Monteverdi's L'Orfeo
Pauline Bayle (stage director), Jordi Savall (conductor) — With Marc Mauillon (Orfeo), Luciana Mancini (La Musica/Euridice), Marianne Beate Kielland (La Speranza/Proserpina), Furio Zanasi (Apollo), Salvo Vitale (Caronte/Plutone) …
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Cast
Pauline Bayle — Stage director
Emmanuel Clolus — Set designer
Bernadette Villard — Costumes
Pascal Noël — Lighting
Céline Gaudier — Assistant stage director
Marc Mauillon — Orfeo
Luciana Mancini — La Musica/Euridice
Sara Mingardo — La Messaggera
Marianne Beate Kielland — La Speranza/Proserpina
Furio Zanasi — Apollo
Salvo Vitale — Caronte/Plutone
Lise Viricel — Ninfa
Victor Sordo — Pastore I/Spirito II
Gabriel Diaz — Pastore II/Spirito IV
Alessandro Giangrande — Pastore III/Spirito I/Eco
Yannis François — Pastore IV/ Spirito III
Program notes
Rediscover the epic tale of Orpheus and Eurydice in Monteverdi's ageless L'Orfeo—the oldest opera still performed today! In a stark and refined mise en scène, featuring gorgeous costumes by Bernadette Villard and striking lighting design by Pascal Noël, the excellent soloists more than do justice to this monument of the operatic repertoire—under the direction of the great Jordi Savall, who has done more to popularize early music and the work of Monteverdi than perhaps anyone else alive.
Over the course of this enchanting drama, it is La Musique herself who first greets the public (the marvelous Luciana Mancini, who also plays the role of Eurydice). The plot follows its irrevocable course: soon after marrying Orpheus (the celebrated Marc Mauillon), the beautiful dryad Eurydice falls victim to a fatal snake bite. Despair overwhelms Orpheus's fellow shepherds, but he refuses to abandon hope, and—guided by Espérance (Hope)—takes up the route toward Hell in search of his betrothed. Pluto, god of the underworld, agrees to allow her to ascend back to the mortal plane—under one condition: on their journey back, Orpheus must not look back at Eurydice. Tragically, he yields to the temptation to turn around, and Eurydice is lost forever to the underworld. Orpheus, devastated, is comforted by Apollo, god of the arts, leaving us with a clear message: in difficult times, art and hope are steadfast allies that one must always keep close.
The decision to produce this opera in June 2021 was not without significance for the opera stage and the performers. In the words of Agnès Terrier, dramaturge at the Opéra-Comique, "After 15 months of pandemic hell, with all our artists guided by La Musica, let us bring light back into the theatre!"
Photo © Stefan Brion
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