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Music
by
Giacomo Puccini
Libretto
by
Giuseppi
Giacosa
and Luigi Illica
Orchestra
of the Royal Opera House conducted
by
Nicola Luisotti
Original
production by
Moshe Leiser
and Patrice Caurier
Designed
by
Stephen Barlow
Cio-Cio
San (Butterfly)
Liping Zhang
B. F.
Pinkerton
Andrew Richards
Sharpless
Alan Opie
Suzuki
Elena Cassian
Goro
Martyn Hill
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Royal
Opera House
14 Feb
- 10 March 2007 |
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The
fabulous duet at the end of
Madame
Butterfly's
first act is one of the most
beautiful and moving in all
opera, and scarcely ever fails
to catch the throat even of
hardened opera critics. In
this rendition Andrew Richards
and Liping Zhang produced
the sublimest performance
of that duet that this reviewer
has ever heard; almost unbearably
exquisite in its poignancy
and power, it was a moment
to relish and to be permanently
remembered therefore.
Richards plays a carelessly
arrogant and venal Pinkerton
extremely well, and the transcendent
Liping Zhang as the enchanting,
ingenuous, utterly sincere
eponymous heroine is as if
fashioned by the gods for
this role and especially this
music. Her voice is wonderfully
true and labile, a Puccini
voice, carrying its colours
and its deep freight of emotion
into every corner of a brilliant
range.
Madame
Butterfly
has a remarkable libretto.
Unlike many operas it works
as a piece of theatre in its
own right, with compelling
directness both in the drawing
of character and its narrative
scaffolding. The latter in
particular opens vistas for
the psychology of the tale,
and Puccini's music explores
it with lucidity and a profound
sense of truth, here captured
in the lyricism and strength
of Liping Zhang's marvellous
voice.
From the gardens below the
polyadic Butterfly House in
Nagasaki, where ìun bel diî
plays all day on a loop, the
view really is very like the
way it is shown on the backdrop
of the set - perhaps in reality
the house stands higher, and
there is more to see; but
the set is evocative, and
the design for the moment
of Pinkerton's return captures
the riotous effulgence of
blossom that is Japan's spring.
These touches are masterly;
but it is the stunning performance
of Liping Zhang that resonates
in the mind, together with
the fine direction of Stephen
Barlow.
There was nothing wanting
in the lesser roles. Alan
Opie is Sharpless to the life,
and Goro is the pimp and pander
he should be. Suzuki is an
acting as well as singing
part, requiring full commitment
on the first front, and Elena
Cassian gives it. This is
Covent Garden's current standard
production Butterfly,
which one has seen a number
of times: but this rendition
of it was outstanding, and
effaces the memory of most
of its forerunners - though
earlier appearances by Liping
Zhang on this stage in this
role make very honourable
precedents.
AC
Grayling |
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