Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
L’Enlèvement du sérail (Die Entführung aus dem Serail) K.384. Singspiel in three acts (1782)
Bacha Sélim – Michel Fau (actor); Constance – Florie Valiquette (soprano); Belmont – Mathias Vidal (tenor); Blonde – Gwendoline Blondeel (soprano); Pédrille – Enguerrand de Hys (tenor); Osmin – Nicholas Brooymans (bass)
Choeur & Orchestre de l’Opéra Royal/ Gaétan Jarry
rec. 20/22 May 2024, Opéra Royal du Château de Versailles, France
Includes booklet with text, translation, essays, notes and synopsis in French and English
Sung in French Translation (c 1810) by Pierre-Louis Moline
Château de Versailles Spectacles CVS154 DVD/CDs [DVD: 141; 2 CDs: 133]
This new release from Chateau de Versailles (a DVD/CD combination box) brings with it a fascinating glimpse into the staging effects that were possible during the 18th century. The Opera Royal de Versailles is, like the court opera in Drottningholm, one of those perfectly preserved baroque-era opera houses; ideal for staging opera in the intimate setting that was in effect prior to the late 19th century, when opera house auditoriums began to expand in size. The Versailles house has a backstage network of perfectly preserved and fully functioning stage gadgetry, which has resulted in some impressive and atmospheric photographs on many previous CD releases by this label. This production has an authentic historical feel about it, especially when it comes to the stage designs. Here one can experience an opera produced with old-fashioned painted flats that offer gradual changes in perspective that make a convincing illusion of spaces that will expand and contract as required by the plot, with little fuss or time required to complete it. In this review I will use the German titles and character names as they are more familiar to most readers rather than those of the French translation.
Michel Fau’s production is most successful with regards to the characters of Blonde, Pedrillo and Osmin. When it comes to the love triangle between Konstanze, Belmonte and Pasha Selim, Fau’s direction is less assured and consequently far less enjoyable.
The first singer we hear is Mathias Vidal’s Belmonte, and sadly there is not much to enjoy in Vidal’s assumption of the part. He begins “Hier soll ich dich den sehen” with glaring pitch problems and a pronounced vibrato on any notes above the staff. Both of these conditions improve for him as the performance proceeds but his singing consistently lacks a smooth line, and it often seems effortful. His acting of the role comes across as angry, strained and petulant. Why Konstanze is devoted to this Belmonte is anyone’s guess.
Florie Valiquette delivers an efficiently sung series of showpiece arias. Still, I note that her voice is just a shade too small to make a truly satisfying Konstanze. Once one has heard an aria like “Ach ich Liebte” sung by a voice with more the more fleshed-out tone of a true dramatic coloratura soprano (Margaret Price, or Lenneke Ruiten come to mind) it is hard to accept a soprano leggiero in this role. The director requires that Valiquette spend much of “Marten aller Arten” writhing around on the floor, which is simply embarrassing. It is an aria of protest; of someone standing up to another person and writhing about simply doesn’t fit the situation. In addition, Valiquette is given a rather awkward costume and extremely heavy eye makeup, which gives her an unsettling resemblance to Theda Bara from old silent films. Some things just don’t look good in HD.
Things improve vastly with Gwendoline Blondeel’s sassy and charming Blonde. Her singing is bright, sweet and lively. Her “Welche Wonne, welche Lust!” is simply delightful and she wins points with me for her very tasteful use of appogiatura in the repeats of her arias. In my recent review of Idomeneo on BR Klassik (review) I was most perturbed by the excessive and disfiguring use of appogiatura by some of the cast, in some instances completely rewriting the vocal line to an utterly unrecognizable degree. Thankfully Blondeel does not fall into that quagmire.
Enguerrand De Hys is a consistently amusing Pedrillo. His winning stage presence is just right for Pedrillo. He spends a lot of time on stage before he ever gets to sing a note and he has an impressive ability to remain in character regardless of what is happening on stage. “Frisch zum Kampfe!” tests him to his limit (as it does for most tenors) but he does manage it splendidly.
The discovery on this set is Nicholas Brooymans as Osmin. This handsome young bass is a throwback to wonderful basses from the past like Kurt Moll and René Pape, in their respective primes. Brooymans has a good sense of comic timing and his smooth elegant tone is a balm to one’s ear in these days when one encounters many singers using too heavy a vibrato and not being able to summon sufficient breath support. He has some difficuly (as many basses do) with the lowest notes of “Ha! Will ich triumphieren”. Still his performance here has one keenly anticipating more from this wonderful young singer.
Gaétan Jarry leads a lively and rapid-fire account of Mozart’s score. The string section of the resident Versailles orchestra frequently sounds rather scrawny, eliminating any chance that I will be listening again to the CDs that come in this set in the future.
Mozart in French may sound unfamiliar at times but it is not without its pleasures. Moline’s French translation of the original German libretto was published as early as 1810 and is the version used here. One thing that is noticeable with this cast, and in this venue, is that the words are admirably clear throughout. The sound on the DVD (and CDs) show this to be among the better attempts at recording live in the Opéra Royal. My past experience with recordings from this location has invariably produced unflattering results. For once the voices have a natural spatial feel within the auditorium, yet they never sound distant. The orchestra is similarly well-captured by the engineers. In the video the microphones are clearly visible from behind the conductor, well away from the stage.
There are things about this performance which are worth investigating even if the entire thing is not a complete success. I had much the same reaction to the La Scala Blu-ray of this opera in Giorgio Strehler’s classic production (review). The lighting levels caused some major problems in that video and yet there were a couple of good reasons to persevere through it. Primarily it was because of Lenneke Ruiten’s magnificently full-toned triumph as Konstanze; a stunning achievement that is not really equalled on this DVD.
Mike Parr
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Production details
Stage Director, Michel Fau
Sets : Antoine Fontaine
Costumes: David Belugou by Luciano Damiani, revived by Sybille Ulsamer.
Lighting: JoëlFabing
DVD Technical details
Subtitles: French, English, German
Picture: 16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen
Sound: Dolby Digital 2.0
Region code: NTSC/All regions
