Austria Beethoven, Fidelio: Soloists, Refrain and Orchestra of Vienna State Opera / Franz Welser-Möst (conductor). Broadcast dwell (directed by Dominik Kepczynski) from Vienna State Opera, 19.12.2025. (JPr)
The final new Fidelio manufacturing at Vienna State Opera – from Otto Schenk with units by the equally legendary Gϋnther Schneider-Siemssen – premiered on 24 Might 1970 and was performed by Leonard Bernstein and starred James King (Florestan) and Gwyneth Jones (Leonore). It had the final of its over 250 performances 55 years later and as not too long ago as Might this 12 months. Whether or not this new manufacturing by Austrian theatre director and puppeteer Nikolaus Habjan will survive for a tenth of this quantity will, I think, depend upon the tolerance of Viennese operagoers.
Beethoven lived on the time of the European Enlightenment and the Industrial – and significantly considerably for him – the American and French Revolutions. It is extremely possible that he was in favour of the beliefs of the latter two but would have deplored the lack of life. French revolutionary leaders had inspired opera to inform the tales of heroes resisting oppression – so-called ‘rescue operas’ – and Fidelio is a kind of. Within the composer’s 1802 letter to his brothers, the Heiligenstadt Testomony, he writes about deafness, solitude and the way he could by no means fulfil his creative future. Following on from this, Fidelio might be thought of Beethoven’s musical ‘testomony’ of his private philosophies about ethical behaviour, human freedom, the faithfulness of a girl – Beethoven’s ‘immortal beloved’ – and the battle in opposition to oppression and corruption in society. Similar to the Heiligenstadt Testomony a couple of ‘love letters’ – revealing his love and devotion for an unknown girl – have been solely found after Beethoven’s dying in 1827. It took Beethoven virtually ten years to finish Fidelio and it encompasses every thing he believed in and needed to combat for or in opposition to.
Fidelio has its origins in Jean-Nicolas Bouilly’s French libretto Léonore, ou L’amour conjugal telling of Leonore, and her husband, Florestan, who’s being illegally held in a jail. She disguises herself as a person, Fidelio, to get a job there within the hope of saving him. In its varied variations, it went from three acts to 2, the title was modified, and it had 4 separate overtures. We’re left with one thing one step past Mozart’s masterpieces on the operatic highway to Wagner; ‘proto-Wagner’, if you’ll, one thing confirmed by that composer’s nonsense that he as soon as noticed the soprano Wilhelmine Schröder-Devrient as Leonore when he was simply 16! No matter Wagner noticed her first in, she was to develop into his muse and he or she went on to create a couple of roles for him.
Nikolaus Habjan’s manufacturing (with units by Julius Theodor Semmelmann) unfolds because the backdrop to a chic musical efficiency from the singers and orchestra. It appears to make use of each present directorial cliché conceivable, together with; an oppressive state managed by an unremarkable, grey-suited bureaucrat and his back-bereted, armed henchmen, ominous gray partitions, nondescript uniforms, a tiled room the place the jail warden Rocco’s daughter gathers the belongings of these being incarcerated, and prisoners in 28 particular person cells on three ranges holding masks suggesting they’re faceless. Much more considerably, there are two enormous, odd-looking puppets for Leonore/Fidelio and Florestan, with ashen faces and large fingers. There’s additionally Rocco’s cosy sitting room and as he sings his ‘gold’ aria he will get the trinkets he has confiscated from all the encircling lockers, in addition to the fridge, a cushion and because the pull chain on a lamp. There’s a room stuffed with the prisoners’ information and for the second act a claustrophobic dungeon for Florestan accessed by a rear staircase, relatively like a cistern for John the Baptist in Salome; and certainly the puppet Florestan with lanky, filthy-looking hair and unruly beard, in addition to tattered white jail garments, regarded very very like the prophet. This was not mirrored by the singer David Butt Philip who appeared on the stage as if he had simply walked right into a rehearsal, albeit in relatively tattered darkish garments!
Paulus Hochgatterer’s tailored dialogue was shared between singer and puppet(eer) and the massive figures have been manipulated by the singer and/or one or two puppeteers. Often they mouthed the phrases sung too. Characters responded to the puppet Fidelio or Florestan whereas the singer usually interacted with their (sort-of) doppelganger. It was relatively complicated and distracting and my eyes didn’t know the place to settle. It will be fairly an fascinating staging with out the puppets in my view, as a result of they generally overshadowed the 2 main singers. For the celebratory ‘O namelose Freude’ within the restricted area of Florestan’s dungeon – when Florestan has been saved from the tyrannical Don Pizzaro by the deux ex machina arrival of the minister of state Don Fernando – shut collectively are two singers, two puppets and three puppeteers! This cluttering of varied scenes occurred too usually throughout this new Fidelio.
As recommended above, musically issues have been a completely totally different matter: Franz Welser-Möst is a former basic music director of Vienna State Opera and he performed his exemplary orchestra (with lots of the A group on obligation) with nuance, refinement, and nice consideration to element; each cherished phrase revealing the rating’s intrinsic drama. Conducting Beethoven’s Fidelio-in miniature, Leonore Overture No.3, between the Act II scenes nearly ‘stopped the present’ so nice was the ovation.
Habjan continues the current revisionism of how Marzelline is being bodily bullied by Rocco’s jobsworth assistant Jaquino into marriage and Kathrin Zukowski and Daniel Jenz sang and acted their roles nicely. Tareq Nazmi – with an imposing bass voice – was the a lot put-upon Rocco, an enormous man however somebody scared stiff of what may occur to him if he disobeys orders; although it’s patently clear he isn’t proud of having to assist despatch Florestan. Great baritone Christopher Maltman confirmed Pizzaro to be a small, balding, bespectacled, publicity-conscious man whose energy lies in his place and never his bodily presence; however he was evil incarnate and somebody you needed to boo. Against this, bass Simonas Strazdas gave the bemedalled Don Ferrando nice dignity as he orchestrates the opera’s pleased ending.
Soprano Malin Byström was an intense, passionate Leonore, singing with all of the heft, depth and command this heroine wants. Undoubtedly Wagnerian was the anguished heroic tenor voice of David Butt Philip from his visceral, swelling opening ‘Gott!’ to becoming a member of within the rousing ensemble finale involving the refrain (highly effective and emotional all through) and all the opposite predominant characters, as they have fun – with a big bronze statue showing behind them – how justice and conjugal love has triumphed ultimately.
Jim Pritchard
Featured Picture: Vienna State Opera’s Fidelio (closing scene) © Werner Kmetitsch/WS
Solid:
Leonore – Malin Byström
Rocco – Tareq Nazmi
Marzelline – Kathrin Zukowski
Jaquino – Daniel Jenz
Don Pizarro – Christopher Maltman
Don Fernando – Simonas Strazdas
First Prisoner – Daniel Lökös
Second Prisoner – Tambet Kikas
Puppeteers – Manuela Linshalm, Max Konrad, Angelo Konzett, Alexandra Pecher
Creatives:
Manufacturing – Nikolaus Habjan
Units – Julius Theodor Semmelmann
Costumes – Denise Heschl
Lighting – Franz Tscheck
Video – Judith Selenko
Puppets – Bruno Belil
Textual content enhancing – Paulus Hochgatterer
Refrain grasp – Thomas Lang
