Shakespeare and Spielberg

GIUSEPPE PENNISI describes how
Gounod's 'Roméo et Juliette' attracts
a new audience in Verona

Roméo et Juliette was Charles Gounod's most spectacular immediate success. Coming, as it did, at the Théâtre Lyrique during the 1867 Exposition Universelle, when Paris was literally invaded by visitors from the provinces and abroad, the opera drew full houses for several consecutive nights. Also it conquered London's Covent Garden and all the major houses in Germany and Belgium just a few months after the opening night in Paris. The demand was such that when the Théâtre Lyrique was closed down, Roméo et Juliette became one the standard staples of the Opéra Comique; a few variants had been introduced, but it worked also on a smaller stage. The work found its final form when it was presented at the Palais Garnier, the newly built Opéra, the symbol of the wealth of French bourgeoisie in the Second Empire and in the Third Republic. Charles Gounod took care personally of the new production by adding Roméo's arioso Ah! Jour de deuil at the end of Act III and a ballet in Act IV, thus transforming an opera lyrique to something quite similar to a grand opera for a large stage and modern (at the time) stagecraft and machinery.

A scene from Act I of Gounod's 'Roméo et Juliette' at the Verona Arena. Photo © 2011 Ennevi

Roméo et Juliette has always been on stage in France, Belgium and Central Europe -- I have a vivid memory of a good production (in Magyar) at the Erkel Theatre in Budapest in 1990 where the setting was a post-communist Verona with big apartment buildings. In Italy, the opera was revived only recently by a La Fenice production and by a La Scala-Salzburg joint effort. After many decades, only last year, Roméo et Juliette was presented in Verona, the place where the love story is reported to have happened. The success was such that Roméo et Juliette is likely to become a standard feature of the summer season in the twelve thousand seat Arena. In Italy, in Gounod's repertory, Faust had been always preferred to Roméo et Juliette. Also, Italy could show Bellini's I Capuleti ed I Montecchi, although not fully based on Shakespeare's tragedy, and at least a couple of Romeo e Giulietta, respectively by Nicola Vaccaj and Filippo Marchetti of the post Verdi grand melodrama period as well as a Giulietta and Romeo by the post-Wagnerian Riccardo Zandonai (and many other operas, now fully forgotten, based upon Shakespeare's play).

Aleksandra Kurzak as Juliette in Gounod's 'Roméo et Juliette' at the Verona Arena. Photo © 2012 Ennevi

Gounod follows Shakespeare's plot and stage organization very closely. The libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré borrows heavily on the many translations of Shakespeare's works available in France around 1860. In the opera, Shakespeare as seen through French romantic eyes. It is a very melodious work with four exquisite engrossing and enthralling love duets, a highly evocative ballad and imposing concertatos, such as the confrontation scenes between the two families at the end of Act II.

John Osborn as Roméo in Gounod's 'Roméo et Juliette' at the Verona Arena. Photo © 2012 Ennevi

Roméo et Juliette had been shown only once, in 1977, in Verona, in Italian translation; that production did not leave a lasting impression. After the success of the Venice and Salzburg productions, at the tail end of the 2011 Summer season, a new production was proposed, almost experimentally and on 'low budget criteria' (no major stage sets and 'only' two hundred extras on stage !!!) by the young director Francesco Micheli. It was scheduled for just a couple of performances in a program featuring Aida, Carmen, Turandot and other major Verona Arena war horses (normally requiring some six hundred singers, chorus, ballet, extras and orchestra as well as huge sets). The experiment was successful. Verona's lovers return to their home city to stay. There will be four performances this season and a new round in 2013.

A scene from Act III of Gounod's 'Roméo et Juliette' at the Verona Arena. Photo © 2012 Ennevi

On Saturday 14 July 2012, when I was in a comfortable seat in the Arena, the box office had sold nine thousand tickets -- not bad for a scarcely known title in open air theatre where orchestra seats are almost as expensive as those of festivals such as Aix-en-Provence and Salzburg. More significantly the low priced sections (with free seating on the Roman steps) were full of young people; many had entered the arena at 8pm to get a good view for a performance starting at 9.15pm and, with two intermissions, ending at 1.15am on Sunday. Thus, Roméo et Juliette attracts a new audience -- quite important for the future of opera as a performing art.

Artur Rucinski (top) as Mercutio in Gounod's 'Roméo et Juliette' at the Verona Arena. Photo © 2012 Ennevi

In short, William Shakespeare and Steven Spielberg proved to be the right mix to attract youngsters to this Roméo et Juliette. In the Prologue, some forty youngsters in today's casual attire jumped from the orchestra to the huge stage and climbed a tall piece of stage machinery looking like the Globe Theatre in Elizabethian times; the machinery splits into two parts: the Capulet's and the Montague's palaces. When, during the dance, Roméo is recognized as the intruder, a real rumble erupts with even a strange motorcar (with wings) arriving on stage (with Roméo's friends to help him out) and explodes in a major fire. In Edoardo Sanchi's stage sets, Frère Laurent's cell is a post-modern stained glass chapel. Juliette's room is on top of an art deco column; she and Romeo make love in an oversized bed some twenty metres above the stage. Also the Duke of Verona travels in a tall carriage and talks down from his height to the rival families. The timeless costumes by Silvia Aymonino are very much in Star Wars style: very elaborate (but without any specific historical reference) those for the Capulet and Montague seniors; from modern to quasi-medieval for their fighting youngsters. In the Prologue, two adolescent mimes representing the unlucky lovers wear very fine lingerie. Thus, we are in the realm of the unreal and science fiction.

Aleksandra Kurzak as Juliette and John Osborn as Roméo in Gounod's 'Roméo et Juliette' at the Verona Arena. Photo © 2012 Ennevi

Does this disturb the music? Not quite. The action flows smoothly thanks to a well assorted cast. John Osborn (Roméo) has the physique du role, the high texture and the stamina to go through the very elaborate 'cavatina' (entrance aria) Ah, lève-toi soleil and four highly difficult duets, especially Nuit d'hyménée. As Juliet, the young and attractive Aleksandra Kurzak has a very large range from lyric soprano nearly to mezzo, and demonstrates this not only in the duets but also in her waltz 'cavatina' Je veux vivre and especially in her grand final E flat major suicide aria. Eugenia Tufano (Stéphano, Roméo's page) and Artur Rucinski (Mercutio) deserved open air applause respectively after the song Que fais-tu blanche tuorterelle and Queen Mab's three section ballade. The Act III trio and quartet Dieu qui fis l'homme à ton image was unexceptional and the concertatos effective. In short, the whole company (twelve soloists) was of high standard.

Fabio Mastrangelo conducting Gounod's 'Roméo et Juliette' at the Verona Arena. Photo © 2011 Ennevi

And the conducting? Fabio Mastrangelo's sole concern appeared to be to keep a good balance between pit and stage. Maybe because the performance was open air, he did not make much of an effort to delve into some of the orchestration's real jewels.