<Translated from Russian automatically>
A high-ranking guest is opening the season of the Paris Opera: the Moscow Bolshoi, which is presenting one of Tchaikovsky's most popular compositions.
When Tatiana confesses her love to Eugene, he rejects her. Years later, he sees her again and realizes the mistake he made. In vain: she still loves him, but she is married—and forever—and she herself rejects him...
Love clashes with the necessity of following decorum, the heart of a maturing young girl clashes with the soul of a man who realizes his coldness too late... Tchaikovsky's opera "Eugene Onegin," based on Pushkin's novel, first performed in Moscow on March 29, 1879, is generally considered to be one of the public's most beloved works.
Thanks to the passion of its melodies, imbued with absolutely sincere feeling, the romantic impracticality of its characters, and the perfect balance between the pages dedicated to soloists and ensembles, and the choral scenes filled with genuine inspiration.
A unique set design was conceived by the director Dmitry Tcherniakov
The production by Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre, currently hosted at the Parisian Palais Garnier, offers a cohesive, "homogeneous" interpretation, which it owes primarily to the unique set design conceived by the director Dmitry Tcherniakov: a banquet hall dominated by a huge dining table.
Even if this "device" might eventually become wearisome (as scenes change but the table remains), and despite its imposing size somewhat "overwhelming" the singers, it nonetheless contributes to the logical and consistent development of the action.
There, amidst laughter and libations, the pure-hearted Tatiana struggles alone like a lost bird, caught up in all these amorous whirlwinds that only cause her suffering. The physical grace, the delicate vocal line, and the elegance of the dramatic performance by the soprano Tatiana Monogarova are perfectly suited to the role, even if these refined qualities are sometimes lost on the vast Garnier stage.
The tenor demonstrates a superb manner of singing
To Mariusz Kwiecień’s grounded Onegin are given lines designed more for external effect than for truly moving emotion. How then can one not switch focus to Andrei Dunayev’s Lensky, Onegin's faithful friend, whom a foolish quarrel will lead straight to his death?
Lively or dreamy, himself surprised by the furious strength that has suddenly awakened within him, unable to say "goodbye" to his youth, which he is nonetheless betraying, the tenor demonstrates a superb manner of singing. And it must be said that Tchaikovsky gave him some of the best pages of his score...
For these Paris guest performances by the Bolshoi, the conductor's baton could only have been entrusted to its musical director and chief conductor, Alexander Vedernikov. The brilliance of the sometimes slightly uneven strings, the impressive colors of the woodwinds and brass, as well as the chorus—a beautiful sound was demonstrated both in the orchestra pit and on the stage.
The conducting was emphatically contrasted, precise, yet slightly pedantic, without much fire, and perhaps somewhat overly sentimental in manner—though what else can be expected when dealing with a composition in which characters full of "blinding hope" are ready to march to certain doom? As Tatiana sings in the magnificent letter scene—this passionate monologue one wants to listen to again and again...
Source.
A high-ranking guest is opening the season of the Paris Opera: the Moscow Bolshoi, which is presenting one of Tchaikovsky's most popular compositions.
When Tatiana confesses her love to Eugene, he rejects her. Years later, he sees her again and realizes the mistake he made. In vain: she still loves him, but she is married—and forever—and she herself rejects him...
Love clashes with the necessity of following decorum, the heart of a maturing young girl clashes with the soul of a man who realizes his coldness too late... Tchaikovsky's opera "Eugene Onegin," based on Pushkin's novel, first performed in Moscow on March 29, 1879, is generally considered to be one of the public's most beloved works.
Thanks to the passion of its melodies, imbued with absolutely sincere feeling, the romantic impracticality of its characters, and the perfect balance between the pages dedicated to soloists and ensembles, and the choral scenes filled with genuine inspiration.
A unique set design was conceived by the director Dmitry Tcherniakov
The production by Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre, currently hosted at the Parisian Palais Garnier, offers a cohesive, "homogeneous" interpretation, which it owes primarily to the unique set design conceived by the director Dmitry Tcherniakov: a banquet hall dominated by a huge dining table.
Even if this "device" might eventually become wearisome (as scenes change but the table remains), and despite its imposing size somewhat "overwhelming" the singers, it nonetheless contributes to the logical and consistent development of the action.
There, amidst laughter and libations, the pure-hearted Tatiana struggles alone like a lost bird, caught up in all these amorous whirlwinds that only cause her suffering. The physical grace, the delicate vocal line, and the elegance of the dramatic performance by the soprano Tatiana Monogarova are perfectly suited to the role, even if these refined qualities are sometimes lost on the vast Garnier stage.
The tenor demonstrates a superb manner of singing
To Mariusz Kwiecień’s grounded Onegin are given lines designed more for external effect than for truly moving emotion. How then can one not switch focus to Andrei Dunayev’s Lensky, Onegin's faithful friend, whom a foolish quarrel will lead straight to his death?
Lively or dreamy, himself surprised by the furious strength that has suddenly awakened within him, unable to say "goodbye" to his youth, which he is nonetheless betraying, the tenor demonstrates a superb manner of singing. And it must be said that Tchaikovsky gave him some of the best pages of his score...
For these Paris guest performances by the Bolshoi, the conductor's baton could only have been entrusted to its musical director and chief conductor, Alexander Vedernikov. The brilliance of the sometimes slightly uneven strings, the impressive colors of the woodwinds and brass, as well as the chorus—a beautiful sound was demonstrated both in the orchestra pit and on the stage.
The conducting was emphatically contrasted, precise, yet slightly pedantic, without much fire, and perhaps somewhat overly sentimental in manner—though what else can be expected when dealing with a composition in which characters full of "blinding hope" are ready to march to certain doom? As Tatiana sings in the magnificent letter scene—this passionate monologue one wants to listen to again and again...
Source.
Triumph of the Bolshoi at the Garnier
Emmanuel GIULIANI, La Croix, September 8, 2008
