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Featured review
Head-scratching
'll Trovatore', as has been said many times before, does have a notoriously convoluted story, and is over the top dramatically, but it is memorable for the character of the gypsy Azucena and for containing one of Verdi's most melodically rich score. Even when the stories are not always great Verdi's music nearly always delivers.
Have seen some great productions of 'Il Trovatore', a primary example being the brilliant 2015 Met production which was not only perfect musically but also solved all the potential problems that the opera has when it comes to being staged. It is an opera that is better served on record though. This Royal Opera House, Covent Garden production is not one of them. Along with their 'Guillaume Tell', it is one of the weaker Royal Opera House Live Cinema transmissions (hugely disappointing after being blown away by the house's 'The Nutcracker' just over a month previously). It is also one of the ugliest productions of 'Il Trovatore' visually and staging-wise it is one of the most puzzling and least compelling.
There is not much here that works, but some things do. The best thing about the production is Anita Rachvelishvili, who may not quite surpass Dolora Zajick as the best Azucena of the past thirty years or so but is truly magnificent in the role. She may be helped by that Azucena is the most interesting and plausible character in 'Il Trovatore', but a lot of it is also to do with that she has a thrilling dark rich sound to her voice and is both formidable and affecting, always riveting dramatically. Not many mezzos nail "Stride La Vampa", Rachvelishvili manages that feat.
Lianna Haroutounian has the nobility, pathos and strength for Leonora and vocally it is some of the best singing personally heard from her, what she may lack in a trill she makes up for a lovely sound that overcomes the hurdles of the role capably ("D'Amor Sull'Alli Rosee" is very deeply felt). Vitaliy Bilyy has some under-powered and coarse moments as Di Luna, mainly in the middle-lower registers in ensembles, but his voice does have a lot of authority and sonority and he really does try to make Di Luna (a pretty unsubtly stock role) more than a villain.
Alexander Tsymbalyuk makes one want to listen to his dark tale, while Francesca Chiejina's Ines is touching and sympathetic and Samuel Sakker's Ruiz is sturdy enough. The male chorus are well blended and commanding and the orchestra do make a real effort to bring out the power and intimacy of the score, though there is a lack of nuance and the tempos don't excite or move.
On the other hand, Gregory Kunde fails to bring heroism or dimension to Manrico and his acting is rather stolid and rudimentary, one can expect it from the 1940s and 1950s but with acting in opera having come on enormously over the years one really does expect so much more. Vocally, he starts off strong but from "Di Quella Pira" onward he sounds taxed, losing the initial ring and becomes strained instead, musicality is not a strong suit with too much of a loud dynamic and phrasing is not so refined. He has very little romantic chemistry with Haroutounian, although just about convincing with Rachvelishvili, and although I do refrain to bring up ages for reviewing opera it is hard not to in this case because Kunde just looks far too old to pass for a romantic lead when he is old enough to be both Haroutounian and Rachvelishvili's father, it really stretches credibility.
Despite the orchestra faring quite well, the conducting is far too routine and frequently lacks energy, thrills and poetry. It is never alert to the drama and rarely accommodates the singers.
Visually and in the stage direction, it's in these areas where this 'Il Trovatore' fails. The production is really ugly visually, it looks cheap and drab constantly and not only distracts from the drama but swamps it (one of opera stage direction's biggest crimes in my opinion). Rarely has costumes in an opera production looked so schlocky. David Bösch's stage direction makes very little attempt to make the drama clearer, character motivations more plausible and more interesting in an opera that despite amazing music really cries out for those things to happen.
Apart from moments in Act 2, it's dull, lacks cohesion and frequently fights against the libretto, any initial attempts made to do any of those things are wasted when there is a real sense of giving up halfway through when things get even more aimless and weirder. Despite good singing, the chorus are over-directed and come over as far too camp.
Overall, has moments, especially Azucena, but unattractive and head-scratching. 4/10 Bethany Cox
Have seen some great productions of 'Il Trovatore', a primary example being the brilliant 2015 Met production which was not only perfect musically but also solved all the potential problems that the opera has when it comes to being staged. It is an opera that is better served on record though. This Royal Opera House, Covent Garden production is not one of them. Along with their 'Guillaume Tell', it is one of the weaker Royal Opera House Live Cinema transmissions (hugely disappointing after being blown away by the house's 'The Nutcracker' just over a month previously). It is also one of the ugliest productions of 'Il Trovatore' visually and staging-wise it is one of the most puzzling and least compelling.
There is not much here that works, but some things do. The best thing about the production is Anita Rachvelishvili, who may not quite surpass Dolora Zajick as the best Azucena of the past thirty years or so but is truly magnificent in the role. She may be helped by that Azucena is the most interesting and plausible character in 'Il Trovatore', but a lot of it is also to do with that she has a thrilling dark rich sound to her voice and is both formidable and affecting, always riveting dramatically. Not many mezzos nail "Stride La Vampa", Rachvelishvili manages that feat.
Lianna Haroutounian has the nobility, pathos and strength for Leonora and vocally it is some of the best singing personally heard from her, what she may lack in a trill she makes up for a lovely sound that overcomes the hurdles of the role capably ("D'Amor Sull'Alli Rosee" is very deeply felt). Vitaliy Bilyy has some under-powered and coarse moments as Di Luna, mainly in the middle-lower registers in ensembles, but his voice does have a lot of authority and sonority and he really does try to make Di Luna (a pretty unsubtly stock role) more than a villain.
Alexander Tsymbalyuk makes one want to listen to his dark tale, while Francesca Chiejina's Ines is touching and sympathetic and Samuel Sakker's Ruiz is sturdy enough. The male chorus are well blended and commanding and the orchestra do make a real effort to bring out the power and intimacy of the score, though there is a lack of nuance and the tempos don't excite or move.
On the other hand, Gregory Kunde fails to bring heroism or dimension to Manrico and his acting is rather stolid and rudimentary, one can expect it from the 1940s and 1950s but with acting in opera having come on enormously over the years one really does expect so much more. Vocally, he starts off strong but from "Di Quella Pira" onward he sounds taxed, losing the initial ring and becomes strained instead, musicality is not a strong suit with too much of a loud dynamic and phrasing is not so refined. He has very little romantic chemistry with Haroutounian, although just about convincing with Rachvelishvili, and although I do refrain to bring up ages for reviewing opera it is hard not to in this case because Kunde just looks far too old to pass for a romantic lead when he is old enough to be both Haroutounian and Rachvelishvili's father, it really stretches credibility.
Despite the orchestra faring quite well, the conducting is far too routine and frequently lacks energy, thrills and poetry. It is never alert to the drama and rarely accommodates the singers.
Visually and in the stage direction, it's in these areas where this 'Il Trovatore' fails. The production is really ugly visually, it looks cheap and drab constantly and not only distracts from the drama but swamps it (one of opera stage direction's biggest crimes in my opinion). Rarely has costumes in an opera production looked so schlocky. David Bösch's stage direction makes very little attempt to make the drama clearer, character motivations more plausible and more interesting in an opera that despite amazing music really cries out for those things to happen.
Apart from moments in Act 2, it's dull, lacks cohesion and frequently fights against the libretto, any initial attempts made to do any of those things are wasted when there is a real sense of giving up halfway through when things get even more aimless and weirder. Despite good singing, the chorus are over-directed and come over as far too camp.
Overall, has moments, especially Azucena, but unattractive and head-scratching. 4/10 Bethany Cox
helpful•10
- TheLittleSongbird
- Oct 23, 2017
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- The Royal Opera: Il trovatore
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross worldwide
- $2,284
- Runtime3 hours
- Color
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What is the English language plot outline for The Royal Opera House: Il trovatore (2017)?
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