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Dying love: Anita Hartig as the fatally ill Mimi in a freezing cold Paris. Pictures: Catherine Ashmore La bohème Welsh National Opera Birmingham Hippodrome ***** PUCCINI'S enduring story of tragic,
doomed love in the Bohemian Paris of the nineteenth century has found a
new heroine in Romanian soprano Anita Hartig as the fated Mimi. She is
just magnificent. She looks young, frail and vulnerable, as she
should as a poor, young, starving seamstress who is dying of
consumption, but her slender frame contains a huge voice which can soar
or whisper with crystal clarity. Her solos and duets were a delight and the
romantic duet O soave fanciulla with Rodolfo, sung by Spanish
tenor Alex Vicens was quite stunning. This is a new production and praise should go
also to experienced West End, RSC and Broadway designer Stephen Brimson
Lewis who provided an effective yet minimal set. A very clever pair of sliding panels provided an
opening to each scene as if through the leaves of a camera shutter. There was also clever use of video projection of
snow, for example and as we first opened on the studio of painter
Marcello and poet Rodolfo a huge, floating rear window was like those
psychedelic light shows of the 60s reflecting an artist's ever-changing
palate. A room was signified by a few sticks of furniture and a stand-alone door, while we knew it was a garret by the view over the rooftops of Paris projected on the back wall; the pavement outside the Café Momus was created by a large table and waiters while the Paris Toll house was signified by a barrier. Rodolfo (Alex Vicens) looks on in despair as Mimi (Anita Hartig) reaches the end of her tragic life A projected blizzard and real snow, real as in stage snow, falling from the flies helped bring a chill to proceedings. There are huge swiveling panels in the wings providing a dull reflection of colour or light when needed or turned to obscurity of not. It is all very simple but remarkably effective in
partnership with clever lighting from Tim Mitchell, another West End,
Broadway and RSC stalwart. They set the scene firmly in Paris and firmly
about the time of Henry Murger's book Scènes de la vie de bohème,
published in 1851 and set in the 1840s, which contained the original
idea for the opera. But opera is about music and story and Welsh National Opera has assembled a cast who can bring both to life. They can sing, and, just as important, they can act and make their characters believable, putting flesh and blood on the voices. Welsh baritone David Kempster is superb as
Marcello, with a powerful voice that can manage a full range of emotions
from fun with his friends, anger and romance with his on-off lover
Musetta - sung with fiery passion by Scottish soprano Kate Valentine -
to anguish and sorrow at the impending death of Mimi. His duets with both Musetta and Mimi blend and balance beautifully, which is not always the case when otherwise fine voices combine. There is also good support from Nottinghamshire born bass David Soar as the philosopher Colline and Welsh Baritone Gary Griffiths as the flamboyant musician Schaunard while Leicestershire born Howard Kirk brought some light relief as the none-too bright landlord with a liking for the ladies. Soar managed one of those magical scenes when he
sang Vecchia zimarra, old coat, as he prepared to pawn his “old
friend” to help buy medicine and pay for a doctor for the dying Mimi. He
sang it quite beautifully I might add. How can anyone possibly get emotional about
saying goodbye to an old, worn great coat? Colline did and so did the
audience in what was a strangely touching moment.
Negotiating t
There are one or two aspects of Annabel Arden's
direction which are a little baffling, such as the drag queens looking
like left overs from a production of Les cage aux folles hanging
around the back of the Café Momus. Perhaps it was to give a flavour of
bohemian life but why a bloke in a monkey mask and check suit, looking
like he is on his way to a Planet of the Apes production of Guys and
Dolls appeared at the café was beyond me. Was it Parpignol the toy
seller in disguise perhaps – who knows? I am sure Toulouse Lautrec or Renoir would have
found time to commit ape men to canvas had they been Latin Quarter
regulars. The Welsh National Opera orchestra, conducted by
Carlo RIzzi, were, as always first class with Rizzi managing to both
accompany the singers with sensitivity and drive the tuneful score
along. La bohème is the fourth most frequently performed
opera in the world, apparently and it is easy to see why. It is not too
long, has a simple easy to follow story, a score full of passion and
melody, a bit of fun, a bit of romance and a nice tragic death to finish
with.
A major new production is an event and this is
one that deserves to have a place in any repertoire – perhaps without
the ape though – for many years to come. Roger Clarke Meanwhile in the what do I know department I am informed by WNO that: "The ‘ape' man was a real act from that time in Paris – a man dressed as a monkey dressed as a man! "In this production they have cast him as Parpignol. We also have Houdini in the café scene and other well-known characters from that time." So there! And **** THIS brand new production of
Puccini's famous opera is beautifully sung and acted by members of the
WNO. It is a triumph for acclaimed director
Annabel Arden, featuring some remarkable yet simple sets, cleverly
revealed by sliding gauze screens, and there is a particularly
convincing snow fall which adds to the chill of the sparse Parisian
garrett studio occupied by poet Rudolfo and his three hard-up pals. Love soon brings warmth to the freezing
studio, however, when artificial flower-maker Mimi knocks on the door
seeking a light for her candle. That leads to the emotional duet Che gelida
manina (Your tiny hand is frozen) and Mi chiamano Mimi (My name is Mimi)
in which Shaun Dixon (Rudolfo) and Giselle Allen (Mimi) sang superbly on
Thursday night. (Alex Vicens and Anita Hartig filled the roles on
Wednesday and Friday. David Kempster excels as painter Marcello,
while Kate Valentine adds colour and style as his on-off girlfriend,
Musetta. As happens in opera, tragedy is lurking,
with Mimi's health failing and a heart-breaking finale sees her die from
consumption. Sung in Italian with English surtitles
helping everyone to follow the story, La boheme benefits from the
quality of the orchestra of the WNO, conducted by Carlo Rizzi Paul Marston
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