By Giuseppe
Verdi
Conducted by
Renato Palumbo
Directed by
Elijah Moshinsky.
Set Design
by Michael Yeargan
Costume
Design by Nigel Levings
Presented by
Opera Australia
Joan
Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House until April 1st, 2017
Reviewed by
Bill Stephens
What makes a
great performance? Why is it that the
memory of seeing Fonteyn and Nureyev perform Swan Lake, or Bronhill perform The
Merry Widow can stay in the mind for a lifetime? Whatever the answer,
Ermonela Jaho’s performance as Violetta on the opening night of Opera
Australia’s 2017 revival of “La Traviata”, was one of those performances.
Elijah
Moshinsky’s production of “La Traviata” has long been a glittering jewel in
Opera Australia’s repertoire. The extravagant set and costume designs by
Michael Yeargan and Nigel Levings, still looking as gorgeous as ever.
Over the years
they’ve framed the performances of a succession of superb Violettas, and having
been fortunate to have seen many of those performances, it was hard not to approach
this latest revival with the feeling that every possible nuance of the role had
been experienced.
Wrong.
Wrong. Wrong. From her very first entrance, Jaho captured her audience with the
intensity of her performance, the brilliance of her singing, her complete
immersion in the role and an interpretation so electrifying, it was immediately
obvious that here was a Violetta like none who had gone before.
 |
| Ermonela Jaho as Violetta |
Signalling that
this Violetta was an ill woman, and knew it, she was no shrinking violet
however. The perfect hostess, at pains to mask her discomfit from her guests,
she led the gaiety with enthusiasm and flirted outrageously with her male
guests, particularly the interesting young newcomer, Alfredo. However, a
declaration of love from Alfredo forces her to examine her options, and upon reaching her decision, she announces it in a startlingly defiant and bravura,
Sempre libera.
Her
heartbreak in the second act, when Alfredo’s father, Germont, demands that she
give up Alfredo, to save his family’s reputation, and her utter distress later,
at Flora’s party, when Alfredo humiliates her in front of all the guests, were
devastatingly portrayed. But as brilliant as she had been in the preceding
acts, it was in the final scene in the decaying remnants of her once
magnificent apartment, when the stricken Violetta is now near death, that Jaho
is at her most devastating, totally subjugating her vocal and acting technique
to the service of the role. It was a virtuoso
performance that brought her audience to their feet, and she rewarded their
accolade with an extraordinary bow which drew gasps throughout the auditorium.
Lest you
gain the impression from the above that this was a one-person performance,
nothing could be further from the truth. Her Alfredo was Korean tenor, Ho-Yoon
Chung, who with his lustrous Italianate vocal sheen, and youthful passion,
managed to garner sympathy for his character’s unreasonable jealousy and
boorish behaviour.
 |
| Jose Carbo (Germont) Ermonela Jaho (Violetta) with members of Opera Australia chorus |
Elsewhere
Opera Australia had wisely cast some of its finest singer/actors to add additional
lustre to this revival. Jose Carbo was dignified and quite magnificent as
Germont. Adrian Tamburini oozed quiet
menace as Violetta’s jealous protector, Baron Douphol, Dominica Matthews, as
Violetta’s glamorous friend, Flora, and Samuel Dundas as Flora’s protector, the
Marquis d’Obigny, each contributed superbly detailed performances. Surrounding
them Opera Australia’s magnificent chorus, demonstrated yet again, with their
fine singing and total dramatic engagement, why they are regarded as one of the
finest opera ensembles in the world.
In the final
scene Gennadi Dubinsky as Doctor Grenvil, and Natalie Aroyan, as Violetta’s
maid, Annina, showed how powerful these relatively small roles can become in
the hands of fine performers, their restrained, sympathetic performances focussing
attention on the three protagonists.
Maintaining the
magic, from the very first notes of the haunting prelude, maestro Renato Palumbo
was in his element, allowing each singer enough space to blossom, while fastidiously
exposing each aural highlight of Verdi’s musical masterpiece. This was opera of
the highest order, and the result was a performance that few among those who
experienced it are likely to forget.
Ermonela
Jaho’s performances in “La Traviata” continue until February 18th,
following which two of Opera Australia’s finest sopranos will take over the
role. Lorina Gore will perform Violetta
opposite Ho-Yoon Chung as Alfredo, from February 23rd until March 4
inclusive, following which Emma Matthews will team with Armenian tenor, Liparit
Avetisyan from March 6th until the season ends on April 1st
inclusive.
Photos by Keith Saunders
This review also appears in Australian Arts Review. www.artsreview.com.au
