Impressions of an opera
Oct. 13th, 2013 12:00 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
litlover12I saw Eugene Onegin from the Metropolitan Opera at one of the local movie theaters on Wednesday (the encore screening, not the live one). I've been wanting to write about it ever since, but I'm such an opera ignoramus, I wasn't sure what to say. I could say it was brilliant and wonderful, and Anna Netrebko was perfect, and it would all be true, but that doesn't convey much!
I've been trying for some time to educate myself about opera in an amateurish sort of way (listening to it on the radio on Saturday afternoons, watching the occasional DVD, and so forth), though it's not easy with most operas being in foreign languages! I can say that, so far, Onegin is my favorite. I'm not sure I can tell you why, though. Of course, the music is beautiful, but a lot of operas have beautiful music. It's kind of the point. :) And there's not much plot there. Perhaps Tatiana has a lot to do with it; she's a heroine after my own heart. She's not about to break her vows and wreck her husband's life just because Eugene finally got around to getting his act together. The girl may be mopey and dreamy, but she's got integrity and a backbone. I like that. Though the ending is so sad -- and seeing this, I could understand for the first time just how sad it really is -- it feels like she's achieved a victory.
And as I said, Netrebko was just amazing. I wish I could say more about that, but as I said, I'm an ignoramus. While enjoying her voice, I was still haunted by the feeling that I wasn't fully appreciating it as a proper opera fan would! I loved how she acted the role, though. And I was fascinated by a backstage interview she gave. (There was lots of backstage stuff shown, from interviews to scenery changes, which may have interrupted the flow but was still a lot of fun!) They asked her why she'd never started singing this role till recently -- what with her being Russian and this being one of the great Russian roles -- and she said she hadn't been ready. Imagine -- not ready until one's forties to sing the role of a 16-year-old girl! And yet in opera that sort of makes sense. (Have I mentioned that opera is a bit crazy? :) ) The conductor backed her up on this later, by saying that her voice is so much greater now than it was twenty years ago. I like that about opera -- the idea that age enhances your talent (up to a point, anyway). So different from ballet!
(I'm also fascinated by how much the character of Eugene resembles the character of that name in Our Mutual Friend. Only Eugene Wrayburn finally changes, and Eugene Onegin doesn't, not really. He comes to love Tatiana, but he's still selfish. I wonder if a good whack over the head would have done some good in his case as well . . . ?)
Anyway, I'm really glad I got to see this. The whole cast, and the whole production, were so good. I only wish I had a recording of them. But here are a few video clips from the dress rehearsal (scroll way down), which will have to suffice until someone finally gets around to recording, if not the whole cast, at least Netrebko!
I've been trying for some time to educate myself about opera in an amateurish sort of way (listening to it on the radio on Saturday afternoons, watching the occasional DVD, and so forth), though it's not easy with most operas being in foreign languages! I can say that, so far, Onegin is my favorite. I'm not sure I can tell you why, though. Of course, the music is beautiful, but a lot of operas have beautiful music. It's kind of the point. :) And there's not much plot there. Perhaps Tatiana has a lot to do with it; she's a heroine after my own heart. She's not about to break her vows and wreck her husband's life just because Eugene finally got around to getting his act together. The girl may be mopey and dreamy, but she's got integrity and a backbone. I like that. Though the ending is so sad -- and seeing this, I could understand for the first time just how sad it really is -- it feels like she's achieved a victory.
And as I said, Netrebko was just amazing. I wish I could say more about that, but as I said, I'm an ignoramus. While enjoying her voice, I was still haunted by the feeling that I wasn't fully appreciating it as a proper opera fan would! I loved how she acted the role, though. And I was fascinated by a backstage interview she gave. (There was lots of backstage stuff shown, from interviews to scenery changes, which may have interrupted the flow but was still a lot of fun!) They asked her why she'd never started singing this role till recently -- what with her being Russian and this being one of the great Russian roles -- and she said she hadn't been ready. Imagine -- not ready until one's forties to sing the role of a 16-year-old girl! And yet in opera that sort of makes sense. (Have I mentioned that opera is a bit crazy? :) ) The conductor backed her up on this later, by saying that her voice is so much greater now than it was twenty years ago. I like that about opera -- the idea that age enhances your talent (up to a point, anyway). So different from ballet!
(I'm also fascinated by how much the character of Eugene resembles the character of that name in Our Mutual Friend. Only Eugene Wrayburn finally changes, and Eugene Onegin doesn't, not really. He comes to love Tatiana, but he's still selfish. I wonder if a good whack over the head would have done some good in his case as well . . . ?)
Anyway, I'm really glad I got to see this. The whole cast, and the whole production, were so good. I only wish I had a recording of them. But here are a few video clips from the dress rehearsal (scroll way down), which will have to suffice until someone finally gets around to recording, if not the whole cast, at least Netrebko!
