CommentDec06 - Page: 1 of 1

As this edition of OperaOnline.us goes to press, we await audience reaction in Berlin to Deutsche Oper’s rendition of Mozart’s 225-year old opera “Idomeneo.” As readers are probably aware, the opera was originally cancelled when police reported anonymous threats to the opera house and its audience if a scene, added by director Hans Neuenfels, depicting the severed heads of Jesus, Muhammad, Buddha and Neptune, were included. It was the severed head of Muhammad that triggered anger from a segment of the Muslim community. The opera company responded by canceling the show, mindful, no doubt, of the riots that occurred when a Danish newspaper merely published a cartoon of Muhammad. What in the world would happen if the opera depicted Muhammad’s head severed from the body in a derogatory statement about religion in general?

As noted in a previous Commentary, in the original opera, only Neptune’s head is severed. Here, Mr. Neuenfels wanted to make a broader statement against organized religion and so he added the others. That neither Mozart nor his librettist Gianbattista Varesco made this broader statement is apparently irrelevant to this director.

Nonetheless, the performances are scheduled for December 18 and 29. Whether extremists follow through with their threat is, as of this writing, only speculative, and since we commented on this controversy in October, “Shame on Deutsche Oper”, there’s no need to rehash what was said there again, with the exception of what we are about say regarding artistic expression.

When, in the name of modernizing or updating an opera, a director attempts to impose on the audience his or her own personal beliefs, prejudices or biases, and does so by adding to the libretto something that was not originally there, a company has the duty to step in, exercise its own right of free speech and artistic expression and say, no, not in this forum! In this context, the director is not the only one with a right of artistic expression; that right also exists for a company, for it is the company’s forum that a director seeks to use to tell another’s story. We wrote, “Shame on Deutsche Oper” in October; and we say, “Shame” again for buckling in to a director’s mean-spirited bias. The director, in this case, is not God; he only thinks he is.

By Carie J. Delmar
OperaOnline.us

There were two news stories on Nov. 7 -- the election, and the announcement that on Nov. 8, six acclaimed singers from the Metropolitan Opera’s new production of “Il Barbiere di Siviglia” would be performing the Act 1 finale sequence on “David Letterman.” I figured that Letterman would begin with his usual opening monologue and that the Met would take center stage at about midnight, which is the time I turned on my television set. Instead, I watched an enjoyable conversation between Letterman and actor Dustin Hoffman, and then I saw chef Jamie Oliver whip up an Italian dish that was supposed to leave my mouth watering for spaghetti alla carbonara.

“Could I have missed the Met?” I wondered. After all, I hadn’t turned on my television set until midnight. I was under the impression that the singers were going to perform the final Act 1 scene in its entirety -- fully staged and in costume with a reduced Met chorus and 22-member orchestra.

No! I hadn’t missed anything. Letterman presented the Met during the program’s final moments. I don’t recall that he mentioned any of the singers’ names, but simply lumped them all together as representing the Metropolitan Opera. And they only sang for about three minutes -- in costume and lined up horizontally behind microphones.

I was appalled. Here were six great singers singing the “mayhem” scene at the end of Act 1 without any movement. The scene seemed like it had been plucked out of context. The performers appeared and sounded like they were giving stereotypical performances of what the general public thinks opera is supposed to be, and they seemed terribly out of place and uncomfortable in the process.

One might say that Letterman, who was quoted as having said that he is an opera fan, was doing the Met a service by enabling the company to preview a scene from the production a few days before its opening. The publicity might have meant additional ticket sales. After all, Peter Gelb, the Met’s new general manager, has been president of CAMI Video, received six Emmy Awards, and has produced Metropolitan Opera television shows and radio broadcasts in the past. He understands the importance of on-air publicity. I assume that the selection performed was approved by Gelb beforehand, after he was given the time constraints, and I assume that Letterman was trying to be considerate of his very general audience by giving these great singers three minutes of performance time at roughly 12:30 a.m., which doesn’t say much for the significance of culture in the United States. But then music programs have been so drastically cut in American public schools that what should have I expected?

What an affront to Juan Diego Flórez, Diana Damrau, Peter Mattei, John Del Carlo, Samuel Ramey and Wendy White. They aren’t choristers. They are great artists, yet the chef received more individual attention than they did. Mattei was the cover story in last month’s issue of “Opera News.” He sang Count Almaviva in the Met’s 2002 production of “Le Nozze di Figaro.” Florez has sung leading roles at La Scala and the Wiener Staatsoper. Damrau performed the title role in Salieri’s “L’Europa riconosciuta” under the baton of Riccardo Muti for the reopening of La Scala in 2004. She has sung at the Wiener Staatsoper and at the Salzburg Festivals. White and Del Carlo have been singing at the Met for years, and Ramey has sung every role from Don Giovanni to Boris Godunov all over the world. He is a highly acclaimed bass and operatic star.

Three minutes for a lineup like this – I find that simply appalling. Is this the way to draw in a younger audience? I think not. The singers looked and sounded like old-time opera singers. A few enticing arias might have been more alluring selections, like Figaro’s “Largo al factotum della città,” Rosina’s “Una voce poco fa,” Don Basilio’s “La calunnia è un venticello” or Dr. Bartolo’s “A un dottor della mia sorte.” But each of the arias would have required more than three minutes. Maybe Gelb should have waited until Letterman could have offered him more.

Gelb is at the helm of forging a path for the Met in today’s technological world by spearheading live opera broadcasts into movie theaters, onto the Sirius Satellite Radio station’s Metropolitan Opera Channel 85, and to the Metropolitan Opera website -- but he missed the boat on this one.

Letterman’s intentions were indeed honorable; however the manner in which opera was presented on his program seemed counterproductive. If I had been a young person who knew nothing more about opera than that it was melodramatic loud singing, had I tuned into the “Late Show with David Letterman” on Nov. 8, the performance would have simply reinforced my stereotypical opinion.

A better selection, more time, and a closer look at each of the dynamic artists would have made for a much more satisfying experience. Maybe next time.