Francesco Cilea (1866-1950)
Gloria, dramma lirico in three acts (1907, revised 1932)
Libretto by Arturo Colautti (1851-1914)
Aquilante de’ Bardi: Ramaz Chikviladze (bass)
Gloria: Anastasia Bartoli (soprano)
Bardo: Franco Vassallo (baritone)
Lionetto de’ Ricci: Carlo Ventre (tenor)
Orchestra e Coro del Teatro Lirico di Cagliari / Francesco Cilluffo
Antonio Albanese (stage direction)
rec. 2023, Teatro Lirico di Cagliari, Italy
Dynamic Blu-ray DYN-58004 [110]
Francesco Cilea’s last opera, first produced in 1907 at La Scala under the baton of Arturo Toscanini, was a dismal failure. It was taken off after just two performances, and Cilea’s much later revision – which we get here – fared no better. One wonders why. After all, Cilea wrote Adriana Lecouvreur and L’arlesiana. I can see a reason. The tunes, the kind people were used to hearing in Italian opera, are either only hinted at or smothered under the elaborate accompaniment. The music is powerful, occasionally tender, but two viewings have left me unmoved.
Here is a detailed synopsis. Briefly, in 15th-century Siena there is a conflict between two powerful clans. Gloria, a young woman, is abducted by Lionetto, a son of the rival family. They fall in love to a background of bloody warfare. Lionetto tries to bring reconciliation by marrying Gloria. He has underestimated the hatred of Bardo, her brother. Bardo fatally stabs Lionetto to avenge his father’s death. In good operatic tradition, Gloria stabs herself and dies.
I feel that melodically the work just does not cut it, but there are lyrical – if unmemorable – arias for Gloria in the first two acts, and a love duet with Lionetto in the last act. The lead tenor role also gets arias and duets in which to shine. Bardo, the avenging brother, has a duet with his sister in the second act, and powerful music in the finale.
The singers vary from good to very good. I would place Carlo Ventri as Lionetto in the first category. His rather ordinary tenor thins at times, but strengthens as he warms up. There is nothing in his voice to put me off, with even production and minimal vibrato. He is not an effective actor, however. He adopts wooden postures, and looks bulky and ungainly in an unflattering costume (it resembles a full-length padded anorak with minimal tacked-on decoration).
Anastasia Bartoli as Gloria fits the picture visually, and has a fine soprano voice which easily encompasses the demands of the role. Her quiet singing in the second-act prayer to the Madonna is very nice indeed, and she copes well with the love duet and the histrionics of the confrontation with her brother. Franco Vassallo as Bardo uses his fine baritone to excellent effect, especially in that confrontation.
The orchestra and chorus are fine, and project the music very well. Conductor Francesco Cilluffo, who contributes an interview to the booklet, clearly believes in the project, and directs his forces with aplomb.
The stage production is modern, effective and mostly believable when one considers the demands of Cilea’s work. I am disappointed only by the absence of a fountain. By virtue of its flow, it represents in the first act the opening up of the city to those who have been expelled. Instead, a large low bench has its front face, no more than half a metre high, exposed to reveal a glass-sided water tank, in which the water half-heartedly bubbles. Excellent use is made of flights of stairs for entrance and exits, and of stone-like benches for occasional seating – redolent of the sort of seating one can see in the remains of Roman amphitheatres.
Other than Lionetto’s ungainly attire, the highly stylised costumes for the smaller roles and the chorus work well. The bishop who officiates at Gloria and Linetto’s marriage wears a suitably pontifical mitre.
The lighting, important for video watching, is very well done, and the sound recording is very good. The booklet in Italian and English has interviews with the conductor and director, and a detailed synopsis.
My reservations aside, this release deserves to sell well. Those interested in the highways and byways of Italian opera will want to watch this recording.
Jim Westhead
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