patrikpen: A Rare Butterfly in Music and Vision 20 decembre 2016

giovedì 9 marzo 2017

A Rare Butterfly in Music and Vision 20 decembre 2016

A Rare Butterfly

GIUSEPPE PENNISI was at La Scala
for the start of the new season in Milan

Teatro alla Scala's new season traditionally opens on 7 December, when St Ambrose, the patron of Milan, is celebrated with a holiday. The performance starts at 6pm with a gala evening — black ties, long dresses, high fashion, many politicians, businessmen and money managers — followed by dinners. Normally, the President of the Republic is in the royal box; this year he had to renounce at the last moment due to the political crisis in Rome where the Prime Minister had just resigned. As customary, the evening started with the national anthem. I was in a comfortable orchestra seat.

In any way, this 'season inauguration' was quite extraordinary. Usually either a new production of a well-known title is selected, or rather the rediscovery of a forgotten opera. This year, La Scala's management and artistic direction proposed a very well known opera, Puccini's Madama Butterfly, but in a version which is very rarely heard: the version that failed, and was covered by boos, precisely at La Scala on 17 February 1904, at its premiere. The fiasco was such that Puccini and the authors of the libretto (Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica) revised the opera mostly by making it a three act affair (instead of a two act opera with a very long second part) and adding a remorse aria for the tenor — 'Addio fiorito asil' — for a Brescia staging in Fall 1904. More drastic changes were made in 1906 when the opera reached the Parisian Théâtre des Italiens. The 1906 version is the one normally performed. Occasionally, the February 1904 version is shown in festival. Thus the 2016 St Ambrose inauguration can be considered a festival evening.

Maria José Siri as Cio-Cio-san, Bryan Hymel as Pinkerton, Carlos Álvarez as Sharpless, Carlo Bosi as Goro, chorus, dancers and extras in Act I of Puccini's 'Madama Butterfly' at Teatro alla Scala, Milan. Photo © 2016 Brescia/Amisano. Click on the image for higher resolution

What are the main differences between the February 1904 version and the generally produced 1906 version? The 1904 version is made up of an introduction to Japan through Western European eyes; there is more than a bit of a racism: Cio-Cio-san is a young prostitute (due to the political suicide of her father and the impoverishment of her family), her uncles and the rest of her family are caricatures, and Pinkerton is a young American who wants to have fun-and-games. The long second act is a tragedy. Musically, the first one is almost a descriptive comedy, while the second shows some slight influences of the Second Viennese School (then starting). It contains dissonances worthy of Richard Strauss, and quite a bit of post-romanticism (eg in the intermezzo) and even chit-chat music. Most of these elements are also in the 1906 version but softened so as not to be so prominent.

Maria José Siri as Cio-Cio-san with an extra (the child) in Act II of Puccini's 'Madama Butterfly' at Teatro alla Scala, Milan. Photo © 2016 Brescia/Amisano

Under the baton of Riccardo Chailly, the orchestra was showing the innovations (for the time) and beauties of the original score, especially in the second part.

Maria José Siri as Cio-Cio-san in Act II of Puccini's 'Madama Butterfly' at Teatro alla Scala, Milan. Photo © 2016 Brescia/Amisano

This was helped by the staging of Alvis Hermanis and his 'creative team' — Leila Fteita, Kristine Jurjäne, Gleb Filshtinsky, Alla Sigalova and Ineta Sipunova for, respectively, sets, costumes, lighting, choreography and video. Their references are not Kabuki theatre, as some reviewers have said, but European paintings about Japan from the late eighteenth century and early nineteenth century. This is a very good solution.

Uruguayan dramatic soprano Maria José Siri was excellent in the title role. She has a perfect emission and was really moving in the second part when she has to leave the most precious thing of her life — her son — to Pinkerton's American wife. There were a lot of expectations for the American tenor Bryan Hymel, well known for his belcanto roles; he is a traditional Pinkerton. Carlos Álvarez is a very experienced Sharpless. Annalisa Stroppa is a high impact Suzuki.

Maria José Siri as Cio-Cio-san, Annalisa Stroppa as Suzuki, Nicole Brandolino as Kate and Carlos Álvarez as Sharpless in Act II of Puccini's 'Madama Butterfly' at Teatro alla Scala, Milan. Photo © 2016 Brescia/Amisano. Click on the image for higher resolution

There were fifteen minutes of ovations at the end of the performance.