Back in Rome

Umberto Giordano's 'Andrea Chénier'
returns to the Teatro dell'Opera
after more than forty years,
impressing GIUSEPPE PENNISI

For decades, Andrea Chénier has been one of the most popular titles of the late nineteenth century. Normally classified as a 'verismo' opera, its premiere was in 1898 at La Scala, and thus after Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana and before Puccini's Tosca. I would think that it has greater affinity with 'Po Valley Grand Opera', a category of musical theatre who had a comparatively short period of success. After Verdi's melodrama had exhausted its role, composers and theatre managers were searching for a new style and borrowed elements from the French grand opera: historical context, sets with special effects, ballets within the opera, and great voices. In addition, a rich orchestration was borrowed from Wagner. It was a comparatively short period which flourished between Bologna and Milan. Most of the operas of the composers of this school (Franchetti, Rossi) are now seldom staged. Only La Gioconda by Ponchielli and both Andrea Chénier and Fedora by Giordano are still frequently performed. Two of the reasons are the very high production costs and the need for very special voices.

Gregory Kunde as Chenier and Duccio Dal Monte as Roucher in Umberto Giordano's 'Andrea Chénier' at Teatro dell'Opera di Roma. Photo © 2017 Yasuko Kageyama

Andrea Chénier has not been staged at Teatro dell'Opera di Roma for the last forty two years, although a good production was seen in the 1996 open air Summer season. The current staging is a co-production with La Fenice Theatre in Venice. Even though the direction is entrusted to a rather iconoclastic movie director (Marco Bellocchio), the production is traditional and set in France, 1789-1792, thus from the start of the Revolution to its bloodiest period. I would have imagined that Bellocchio and his team (Gianni Carluccio for sets and lighting, Daria Calvelli for costumes and Massimiliano Volpini for choreography) could have updated the action to 1917 — we are in the centenary of the Russian Revolution — and set it in St Petersburg or Moscow. Yet the audience loved the traditional painted sets and the deluxe costumes.

A scene from Umberto Giordano's 'Andrea Chénier' at Teatro dell'Opera di Roma. Photo © 2017 Yasuko Kageyama

An interesting feature is that productions of Andrea Chénier often place emphasis on the voices and consider the orchestra almost a support to the thirteen soloists and the chorus. On the opening night, 21 April 2017, I was able to really appreciate the fine work of conductor Roberto Abbado and of the Rome Teatro dell'Opera orchestra in showing the sophisticated orchestration of the score, especially the colors of the tints as the action enfolds from an elegant aristocratic Palace to the prison where Andrea Chénier awaits to be beheaded. In Andrea Chénier, the four acts, or rather tableaux, are bound together by variegated orchestral figurations in which motifs, repeated at short range and in different keys, play a prominent part. The prominence of such a part is often underplayed in other productions.
The chorus (directed by Roberto Gabbiani) sang and acted very well as one of the evening's protagonists.

In the centre, from left to right: Andrea Giovannini as the Abbé, Anna Malavasi as the Countess de Coigny, Graziano Dallavalle as novelist Pietro Fléville and members of the chorus in Umberto Giordano's 'Andrea Chénier' at Teatro dell'Opera di Roma. Photo © 2017 Yasuko Kageyama. Click on the image for higher resolution

Andrea Chénier consists mostly of voices, and especially the tenor voice — from Pertile, Caruso and Giglio to Domingo, this opera has always been a vehicle for the tenor to show his abilities, especially in two arias, respectively in the first and in the fourth acts. The vocal delivery freely mixes conversational, lyrical and declamatory elements. Arias and duets arise directly and without preparation from the dialogue and they are rarely marked off by a full close. This makes it particularly difficult for a centre range tenor to reach high Cs. Gregory Kunde has been in career since 1978 and his voice changed from lyric coloratura tenor to dramatic tenor, also due to an illness. He performed very well and had open stage ovations after Un dì nell'azzurro spazio and Come un bel dì di maggio.

Gregory Kunde as Chenier and Maria José Siri as Maddalena in Umberto Giordano's 'Andrea Chénier' at Teatro dell'Opera di Roma. Photo © 2017 Yasuko Kageyama

His lover (Maddalena) was Maria José Siri, a first class dramatic soprano who received warm open stage applause after her main aria La mamma morta. Roberto Frontali was Gérard, a servant born in Maddalena's castle who becomes a leader of the Revolution; although sexually attracted by Maddalena, he tries his best to save the couple. Frontali is a veteran of the part, both as a singer and as an actor.

Roberto Frontali as Carlo Gerard in Umberto Giordano's 'Andrea Chénier' at Teatro dell'Opera di Roma. Photo © 2017 Yasuko Kageyama

It's impossible to comment on each of the other singers within this generally good cast. Elena Zillo deserves a mention for her engrossing aria of the revolutionary grandmother who sends her teenage grandson to fight against the European coalition threatening France.