Last night's Wellington opening of Tosca was like a great lasagna. Perfectly layered and very satisfying, leaving everyone in a good mood and reminding us of how good it is and we must make it more often even though it takes a while.
Tosca is one of those tricky ones that should be very straight-forward and easy to do well, and yet so often misses the mark. Problems lie in the fact there isn't a lot of opportunity for grandeur and pomp and big chorus scenes (that New Zealand audiences in particular rather love) instead the whole thing hinges on the performances of the three key players: Tosca, her lover and the bad guy.
Fortunately the aforementioned Tosca (Orla Boylan), Cavaradossi (Simon O'Neill) and Scarpia (Phillip Rhodes) were all excellent and the whole thing flew by in a few short, tense hours. The audience was gripped from the opening scene, and even my toilet break at half-time was frought with tension. As I fixed my lippie I was cursing Cavaradossi's silly mistake of leaving evidence in the chapel (implicating him in helping a prisoner escape). I had a feeling of dread the moment Evil Scarpia entered the scene looking like Mussolini about to attend a white tie ball.
Tosca is one of those tricky ones that should be very straight-forward and easy to do well, and yet so often misses the mark. Problems lie in the fact there isn't a lot of opportunity for grandeur and pomp and big chorus scenes (that New Zealand audiences in particular rather love) instead the whole thing hinges on the performances of the three key players: Tosca, her lover and the bad guy.
Fortunately the aforementioned Tosca (Orla Boylan), Cavaradossi (Simon O'Neill) and Scarpia (Phillip Rhodes) were all excellent and the whole thing flew by in a few short, tense hours. The audience was gripped from the opening scene, and even my toilet break at half-time was frought with tension. As I fixed my lippie I was cursing Cavaradossi's silly mistake of leaving evidence in the chapel (implicating him in helping a prisoner escape). I had a feeling of dread the moment Evil Scarpia entered the scene looking like Mussolini about to attend a white tie ball.
In fact, Rhodes was in danger of stealing the whole show with his charismatic megalomania. Each move was calculated, from the flick of a napkin to the mastermind swivelling in the leather desk chair. It was largely because of Rhodes that I finally started to see the famed, but often absent chemistry between Scarpia and Tosca. Although Rhodes seemed to have chemistry with everyone on stage, even his weasly sidekick Spoletta (James Benjamin Rodgers with a sneer and a Clark Gable moustache to send shivers down your spine).
Simon O'Neill basically came onto the stage and blew the roof off the theatre, the audience quite clearly wrapped around his little finger. But what was really lovely was the gentle, natural relationship between him and Boylan in their first scenes together. When O'Neill took a bullet to the brain and fell to the floor, those few moments as we waited for Tosca to realise it was no fake execution were agony, as we so wished for a happy ending for these two. All eyes were on Boylan through her anguished cries and mad dash to the top of the battlements.
Here we go, isn't this what we came for? Tosca throwing herself off the tower? Would there be a trampoline below (fingers crossed!)? Boylan stuck out one foot, like a suicidal Mary Poppins, leaned backwards and did the oddest jump I've ever seen. I mean, I understand that Boylan needed to land safely and I know I'm quibbling, but I just really want to see a good jump!!
Nevertheless, It has to be one of the best endings in all opera. There are no long reflective arias "goodbye cruel world" etc, and nobody doing a sad eulogy after her death. There's no mucking around. High note, jump, curtain down. I love it. It's clean.
Other reasons to see Tosca: there are at least three very decent arias and one of them is a Magnum ad (which, incidentally, I tensely ate in the interval.) And while we're talking about the music, having the NZSO in the pit was a magnificent decision. It was such a treat to have them.
Shout out to Elizabeth Whiting (costume designer) for once again, meticulous attention to detail - I'm pretty sure Boylan was wearing vintage Ferragamo ankle strap kitten heels. The chorus, for the four minutes they were on stage, looked delectable. The pencil skirts and peplum! Give me more!
The sets were simple and brutal. The imposing walls of Scarpia's office perfectly captured Tosca's feelings of being trapped and the subtle changes of light bearing down on Scarpia's corpse was extremely effective. Wonderful use of shadow was made here and in act three, with stark, bare lights and chain-link fences. Even the simple clinking of a padlock was chilling. Special mention to the choir boys and the incense burning in Act 1 which took me back to Catholic school. Thanks, NZ Opera.
The whole evening just seemed to be a celebration of what wonderful talent we have at our disposal in this country. And as far as a Tosca goes, this was pretty much everything I wanted.
Simon O'Neill basically came onto the stage and blew the roof off the theatre, the audience quite clearly wrapped around his little finger. But what was really lovely was the gentle, natural relationship between him and Boylan in their first scenes together. When O'Neill took a bullet to the brain and fell to the floor, those few moments as we waited for Tosca to realise it was no fake execution were agony, as we so wished for a happy ending for these two. All eyes were on Boylan through her anguished cries and mad dash to the top of the battlements.
Here we go, isn't this what we came for? Tosca throwing herself off the tower? Would there be a trampoline below (fingers crossed!)? Boylan stuck out one foot, like a suicidal Mary Poppins, leaned backwards and did the oddest jump I've ever seen. I mean, I understand that Boylan needed to land safely and I know I'm quibbling, but I just really want to see a good jump!!
Nevertheless, It has to be one of the best endings in all opera. There are no long reflective arias "goodbye cruel world" etc, and nobody doing a sad eulogy after her death. There's no mucking around. High note, jump, curtain down. I love it. It's clean.
Other reasons to see Tosca: there are at least three very decent arias and one of them is a Magnum ad (which, incidentally, I tensely ate in the interval.) And while we're talking about the music, having the NZSO in the pit was a magnificent decision. It was such a treat to have them.
Shout out to Elizabeth Whiting (costume designer) for once again, meticulous attention to detail - I'm pretty sure Boylan was wearing vintage Ferragamo ankle strap kitten heels. The chorus, for the four minutes they were on stage, looked delectable. The pencil skirts and peplum! Give me more!
The sets were simple and brutal. The imposing walls of Scarpia's office perfectly captured Tosca's feelings of being trapped and the subtle changes of light bearing down on Scarpia's corpse was extremely effective. Wonderful use of shadow was made here and in act three, with stark, bare lights and chain-link fences. Even the simple clinking of a padlock was chilling. Special mention to the choir boys and the incense burning in Act 1 which took me back to Catholic school. Thanks, NZ Opera.
The whole evening just seemed to be a celebration of what wonderful talent we have at our disposal in this country. And as far as a Tosca goes, this was pretty much everything I wanted.