By Dave
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sGir07KhVY
Available until: 13th June 2021
Sometimes it’s not obvious which productions were filmed during the pandemic. There are no masks in sight and if the cast are in a bubble, there’s no social distancing. Even if social distancing is considered necessary, it’s often worked around so skilfully, you probably wouldn’t guess it was filmed in the pandemic if you didn’t know.
In this production of Werther it’s immediately obvious. The conductor is wearing a mask. The string players were wearing masks (though not the wind players – that would be impossible). This was clearly a pandemic production and I wondered how that would affect the production.
In terms of what was actually staged, it didn’t affect the production very much at all. Although Werther and Charlotte are physically separated in a rather bizarre final scene (probably a very clever scene that went completely over my head), the production does not have social distancing. The characters go close to each other and even touch. Very few things really betray this as a pandemic production: just the masks in the orchestra pit and curtain calls, and the long silence at the end.
It seems wrong to be too critical. It’s great they’ve managed to put on a production in the pandemic and it’s very generous of them to make it available for free for six months. If it was available just for a week or if you had to pay to watch it, that would have been totally reasonable but they’ve done so much more and you’ve really got to acknowledge that, the work that’s gone into the production and their generosity.
Werther definitely has a beautiful score by Massenet and conductor Francesco Pasqualetti and his orchestra, I Pomeriggi Musicali, really show this. The masks don’t appear to hinder the string players either physically or emotionally. Their playing is still brilliant and although conducting is very physical, it doesn’t seem as though Francesco was hindered either.
If the opera did seem a bit static and lacking in feeling, that is completely understandable. Other opera companies have managed to produce operas which are full of energy despite an empty auditorium and although Werther seems to be the exception rather than the rule, this pandemic has taken its toll on all of us and if the cast of Werther were unable to give more than they did, they can’t really be blamed for that and it was good of them to take to the stage at all.
But it’s possible that director Stefano Vizioli might have intended to create quite a cold production and Emanuele Sinisi’s sets do suggest this could be the case. Although Vincenzo Raponi’s lighting does bring different colours to the stage, there are a lot of shadows and darkness. It actually looks great and it’s a good suggestion of what’s to come (I’m not telling you the ending but love triangles usually end badly for somebody) and maybe the performances are intended to mirror this too. If so, it’s a clever idea, if a risky one. You don’t want to be in a situation where the audience don’t care.
It definitely wasn’t the case that I didn’t care, the emotions just seem a bit more muted than usual. Gillen Munguia sings stunningly as Werther and if some of the looks he gives Charlotte are more puppy dog than tragic hero, that was actually really sweet. Karina Demurova’s light mezzo is ideal for Charlotte though she seems understandably depressed about being engaged – and later married – to one guy while she prefers another.
Maria Rita Combattelli brings a bit of lightness and energy into the opera as Sophie. Guido Dazzini’s Albert might not be Charlotte’s type but he sings very nicely and is maybe one of the least miserable ones. Filippo Rotondo’s surname suits his wonderful bass voice in the role of Le Bailli, father to Charlotte and Sophie.
The production is a bit on the depressing side but that’s definitely not the same thing as being bad.
Aashiq says – and I take no responsibility for this - if
Werther sent Charlotte a love poem he’d written, you could you call it a
Werther’s Original.
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