Orfeo ed Euridice
Image: Orpheus Leading Eurydice from the Underworld, Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot, (1796–1875)
The Canadian Opera Company staged and performed Gluck's “Orfeo ed Euridice” and were presented with a unique situation: music stylings which don't match the tone of the story. As we had not heard any of the music previous to the performance, we found it a surprise that the Greek myth tragedy was paired with music in mostly major keys. The contrast at times was a headscratcher, as the baroque style music kept things light and interestingly optimistic while telling the story of perilous adventure.
The orchestra was beautiful and agile, as Gluck spared in no regard the use of fast running scales for Orfeo traveling in and out of the underworld. Something that caught our attention was the tone painting of Cerberus’ ‘barks’ in the orchestra. The musicians were in perfect sync for their tutti glissandos, which as Gluck skillfully placed in the lower registers, sounded like deep bellowing barks with each mention of the three headed canine guardian by the chorus. A millisecond off the beat and the effect would not have worked, but the ensemble played as one organism and achieved the great effect.
Orfeo was sung by countertenor Iestyn Davies and was wonderfully resonant and had skilled projection. We are always in awe of the volume achieved by countertenors, the ethereal falsetto shifting between the land of the living and of the dead. Within the opening notes it became clear why Davies has been so successful in their career.
The two soprano roles were both beautiful. Amore, sung by Catharine St-Arnaud was a wonderful comic relief, and St-Arnaud’s tone was clear and bright, offsetting the tension of the narrative. Euridice, sung by Anna-Sophie Neher was passionate and had a great frustrated effect, showing the conflicted and angry nature of her character having been brought back to the land of the living without being given any explanations as to why or what for. The composition left some to be desired in terms of musical interest and show stopping arias, but the entire ensemble of soloists, chorus and orchestra brought the story to life. One of our favourite moments was when Orfeo jumped into the grave unable to deny himself the sight of his love’s face and the following gasp of the crowd when their eyes met, sealing Euridice’s fate.
The set design and effects for this opera were an example of what now feels like the Canadian Opera Company’s hallmark style of minimalist set design. As we mentioned before, they were given a challenge from the start given the relation of emotionally complex story to a not so complex score. Minimalistic set design is an art in itself, with the edge of too far or not enough being razor thin. We did feel that the truly barren underworld landscape, while amazing in texture, colour, and dynamic elemental aspects like fire and gravel, did perhaps lean a bit too much on expositional stage movement. We noticed that Gluck wrote at least three sinfonie, and with a bare set it can be difficult to maintain engaging story through physical exposition.
While we wished for perhaps a tree or two for interactive set pieces, something that the COC is incredibly skilled at is the use of stage depth and lighting to create visual interest. With multiple processions and sinfonie, the movement up and down stage gave a wonderful sense of journey. The light designers were able to create great effects with backlit tableaus and live fire casting the shadows of the chorus spirits on the walls of the underworld. These were skillfully used to bring visual interest to the story and deserve praise for their effective success.
With the challenges this opera posed to creative directors and artists, the performance was indeed a success, including moments of laughter, and gasps of disbelief. The Canadian Opera Company’s dedication to accepting new challenges and new takes on productions is the innovative spirit we like to see here in Toronto.