Don Carlo
Verdi's Don Carlo is a very long (over 4 1/2 hours with the intervals), dense, difficult piece set in Spain during the reign of Philip II. It places extreme demands on the four principal singers and that probably explains why it isn't performed very often. The Met version is a co-production with the Royal Opera and, with a somewhat different cast, was broadcast by the BBC in November 2009 and is now available on DVD.
The plot is fairly contrived and, honestly is best not thought about too hard by anybody with a decent grasp of early modern European history. Better to take Verdi's characters on their own terms and let it go. Anyway, here's the synopsis. Basically, it's Verdi's fairly standard love vs. duty motif with a big dose of "happiness in this world is a vain hope" with burning heretics, the Spanish Inquisition and the ghost of Charles V thrown in for colour.
Musically it's very much late Verdi with relatively few set piece arias and fewer early Verdi style choruses. There are a lot of very complex (and very loud) ensemble numbers that must be extremely demanding for the singers.
The production was really well done (Nicholas Hytner). It's a straightforward period setting with rather monochrome sets that are impressionistic rather than strictly realistic. The monastery with Charles' tomb is very well done as is the rather gruesome heretic burning in Act 3.
The performance was exemplary I think. Roberto Alagna, as Don Carlo, carries a lot of the burden. He is on stage a lot and has a ton of music to get through. He managed a suitably heroic tone throughout though perhaps without getting a whole lot of emotional depth out of the character (it's not clear that there is any to get but having just heard his brilliant Faust I was hoping...). Ferruccio Furlanetto could hardly be bettered as the unpleasant and tormented Philip. Elizabeth de Valois was sung by Marina Poplovskaya who was excellent and once again showed what a fine singing actress she is. Her part has some real emotional depth and she extracted it to the full. The most complex character is probably Rodrigo, Marquis of Posa; confidant of the king, best friend to Don Carlo, secret leader of the Flanders rebels. This production was fortunate enough to have the splendid Simon Keenleyside in the role and he was as good as ever; vocally assured and acting with real depth and subtlety. Irina Smirnova, as Princess Eboli, and Eric Halfvarson, as the Grand Inquisitor(*) played their roles more than adequately. Yannick Nézet-Séguin was in the pit and further enhanced his reputation as a coming man.
The broadcast was free of technical glitches but I do feel this was probably one that was better seen in the opera house. The HD broadcasts seem to work better for fairly light, lyrical works and struggle visually and sonically with the grander pieces. Personally I think this could be improved by moving back a bit both visually and aurally. Close camera work and close miking just don't work too well when six soloists and the chorus are belting out fortissimo and the brass section is in full cry. So, all in all, it was enjoyable and well worth seeing but not as emotionally engaging as the best of the broadcasts I've seen.
(*)It's hard to do 16th century doublet and hose drama without evoking Blackadder to some extent but it must be said that Halfvarson's Grand Inquisitor is rather reminiscent of the baby eating bishop of Bath and Wells. Anyone planning on watching the Covent Garden version should be aware that Don Carlo is sung by Rolando Villazon which just ups the Atkinson factor.
The plot is fairly contrived and, honestly is best not thought about too hard by anybody with a decent grasp of early modern European history. Better to take Verdi's characters on their own terms and let it go. Anyway, here's the synopsis. Basically, it's Verdi's fairly standard love vs. duty motif with a big dose of "happiness in this world is a vain hope" with burning heretics, the Spanish Inquisition and the ghost of Charles V thrown in for colour.
Musically it's very much late Verdi with relatively few set piece arias and fewer early Verdi style choruses. There are a lot of very complex (and very loud) ensemble numbers that must be extremely demanding for the singers.
The production was really well done (Nicholas Hytner). It's a straightforward period setting with rather monochrome sets that are impressionistic rather than strictly realistic. The monastery with Charles' tomb is very well done as is the rather gruesome heretic burning in Act 3.
The performance was exemplary I think. Roberto Alagna, as Don Carlo, carries a lot of the burden. He is on stage a lot and has a ton of music to get through. He managed a suitably heroic tone throughout though perhaps without getting a whole lot of emotional depth out of the character (it's not clear that there is any to get but having just heard his brilliant Faust I was hoping...). Ferruccio Furlanetto could hardly be bettered as the unpleasant and tormented Philip. Elizabeth de Valois was sung by Marina Poplovskaya who was excellent and once again showed what a fine singing actress she is. Her part has some real emotional depth and she extracted it to the full. The most complex character is probably Rodrigo, Marquis of Posa; confidant of the king, best friend to Don Carlo, secret leader of the Flanders rebels. This production was fortunate enough to have the splendid Simon Keenleyside in the role and he was as good as ever; vocally assured and acting with real depth and subtlety. Irina Smirnova, as Princess Eboli, and Eric Halfvarson, as the Grand Inquisitor(*) played their roles more than adequately. Yannick Nézet-Séguin was in the pit and further enhanced his reputation as a coming man.
The broadcast was free of technical glitches but I do feel this was probably one that was better seen in the opera house. The HD broadcasts seem to work better for fairly light, lyrical works and struggle visually and sonically with the grander pieces. Personally I think this could be improved by moving back a bit both visually and aurally. Close camera work and close miking just don't work too well when six soloists and the chorus are belting out fortissimo and the brass section is in full cry. So, all in all, it was enjoyable and well worth seeing but not as emotionally engaging as the best of the broadcasts I've seen.
(*)It's hard to do 16th century doublet and hose drama without evoking Blackadder to some extent but it must be said that Halfvarson's Grand Inquisitor is rather reminiscent of the baby eating bishop of Bath and Wells. Anyone planning on watching the Covent Garden version should be aware that Don Carlo is sung by Rolando Villazon which just ups the Atkinson factor.