SEEN AND HEARD INTERNATIONAL

Bizet: Carmen : Teatro dell’Opera di Roma  Conductor: Alain Lombard  17.6. 2008 ( BM)

Rain in Rome towards the end of June is virtually unheard of, but everything else about this evening was steeped in italianità, beginning with the charming young Roman woman who tricked me into giving her my extra ticket rather than selling it to her (she did it so nicely, though, that I decided not to mind…). This was a big night for the Teatro dell’Opera, not only the opening night of this season’s last production, but also Andrea Bocelli’s much-discussed double debut, at Rome Opera as well as in the role of Don José. The press packet handed to me included a list of VIPs present among the audience – not many of which meant much to a non-resident of Italy, but Versace definitely rang a bell  – and champagne was served in the foyer as the audience waited for the performance to begin.

Bocelli did well, managing an engaging stage presence despite his visual disability - which  is never mentioned, although I mean no disrespect, on the contrary! - which was only really noticeable during one long poignant moment when he groped for Carmen’s flower. The boos from a handful of hecklers after “La fleur que tu m’avais jetée” seemed uncalled for. His has most certainly not been a traditional operatic career, but if one puts aside prejudices against pop vocalists for a minute and listens, there is a rich dark timbre to his voice and the top notes are usually there, except for when his lack of technique leaves him in the lurch every so often. Moreover, much worse has been heard in terms of tenors on the stage of this opera house. And besides, this evening was not his anyway: it  belonged to Ildiko Komlosi’s Carmen. When she launched into the Habanera, it was almost as if one were hearing it for the first time. Her stupendous mezzo is in complete control of a sheer panoply of nuances, so subtle and fiery that it was easy to see how Don José could fall for her on the strength of that voice alone. Which is not to say that she isn’t a handsome woman – in short, opera-lovers who haven’t heard this marvelous Hungarian artist now definitely have something to put on their to-do-list.

The rest were fairly non-descript, Natale de Carolis’ Escamillo a bit disappointing in the lower range, Daniela Schillaci a piercing Frasquita and Maria Carola’s Micaela had noticeable pitch problems, which was unfortunate.

In the program notes, director Pier’Alli elaborates on his basic instinct meets fatal attraction concept, which is fine, but iy was not conveyed very strongly despite all the video effects he included. Perhaps he should have left the sets and costumes to someone else, since these were fairly drab, presumably in order to bring out the red of the Toreros and Carmen’s rose.

Fortunately, the orchestra under Alain Lombard was excellent throughout, as were the chorus, so that it was not just Komlosi who made me hang in there till the bitter end, despite three very long intervals.

(P.S. While all of this was going on, Italy beat France and moved on to the quarter finals of this summer’s European Football Cup, as became obvious the minute we emerged from the theater and hit the streets. What a night!)

Bettina Mara

Picture © Corrado Maria Falsini

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