The Dark Side of Love

by Susanne Krekel

Munich, november 11.2022 - For this new production at the Staatsoper, stage director Benedict Andrews sets the action in a scholastic univers of our time. We are the the Lovers’ school, as a neon sign reminds us from the beginning. Magda Willi’s sets are economical, various and effective, featuring a few very symbolic details and props: a dollhouse castle, much like the iconic Neuschwanstein, is present in every scene, ever growing, until it reaches the size of a bouncing castle, with towers and a ping entranceway that are most suggestive. Then there is a grubby old mattress, the kind that are kept in cellars or attics. Many a human interaction will be played out on this mattress… There is also a car, a real life-size car, a meadow of red flowers under a night sky, and heart-shaped confetti every once in a while. A few explicit graffiti and the costumes - short little dresses for the girls, flowery shirts for the boys will confirm it: we are in a adolescents’ world, we are at school. The students: two couples of fiancés; the teachers: Don Alfonso, a philosopher and friend of the two boys, and Despina, the girl’s chamber maid. The lesson: You must not trust. The story: Don Alfonso wants the two boys to prove the total fidelity of their betrothed and they end up making a bet. Together they fake the departure of the boys for the battlefield, who will then come back in disguise and try to seduce each one the other’s fiancé. Having succeeded, they are in despair, disclose the affair to the girls who will despair in their turn. Explanations and forgiveness are superficial, trust is definitely broken, there will be no happy end. Few operas leave as much room for the stage directors’ interpretations. Some will bring the original couples together again, others will form new ones. Here, everyone remains alone, in keeping with the sombre staging. There is no future for these couples. They can only, as the final couplet suggests, laugh about it. Well…

For his interpretation, Vladimir Jurowski at the head of the Bayerische Staatsorchester has chosen a slow tempo in keeping with the dark and stark drama of the piece, and the relatively small orchestra leaves ample acoustic room for the singers, there seems to be a certain lack of energy, and the slowness becomes almost tedium. Towards the second act however, the sheer drama takes over and holds us in its thrall, not least thanks to the excellent singers. Christian Gerhaher, the man who can sing anything, is a perfect Don Alfonso, not as cocksure as we can see him sometimes, driven by some dark force, authoritarian, almost aggressive sometimes. Master of his instrument of silver and velvet, he convinces and enchants, as always. Sandrine Piau’s Despina also has this aggressive quality, her pure and cristalline voice sounds cold, and we might almost suspect her of some kind of misogyny, she is so delighted seeing her mistresses become victims of the men’s complot. Louise Alder is a wonderful Fiordiligi, with her clear and radiant voice. She is totally convincing, torn as she is between her fiancé and that new man - maybe she is as much in love with her own idea of fidelity as with Guglielmo? Avery Amereau’s Dorabella is energetic and brilliantly alive, and we also loved Sebastian Kohlhepp’s lyrical Ferrando and Konstantin Krimmel’s powerful Guglielmo. Six lovely voices that blended wonderfully in the duos and ensembles, and supported ideally in the recitatives by Julian Krimmel, fortepiano, Roswitha Timm, violoncello, and Myron Romanul, dulcimer.

Bravo everyone, and thanks for a lovely evening!