Bernstein's Mass (Novosibirsk Opera House) - go in peace...
Well, it was a gamble - all or nothing. And it certainly was not 'nothing', as no one left the opening night of the Bernstein’s
Mass untouched one way or another. The audience applause was long, although somewhat subdued. It certainly was not any worse, as far as we can tell, than last year’s Adelaide Theatre stage production. The 250-something cast members on stage presented the latest version of the controversial Bernstein creation with a gusto and coherency which certainly has a claim to be one of the best recent full-stage productions.
The opening Simple Song was sung by the Celebrant dressed in casual clothes walking down the main aisle as though he was one with the people and acting as a channel between the people and God. As the curtains opened we were faced with two Maya-like pyramids facing each other which immediately recalled all-too-recent fears of the end of the world. However, in the face of the impending world’s end the people do not draw closer to God, but rather become more arrogant and demanding of their Creator. Precisely this 'vibe' is skillfully passed on to the audience by the singing and the dancing of the street choir. The singing was coached by local jazz singer Soboleva and her work added a certain jazzy note to otherwise mostly classically trained singers. Their pieces were edgy and raw with emotions and the choreography supplied the necessary spectacle. Even though at certain points it reminded of Cabaret or Chicago, it was still witty and well executed by the choir group.
The whole production appeared as one organically knit-whole rather then poorly connected concert pieces thanks to the united Latvian team of stage producers Rēzija Kalniņa and Kristaps Skulte.
The English was almost coherent, taking into account that it’s not commonly used or heard in this part of the world. If there were an ambition to lift the production up to the next level of, say, touring, there would need to be some work done in that area. Having started well with his English, the celebrant drew tired of it in the later half of the performance when 'world', 'word' and 'what' merged into one big 'wart'. Both singers, Alexei Krizhanovskyi and Dmitryi Suslov, gave sound performances both vocally and dramatically. Two very different celebrants, but the same shared brokenness inside, portrayed at the culmination.
The moment of madness in Agnus Dei is performed without the usual anger and the breaking of the Communion vessels and elements. We rather see quite a
disturbed and self-reflective person in the depth of his emptiness, abandonment and rejection by the people he wanted to serve. He is curled up on the floor like a child… helpless… vulnerable… weak… The Epiphany of Jesus, the solo flute (incidentally not too disturbing, as in some previous productions) and the boy soprano solo bring the celebrant and the whole cast back to God. Beautiful and light.
I think we can declare this latest premiere in the Novosibirsk Opera House, inspired and executed by its main conductor Ainars Rubikis, a success!
More photos can be viewed here http://victor-dmitriev.livejournal.com/
Live recording the performance http://paraclassics.com/novosibirsk-leonard-bernstein..