as Butterfly and Tosca?
Could it be symptomatic of an “opera” company which is now run by
business people and not opera lovers?
These reprises are obviously a survival policy of pushing wholesale
performances of popular operas and musicals.
And such merciless recycling contrasts with decades of serious and
varied opera repertoire using largely local talent, supplemented with the world’s
best overseas singers, conductors and directors. No more.
For the first ‘novelty’ of the season we look forward to Faust in three
weeks. Yet that opera’s very popularity
once caused a New York reviewer to rename the Met the “Faustspeilhaus”! A revival of Don Carlo by Verdi is also due
in the winter season. But that does not
constitute a “season” by historical standards and will not interest regular
subscribers, most of whom have either dropped out or must be thinking of so
doing.
An examination of the company’s calendar reveals their destructive
policy of major roles being sung with only one day’s break (eg. Tuesday,
Thursday and Saturday) contrary to the long standing practice of two ‘lay days’
between ‘big sings’. I note Ms
Voulgaridou sings on several occasions with only one day’s break. This is a very dangerous and slippery
slope. The management is risking the
voices of their singers, quite contrary to their mandate for funding from the
Australia Council to nurture such talent.
Several of the members of management are singers themselves who must
know better but have chosen to look the other way. On at least two occasions this season the
same opera is performed on successive days, a very risky practice, unless there
are two understudies for the major roles.
Rather than carefully husbanding its own stable of artists as in the
past, the national company now seems to use dial-a-singer. This is far from the days when it
employed over 100 full time artists. I
have been told that they no longer employ any great number of singers (if any)
on a full time basis.
On another note, there were dozens of opera company staff and family in
the theatre on opening night. One
wonders if the company pays fringe benefit tax on all of those free tickets
(and in some cases, programs and interval drinks). For its first 40 years this company’s opening
nights were virtually always sold-out and free tickets were unheard of except
for dress rehearsals.
This season we will have had three opening nights in a row on a
Tuesday. Tenor Denis O’Neill used to say
that he far preferred Friday and Saturday openings. Few country patrons can make it mid-week
while others in pressured city jobs may also be detained by the work-a-day
week.
Although this company performed the Ring operas in Melbourne one wonders
when they might perform a Wagner opera in Sydney … or Puccini’s Trittico … a
Czech opera … or any number of diverse masterpieces from the serious and
profound repertory of the opera world starting in 1597 in Florence. I have only been once, but I strongly
recommend Pinchgut Opera.
Notes by Andrew Byrne ..
