On the curtain’s rise, there’s every indication that the set is not going to change in this production because it has a roof! And it’s a grim prospect, a concrete corridor, steeply raked to give the impression of perspective and depth, and devoid of props. But as the show progresses, this space reveals flexibility and subtle changes, culminating in a remarkable coup de threatre. Barrie Kosky also interleaves sounds, vignettes and pauses that are not in the score. These sometimes work as moments to reflect upon the consequences of the preceding scene, but they also punctuate Poulenc’s technique for cinematic jump-cuts and thereby dissipate the tension a scene has carefully constructed. One was completely upstaged by the appearance of the Glyndebourne bat! Of course the final scene is pure cinema, and is brutal and effectively portrayed. There is also a strange jump in period. We start with costumes identifiable with the French Revolution, and finish with the contemporary. I’m still puzzled by some aspects of this production - I fail to see what they are meant to convey despite having had the time to ponder upon them. So it’s not an unequivocal success in presenting the story.
Where it does succeed is musically, and the acting. Katerina Dalayman as Madame de Croissy has one of the ‘best’ deathbed scenes in all opera, and here invests it with an almost fetishistic eroticism - quite disturbing. Golda Schultz as the new Prioress exudes warmth and a sense of motherly security for the distressed sisters, despite her own terrors - a beautifully moving performance. And Sally Matthews as Blanche undergoes quite a journey, a fine fusion of physical and vocal acting. The Glyndebourne chorus is, as ever, magnificent.
The LPO under Robin Ticciati create those gorgeously perfumed harmonies that are so characteristic of Poulenc, this score really swoons when it lets itself go. Heady stuff.
The production forms Glyndebourne’s visit to the Proms this year, where presumably it will be sans the director’s imposed pauses to the action.
Where it does succeed is musically, and the acting. Katerina Dalayman as Madame de Croissy has one of the ‘best’ deathbed scenes in all opera, and here invests it with an almost fetishistic eroticism - quite disturbing. Golda Schultz as the new Prioress exudes warmth and a sense of motherly security for the distressed sisters, despite her own terrors - a beautifully moving performance. And Sally Matthews as Blanche undergoes quite a journey, a fine fusion of physical and vocal acting. The Glyndebourne chorus is, as ever, magnificent.
The LPO under Robin Ticciati create those gorgeously perfumed harmonies that are so characteristic of Poulenc, this score really swoons when it lets itself go. Heady stuff.
The production forms Glyndebourne’s visit to the Proms this year, where presumably it will be sans the director’s imposed pauses to the action.
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