Met Opera: Makeup free Otello in a cold and static world ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

This performance was reviewed in Curzon Cinema, Chelsea through the Met's Live in HD series on October 17th.

Antonenko as Otello (Sara Krulwich/The New York Times)

For the Met's Live in HD series Verdi's Otello launched the 2015 season that isn't located in sunny Cyprus, as the original Shakespearean play depicted, but in a dark and colder island not too far from the northern hemisphere. The production is dedicated to the late Jon Vickers who died this year and his past performance of Otello in 1978. It is also an important production of Otello that gives way to the Met's proud denouncement of the blackface tradition. (More on this later)

Producer and director Bartlett Sher has introduced his first tragic production, having directed at the Met since 2006 with Il barbiere di Siviglia, with a stage concept away from the Moor as an outsider but more on the destructive nature of jealousy taking hold of a captain on an isolated and icy island transgressing to the poisonous words of his ensign Iago. The visual details - sombre colours (grey, brown and black) through Catherine Zuber's 19th century costumes, Luke Hall's sea wave moving projections and Es Devlin's glass palace - create a minimalistic staging that leaves much of the work to conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin, the Met orchestra, soloists and Met chorus to draw in the audience and keep Verdi's opera burning bright until the real tragedy stirs in the final act.

Stage designer Devlin incorporates moving neo-classical, translucent, acrylic boxes which are architectural representations of the psychological complexity of the opera's lead characters, according to Sher, and rightly so considering the narrative unfolds through the malicious and conniving actions of Iago. The visual frostiness and lack of transparency illuminates Shakespeare's words, 'I am not what I am' hinting at the veneer that hides Iago's true demeanour. These visual blocks are cleverly coordinated in Act 3 when Iago and Cassio jokes and teases over a woman Otello believes is his wife and, like a maze, Otello meanders behind these opaque structures, avoiding a collision and being caught eavesdropping on their conversation.

(Courtesy of Met Opera photographer)

Yet as much as the narrative's symbolism is there something is largely missing from this production which is the warmth and sense of humanity in the other characters (apart from Ludovico and Emilia) and the overall staging. The only trace of passion is shown through Desdemona (Sonya Yoncheva) and Otello (Aleksandrs Antonenko); arguably this highlights how everyone else, including Iago, are stuck in a chilling and unfeeling world compared to Desdemona and Otello who relish over their love - the only bit of heat that others envy. This hot romance is depicted through Yoncheva and Antonenko who give a convincing picture of a couple in love. In act I, their distinctive performance in the duet leading to "un baccio" (one kiss) leaves a mark in many viewer's memory - a heartrending scene.

Latvian tenor Antonenko, one of the few tenors who can do justice to the role of Otello, opens his eyes wide and give the audience an enraged, suspicious and angry husband. Vocally he sings within his range, ravishing and poised reaching those top notes as he had effortlessly done before in the role which he has held since 2011 at Opera National in Paris, and as much as some operagoers may be used to seeing him with blackface makeup, this custom, that the media has over advertised, is trivialised, not at all significant to the general effect of the opera. The jealousy of Desdemona and Cassio and duplicity of Iago is much more relevant than the idea of Otello as the Moor in this production. Antonenko delivers the sickness of jealously explicitly and also reveals the softer side of Otello at the very end which the audience pities when he realises he was dupped in to killing his wife. The only down side, however, is despite how vocally sophisticated and intense his voice is, Antonenko doesn't have the appeal of a captain and there is no inkling of an outsider which is subscribed to his character - the major downfall and tragedy of Otello.

(Courtesy of Met Opera Photographer)

Attractive Bulgarian soprano Yoncheva is reassuring in her address of Desdemona, completely true to her husband and innocent. Zuber dresses her in a blood red gown and in white in the final act which separates her from the rest of the cast and chorus. Her voice is strong, romantic and adds interesting depth; together with Antonenko they sing gracefully in the love duet. Her forlorn "Willow song" - knowing she is going to die by the hand of her husband - grabs the hearts of the audience. It is undoubtedly moving and sensitive; here at the Curzon Cinema the audience did not move an inch - you could almost hear a pin drop.

Baritone Željko Lučic looks cool and suave as the evil villain Iago. Lučic gives Otello 'evils', snarls and murmurs when he isn't looking. In a long black leather jacket, he sings powerfully "Credo in un Dio credel" selling the richness of his malcontent and nihilism. Lučic pulls off some vigorous singing in "Sotto Voce" yet remains far removed, and just as cold as every other person on stage excluding the lovers. Exquisite singers; Dimitri Pittas, as Cassio; Günther Groissböck, as Ludovico; and Jennifer Johnson Cano, also deserve their due playing invaluable parts of the stage. Sadly Verdi didn't give them enough Italian words to sing. In spite of the motionless Met Chorus, particularly in the first scene, they were vocally immense as well.

The Met Orchestra and maestro Nézet-Séguin has a lot to offer through high spirited conducting and the spectrum of temperaments from instilling rage, tenderness and innocence. I can only imagine that if I were at the Met I would have felt the volume and electrifying dynamic movement from the orchestra especially the cellos and the brass chords. The attractiveness of this production really stems from the soloists and the musicians in the pit, yet the stage is, for the most, part, static and drags down the sheer gravitas of Verdi's fascinating opera.

Antonenko and Yoncheva  (Ken Howard/Metropolitan Opera via AP)

The "blackface"...

... issue, which has ceased at the Met since the opening night of this production, is a direction that should have taken place decades ago in an ideal world. Last year the ENO also gave the makeup-free role of Otello to Australian tenor Stuart Skelton which signified the ENO's break from tradition. Theatreland abandoned the need for a white actor to makeup their face to play the Moor a long time ago but, then, why did it take opera more time to catch up? 

The tradition has existed since José Cura sung the role in the 1891 Met production and in that time Patrick Stewart had played the lead role in a "photo negative" theatrical performance without makeup and an all-black cast as the Venetians.  Theatre world has been much more experimental with Shakespeare's version of Othello; in this summer's RSC production Iago and Othello were casted by Lucian Msamati and Hugh Quarshie - both black actors. 

Having read Washington Post's summary of interviews with opera singers 'of colour' (Kenneth Kellogg, Soloman Howard, Russell Thomas, Alyson Cambridge, and Deborah Nansteel), who find no offence committed in putting dark makeup on tenors' faces, I have a question mark over their comparison between Otello and Madama Butterfly who, as a geisha, is covered with white makeup. There's a clear difference in that Geishas - Japanese or non-Japanese - are covered in white makeup irrespective of their ethnicity. The character of Otello on the other hand is segregated for his difference of colour in the Shakespearean play which is a trope of Otello which librettist Arrigo Boito and Verdi deliberately transferred to the opera.

However there are other forms of isolation and segregation that can be shown on stage without the need to reference the difference of skin tone. Theatre directors have the grim, challenging and, arguably, fun task of deciding how they stage a production of Othello yet this sense of liberty and artistic license is limited in opera. Why is that? Because it's opera and it requires a first class singer to nail the role of Otello. In fact, the roles of Otello, Iago and Desdemona are among the few of Verdi's most demanding and vocally dramatic roles he had written. Antonenko, as I stated above, is one of the few in the market qualified and vocally suited to the role of Otello. This is demonstrated through his vocal prowess which overshadows the lack of a blackface in this Met production, but then, this leads onto another cloud of problems - the limited scope of singers trained to sing certain roles.

Russell Thomas, in the Washington Post interview, raises the point about opera houses not picking singers within their "locality" and choosing talent from elsewhere e.g. abroad. The removal of a blackfaced Otello underlines other issues in opera where this old art form has only just got rid of an archaic custom and, now, opened a discussion over the competition amongst opera singers all over the country, and the world, for leading roles in opera repertory.

The Met's decision to denounce the blackfaced Otello is just the tip of the iceberg. Directors may simply decide to get rid of a few lines referencing the Moor's coloured skin from Boito's libretto (which would be a huge mistake) or perhaps decide to cast a black tenor to sing Otello - it's been done before. One example is the first black tenor to sing the role of Otello in the UK (Ronald Samm) in the Birmingham Opera Company's 2009 production. Either way, the Met's decision has brought attention to the massive competition amongst opera singers and the decisions casting directors have to make for demanding roles.

Well done Antonenko & @sonyayoncheva! Act 4 was so moving that some viewers sobbed. @CurzonCinemas @MetOpera #MetHD pic.twitter.com/d7H9BfIcpW

— Mary Grace Nguyen (@MaryGNguyen) October 17, 2015

Glyndebourne Live Broadcast: Mozart's Die Entführung aus dem Serail ★★★★

Photo by Richard Hubert Smith for Glyndebourne

Die Entführung aus dem Serail (The Abduction from the Seraglio) (1782) reawakens audiences of Mozart’s genius with some heart-felt arias and a throbbing whirlpool of an overture. He was only 26-years-old when he composed the opera.

Die Entführung is famously known for being criticised by Mozart’s then commissioner, Emperor Joseph II for having ‘too many notes’, and although a comedy opera, its subject isn’t so innocent. Much like Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute), there are misogynistic and racial slurs honing in on Eastern and Western values, particularly the Ottoman Empire so, it’s always interesting to see how directors choose to stage a production.

This year, Glyndebourne has David McVicar directing the opera for their summer programme, which was broadcasted live at cinemas [July 19 ]. At the Gate cinema, Notting Hill, older audiences familiar with the work attended, yet some of them were a little too impatient to see its ending. McVicar’s instruction to include the full singspiel may have been the cause of this, which produced a half play, half opera concoction. One cinema viewer shouted, ‘hurry up!’ during a dialogue between Belmonte and Pedrillo in act I.

In spite of how long the opera was the singspiel didn’t spoil my experience, which, surprisingly, was refreshing. The fine German diction and frivolity between the oafish Osmin (Tobias Kehrer), artful Pedrillo (Brenden Gunnell) and noblemen Belmonte (Edgaras Montvidas) were things to relish about the opera. The merciful efforts from heart-broken Pasha (Franck Saurel) to claim Konstanze’s love (Sally Matthews) were also significant parts of the production.

Photo by Tristram Kenton for The Guardian

 McVicar’s traditional and safe staging seemed to go well with the beautiful score. The overall set was visually pleasing with period costume, green gardens and Ottoman Empire-inspired, lavish interiors for Pasha’s harem, designed by Vicki Mortimer. The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and their period-specific instruments appropriately added a unique touch to the decadent opera with Glyndebourne’s music director Robin Ticciati at the helm. The overture was gutsy and Ticciati conducted with aplomb.

Undoubtedly radiant and sensual was Matthews as our trapped heroine who says one thing but does the other - she allows Pasha to kiss her one second but rejects him in another. Her ability to reach stratospheric notes seemed effortless though it had me thinking, at times, how cruel Mozart was to make sopranos sing such top notes so often and between one another. And because of this, I could hear her straining in ‘Martern aller Arten’, but, resilient as she was, she kept singing until the end.

Montvidas was lyrical as his character’s virtuosity and bass singer, Kehrer sang as an awesome, but nasty Osmin. He soon became a favourite amongst the audience, even though he displayed an evil ogre and less of a comedian. His scene with Mari Eriksmoen, as Blonde, throwing pans and dishes at each other was one of the funniest moments of the opera.

Eriksmoen performed as a crafty and cheeky Blonde, and with Gunnell’s speedy Pedrillo made a cute and hilarious couple on stage, cleverly depicting the social divide with Belmonte and Konstanze’s relationship. 

Despite not having to sing Franck Saurel was a thrill to watch too as the sensitive Pasha. With saucy scenes of a sexual violence, teary eyes, passionately said words and a half naked torso, Saurel was the stuff of great acting.

Thanks to Live broadcast of Glyndebourne audiences can gain insight of Glyndebourne performances, minus the dinner jacket and fascinator.

Die Entführung aus dem Serail is still showing at Glyndebourne until the 10 August. Click her to purchase tickets. They are also going on Tour this autumn so there’ll be another chance to see it at other venues in England – book early to see the production on Tour.

The next cinema Glyndebourne showing is Fiona Shaw’s Rape of Lucretia on the 9^th of August also showing at Gate Cinema, Notting Hill. Click here for Gate Cinema website or here, for other UK cinemas.

Quay Players's Sister Act: The Musical

We are familiar with Whoopi Goldberg and her nunnery antics in the 1992 film comedy, Sister Act. The movie was such a hit with international audiences that it was turned into a musical for both the West End and Broadway stage ten years later. Whoopi Goldberg even had a hand in its creation! Based on Bill and Cheri Steinkellner’s book, Glenn Slater wrote the lyrics with Alan Menken composing the soulful and jazzy music.

Since 2009, the musical has been performed regularly and has succeeding in giving audiences an entertaining evening. Last night [23rd July] was the first night for The Quay Players, the first amateur dramatics group, to perform the musical at Greenwood Theatre, London Bridge. Queues of up to 250 people were forming outside of the theatre, just minutes before the show began.

A strong hold of, up to, thirty ensemble members kept a keen and excited audience waiting but once the spotlights were on, the silly gags, from night club dancers, show time nuns and ‘gay boys’, made the wait worthwhile. 

Sarah Brand directed the musical, which, more or less, follows the same narrative as the film with Latino honey, Catriona Lowe as our diva, Deloris. Her vocal ability seems effortless alongside  her strong stage presence, which engaged the audience from start to finish.

Caroline Smith performed as Mother Superior who gathered much empathy from the audience even though her character is meant to reflect the authority of Maggie Smith’s Reverend Mother. Convincing and heroic, it was hard to see her as an antagonistic force to Deloris’s pursuit as she gave an astounding performance. Their duet ‘Here within these walls’ was one of the many poignant moments of the show.

The baddies and their camp performing were instilled by, no less than, murdering boyfriend, Oliver Mitchell with Scott Topping, Joseph Samuel Cryan and Tom Scambler as Joey, Pablo and TJ. They provided some bizarre, yet nicely paced choreographed dances created by Emma Mitchell. There were also some stripper-like performing too, proving the camp trio could woo the convent sisters, which may sound cheesy but somehow managed to amuse the audience anyway!

The cop, Sweaty Eddie, is a favourite too, suitably performed by Will Strutt with his solo song, ‘I could be That Guy’. The tune has a similar tone to the musical number ‘Cellophane’ from Chicago, but there’s a positive injection of hope with the ensemble ripping off his clothes, twice! It’s also a great opportunity to hear the versatile score to the piece with the musicians in the pit and musical director, Mark Smith at the helm. 

Catherine Bensley as the weedy-nun-turned-stratospheric vocal singer, and Julianne Palmer Mitchell as the crazy, cartwheeling sister, Mary Lazarus deserve worthy praise for their performances as well. Not forgetting smiley Ryan Govin as the golden dressed priest, Monsignor O'Hara.

Much like the film, there’s a lot to be captivated by from the ‘nun on the run’ musical. There are impressive costumes, ornate set designs and props including intricate church stain glass windows that give a fine finish to the production.

   

It's a local production with a few minor directional and stage-related issues that could have been tightened. But, by the end of it, you’ll be tired from laughing and still buzzing from the catchy songs and electric stage energy. You won't get the stuff of a West End based show, but you'll end the night on a high. 

Featured Dancer... Kelly Boylan

Featured Dancer... Sam Hare

Featured Dancer... Katrina Johnson

Featured Dancer... Shona King

Featured Dancer... Sarah O'Malley

Featured Dancer... Eleanor Strutt

Featured Dancer... Katie Underhill

Ensemble... Anil Aksay

Ensemble... Craig Holmes

Ensemble... Mari Booth Spain

Ensemble... Aine Brown

Ensemble... Susan Chandler

Ensemble... Kenneth Cheung

Ensemble... Mandy Dooley

Ensemble... Janice Edgar

Ensemble... Liz Edwards

Ensemble... Alex Finch

Ensemble... Shirley Hayward

Ensemble... Pip Hodson

Ensemble... Katy Holmes

Ensemble... Sandy Holmes

Ensemble... Kim Hooper

Ensemble... Jeanette Hopper

Ensemble... Fergus Kinnon

Ensemble... Darren Knight

Ensemble... Spencer Mitchell

Ensemble... Barry Pavey

Ensemble... Beccy Reese

Ensemble... Agata Rozpedek

Photos courtesy of Quay Players. 

There are three performances left: Tonight and two showings tomorrow - July 25th.

 Click here to get your tickets today!

★★★★ NT LIVE: Everyman

For Rufus Norris’s debut production as the new artistic director at the National Theatre Everyman deserves to be classed as big, bold, eclectic and entirely relevant. For a start its lead character, Everyman is performed by Award Winning Actor, Chiwetel Ejiofor who yanked our heartstrings in the Oscar Winning film, 12 Years A Slave. Secondly, the contemporary and electric coloured set is actually a backdrop for a morality play originally written in the 15^th century. And, on top of that, you have poet laureate, Carol Ann Duffy writing reams of poetry and script for this adapted production. (Norris stated that Duffy began with twenty pages of script, which ended with seventy-two pages for the show.)

I wasn’t there at the National Theatre. Tonight [July 16], I was at the Gate Cinema in Notting Hill with cinema audiences who also enjoy watching live theatre from the comfort of their local cinema. This was the first time I had seen the production and whilst viewing it on the big screen, it seemed to work really well considering the versatility of Ian MacNeil’s brilliant staging and visual elements, not to mention Ejiofor who, we know, looks good on film.

As we see NT audiences get settled in the auditorium, we watch as a cleaning lady sweeps the Olivier theatre stage, yet even before the show has began, we’re unsure if she’s part of the show or a NT staff member. All is confirmed when she turns around, projects her voice and speaks at the audience. Actress, Kate Duchêne, says ‘Enjoy it while it lasts!’ Before we know it’s actually God ranting about the falsehood of man in a dirty apron simultaneously brushing dust off the floor. Yet the quiet is instantly destroyed by an ambush of electro, dub step and high intensity club music.

Everyman celebrates his 40^th birthday with coke, alcohol, debauchery and sin, and whilst this is happening the entire stage looks like a visually intensifying (and amusing) music video. Choreographer and Movement Director, Javier De Frutos adds in the intimate slow-mo, vitality and dynamics to this corrupt scene with a neatly casted team (up-to 22 supporting actors and actresses). 

Courtesy of The Stage/National Theatre

With a pair of rubber gloves and a plastic carrier bag, Irish actor Dermot Crowley makes his entrance as Death, yet don't let the humour and sarcasm fool you - there’s still a glimmer of evil in his eyes. There’s no dark cloak or nightmarish hood to identify him – just a snappy and scary persona that forces Everyman to look back at his life for a meaningful act he had committed. The rest of the show is the hair raising journey Everyman takes.

Everyman goes back to his mother, father, sister, so-called clubbing pals and a load of abstract characters (Vanity, Knowledge and Goods, etc.,) in search of a good deed yet nothing is redeemable, nor attainable. He has a reflective moment when he meets his younger self, Everyboy (played by Jeshaiah Murray) and says to him, ‘You’re so lucky!’’ Through Everyman’s desperation Ejiofor convinces us that we’ve had a few moments asking ourselves similar questions: ‘What have I done?’ or ‘What is my good deed?’ That once, we have doubted ourselves and regretted a thing, or two. 

Yet, with all such brilliant staging and acting, there are scenes that move super fast, from one abstract character to another, that it's hard to keep up with the pace, including the toing and froing from old English and casual slang. In one scene, Everyman is in prayer talking about the Act of Contrition and in another has a revelatory dialogue in plain verse with Vanity about his secular love for credit cards and bling bling. But these tiny blips didn't change how together the message of the play was cleverly delivered.

Duffy, naturally, has a way with words, which shaped the story exquisitely. Paul Arditti also deserves his due as sound designer as well as the ensemble of musicians directed by Williams Lyons. This included interesting instrumentation from a hurdy gurdy, racket, crumhorn, recorder, bagpipes, gittern and many more.

Photo by Richard Hubert Smith

 The encore showing of Everyman NT is on Tuesday 21st at 12pm Gate Cinema and showing at live a National Theatre until August 30th. Click on the links to provide more information and purchase tickets.