Albert Lortzing's Die Opernprobe
Eric Chevalier (stage director), Antony Hermus (conductor), — With Ugo Rabec (Le baron von Reinthal), Dima Bawad (Louise) and Marie-Bénédicte Souquet (Hannchen)
Cast
Eric Chevalier — Stage director, lighting, scenography
Jean-Vincent Blot — Bass (Le comte)
Sophie Belloir — Mezzo-soprano (La comtesse)
Dima Bawad — Soprano (Louise)
Marie-Bénédicte Souquet — Soprano (Hannchen)
Ugo Rabec — Bass (Le baron von Reinthal)
Carlos Natale — Tenor (Adolf von Reinthal)
Program notes
Get ready for Albert Lortzing's comic opera Die Opernprobe (The Opera Rehearsal), performed for the first time in France at the Théâtre Graslin in Nantes! The intrigue unfolds in a German castle, where a theatre-loving count decides to stage a grand show—the backdrop for more than one amorous plot involving the count's family, the opera's performers, and a ton of misunderstandings…
Stage director Eric Chevalier—who also covers lighting and set design—offers a comical, high-quality mise en scène of this unfortunately little-known gem. Angers Nantes Opéra provides costumes and accessories to the soloists, who embody Lortzing's characters perfectly from the mischievous servant Hannchen (Marie Bénédicte Souquet) and her mistress Louise (soprano Dima Bawab) to the Baron von Reinthal (Ugo Rabec). To cap off a stellar credits list, maestro Anthony Hermus brings out the very best in the Orchestre National des Pays de Loire, lively and precise in their interpretation of this Mozart-inflected score.