Monty Python's Life of Lohengrin

Lohengrin - Royal Opera House, 27 April 2009

above - Spamengrin and Lohengralot compared

It's been tarted up with a couple of acid house back-projections, but this tired production still looks all of its 32 years. Yea verily it's tough, post-Spamalot, to swallow all the standard-waving and knights-on-Broadway costumery with a straight face.

But there's little of substance beyond. Some sort of ecclesiastical theme might be inferred from the minimal scenery - a skull-encrusted throne, a Byzantine cross, and a cow's head on a stick (or tête d'aurochs as the powerful pagan symbol is more elegantly known in French). But that's as far as it goes - the politico-religious conflict is merely acknowledged, never explored.

And after all this time, the technical failings haven't been sorted out. The scrims that ripple like net curtains, the inexplicably sandy floor which sticks to everything, and worst of all, the Bat Cave-style swan projection, barely visible under the bright lights. When a director chooses to emphasise the historical over the mythical element of Lohengrin and deny the audience a range of subjective interpretations, these are the sorts of things that need to be absolutely right. Otherwise, the spell is broken. 

All this would have mattered less if the cast had shown greater engagement. But, Petra Lang's luminously unhinged Ortrud aside, it was dull, static, stand and deliver all round.

Edith Haller looked great, and she has the voice for Elsa, pure and blanched. But as yet she doesn't have it under perfect control (or the money note, which fell embarrassingly short). And her lost expression indicated a want of detailed direction.

She prays for a knight in shining armour. Johan Botha (rhymes with 'bloater') looks more like a wardrobe in a nightdress. But he can at least sing the part, though his sweet but pressured tone is not as effortlessly convincing as Klaus Florian Vogt's. Even less mobile than Pavarotti, his limited wrist-flick gesticulation gifted us two of the crappiest swordfights ever seen at Covent Garden, and his vocal stamina wilted at several points.

We might have seen a bit more action on stage had the great Falk Struckmann been well enough to perform Telramund, one of his signature roles, as scheduled. Instead, we had the able but distinctly less charismatic Gerd Grochowski. Kwangchul Youn was a less imposing Heinrich here than he was in the recent Berlin production. Boaz Daniel, marooned thanklessly up a pole for half the evening, declaimed forcefully as the Herald.

The path was clear for Semyon Bychkov to make this a conductor's night, and he did so with great care and style and attention to detail. It wasn't flawless - the Vorspiel dragged a little, there were some split notes in the brass, and once or twice some drama was sacrificed for structural symmetry. But these are niggles - the orchestra played beautifully and with great discipline for Maestro Bychkov - definitely one of the finest performances of the season.

This and this alone persuades me to return for another performance later in the run. Possibly with my eyes shut though.

**************************

*******  lots more photos over teh page!!!  *******

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

Comments

[Opera Goer]

Agreed that save for the odd fluffed note in the brass and a few missed notes from the singers, this was one of the better nights at Covent Garden, musically speaking. But you didn't mention the appalling German pronunciation from some of the cast - very distracting such that several points I thought it had been translated into Dutch or something :-) The noisy audience were also rather irritating, at least from my seat in the stalls (e.g. lady arriving late and clattering into her box half a minute into the prelude, mobile phone ringing at more or less the same time, general talking, loud coughing and rustling of sweet papers, farting (!), etc.) Sometimes I wonder why people seem to think that although they can hear a whisper from the stage, nobody else in the theatre will be able to hear them making a noise at all!

[Elijah Moshinsky]

You are right and we had cracked this joke many times between us in rehearsal.In an Empty Space production you need thorough preparation to register the shifts of mood and thought which were at the core of this when new.We had 4 chorus calls..Justa panic rush to place everybody.No lighting or tech time,artists and alternates suddenly coming and going.A leading lady who was no Helen Mirren and did know the role and didn't want to go into it.A conductor who never paced to the drama of a scene but to some odd othermusical dimension too slow to sing too or to maintaina human motive.30 minutes of tedious music added that wagner had himself cut out and the fact is...you can't blame me that it it is 32 years old.It is.When premiered with the young sexy Rene Kollo and the young Haitink rehearsing it as a nuanced play it was wonderful.
The costumes are not historic or indeed referenced to German gothic.Ivan the terrible and the the Teutonic knoghts from Nevsky formed the the picture.
Attavistic religion and totemism.Taboo and dread but under these circumstances a bloody miracle we got through it.We had physical light deft performers who could register the fear of the dark side of man...not singers.
You think you are disapointed...what were we to do.You seem always to cast me as some negative force behind these events ...the truth is you are watching credit crunch revivals and expensive new productions.You wantmore interesting direction..well guess what so do I andcan do nothing with this constant screwy casting.
Perhaps it will gel better later.Have you ever heard an orchestra so loud and vulgar in the prelude...

Elijah Moshinsky on behalf of a galllant production team

[Elijah Moshinsky]

I had genuinely hoped that my Boccanegra had been scrapped...but no,here we go again with no rehearsal time ,an ill matched cast and big stars giving no time.My aim is to do the best I can but don't mistake the age these revivals and the conditions as indications some kind o artistic wish for mediocrity on my part.
I don't know how the schedules are worked out and who decides when artists can come and go.You try to get results underthese conditions.It is convenient to have a scapegoat to take the blame for the rubbish but we have a systemic failure here.A Northern Rock in opera.
Elijah

[Elijah Moshinsky]

You have a point and we all joked about it ourselves.
THE PRODUCTION IS 32 YEARS OLD it has not been attended to technically at all.We had no lighting time or lighting designer.Singers arrived late.The leading lady did not know her part and an Empty Space production needs dtime to rehearse and explore.Buut we had 4 chorus sessions and 30 minutes of new music.
How can you create central purpose and detail under these conditions.
Elijah Moshinsky and a a gallant production team

[Elijah Moshinsky]

gotcha..blog spin...

[Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells]

So if this director thinks the Royal Opera House is so crap, and scorns his cast, why did he take the money ? These comments are so unprofessional, it's shameful.

[Elijah Moshinsky]

Because I invented the production and did the work.In the theatre we need to be backed bya system which allows theatrical work to occurr.These conditions do exist as they did a year ago but the blame is put onto the production team as if they soley created artistic mediocrity.The cast needed to rehearse properly for the adequte time and they would have probably done magnificently.I neversaid the opera house is so crap.I am saying that the financial collapse inside it has created a problem which looks like a deterioration of artistic possiblity.By the way I reduced pay.
Thecomments are neither professional nor unprofessional but the only way those of us trapped in the system can possibly get our bosses to pay attention to the artistic squeeze that they force us to take in their name.In the civil service or NHS it is called whistle blowing.We would like a more reasonable access to scheduling,apprpriate casting and decisions made without obeing told of the withdrawal,often abitrary of technical time or conditions.
We are fighting for a standard of co-operative managemant to save standards.

It is not shameful.It is all that is left for us to do.The management are not on the creative team.

Elijah

[JSU]

I'm partial to Botha, but his is a figure that demands something like the Met's Wilson production...

"not as effortlessly convincing as Klaus Florian Vogt's"

Also fitting this description: every other Lohengrin ever.

[Another opera lover]

I do agree with 'Disgusted'. Are we therefore to assume that Moshinsky will NOT be directing the revival of Simon Boccanegra in June/July 2010? There is no revival director listed in the 2009/10 Season Guide. It will be interesting to see.

[lightingdesigner]

Don't be too hard on Mr Moshinsky. He is right to be eternally frustrated by the short rehearsal time and the ludicrously inappropriate casting (Botha does look very silly indeed). Big name singers often withdraw themselves at the last minute from scheduled rehearsals thinking they know the role and the blocking of a production, only to mess it up for everybody in the few actual rehearsals on the stage. I am sad to hear that this trend is appearing at the ROH. I normally associated it with the big US houses and some of the crazier/illustrious European companies.

[inter mezzo]

Cher Elijah,

Nobody has enough time. Nobody has enough money. I sincerely doubt that the ROH is significantly worse than anywhere else in this respect. We all have to make the best of what we've been given and accept that not everyone will like it.

I can only describe what I see as a regular audience member. I am in no position to ascribe individual blame for the production's shortcomings - and I don't - so it beats me why you're taking this so personally.

Incidentally, I googled you, and it appears we share the same birthday.

Though I am of course much younger :)

[Ed]

Have not seen this production yet - will do very soon... but the fact you attended this first night means you missed out on the (so it feels) once in a lifetime event at Southbank - Argerich! Her performances are so difficult to put into words - the Times/Telegraph/Guardian have posted their latest attempts.. simply divine.

[Lavretsky]

Who comprised the gallant production team?

"We had no lighting time or lighting designer."

A lighting designer was credited so what became of him?