Faust opens ROH's 2011/12 season with a bang!

Photo by: Tristram Kenton

Dear fab friends,

How frightening yet exciting to see a one hell of a cast - Angela Gheorghiu, Vittorio Grigolo, Dmitri Hvorostovsky and René Pape- for the Royal Opera House's latest production of Gounod's Faust. Oftentimes, such fabulous line-up could end up disappointing high expectations, but this proved certainly not the case.

Let me start with Vittorio Grigolo in the title role, who is said to be the new white hope among the young Italian tenors. Grigolo indeed oozes with irresistible charm (did I say Gigolo?). Being Faust is vocally demanding, yet Grigolo displayed with eagerness (perhaps too much in some occasions) his powerful middle-voice. Furthermore, he showed an expressive and rejuvenated Faust who's overwhelmed with the thrill, excitement and passion of being young (again).

Angela Gheorghiu plays the beautiful and innocent Marguerite, a role she also played in 2004. To be honest, I had high expectations from the famous Romanian soprano, but this prima donna came not without faults, delivering an underpowered start and sadly faltering in the "Jewel Song" (perhaps she was too distracted by the glittering jewels inside the box?). Thankfully, she recovered and found her ground in the second half. Apart from this, Gheorghiu was sympathetic throughout as Marguerite.

Dmitri Hvorostovsky as Marguerite's brother, Valentin, is a pure delight. His arias are big with precise technical control. Not only has he to sing and act, but danced too in a ballet scene! His death scene is superbly dramatic and gripping.

The most impressive is René Pape as Méphistophéles. His booming bass vocals have demonic powers on their own, so to speak. His presence is not the frightening sort, but enticing and mesmerizing. I particularly liked the part in Scene IV when the “sculpture” in the church turns out to be Méphistophélès himself in a marble-coloured cape.

One thing to note about Gounod's Faust is that this is an opera ballet. Ballet was a compulsory feature of all operas at the Paris Opera between 1830-1870s. It is in the fifth act during the Walpurgis Night that a diabolic ballet ensues. In this production, seductive ballerinas (or "witches") have an orgy with the male patrons of the ballet, a reflection of the sexual temptations between Faust and Marguerite. This effectively adds wit and mockery to the usual decorative divertissement purpose of such ballet scenes in an opera.

I highly recommend this latest production of Gounod's Faust from the Royal Opera House. It's a star-studded cast that contains all elements of a good operatic experience - singing, acting, staging and orchestra. If you don't enjoy this one, then perhaps you haven't got the point of opera at all.

Yours truly,

La Dolce Vita
Link to the Royal Opera House