Opera where you can lose the plot and just enjoy the show

Love triangle with many a twist makes a welcome return to Opera Australia’s stage.

Giorgio Caoduro and a backdrop video showing a bevy of silent Hollywood divas in Adriana Lecouvreur. Picture: Keith Saunders

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IF YOU can ignore the convoluted plot and the mind-bending approach to time, this otherwise satisfying drama of love, betrayal, jealousy and revenge is a welcome return to Opera Australia’s repertoire.

The love triangle at the centre of this opera is loosely based on the true story of Adrienne Lecouvreur, the popular Comedie Francaise actor whose mysterious death in 1730 Paris was thought to be the result of poisoning by a jealous rival, the Duchess of Bouillon, although there was no evidence to support this.

At its simplest, the plot concerns the romantic machinations of Adriana, her lover Maurizio, and his other admirer, the principessa. Complicating this is the barely suppressed desires of Adriana’s stage director, Michonnet, and the principessa’s husband, the Prince of Bouillon.

A further complication is the timeline: Dates displayed above stage before each act specify years ranging across roughly two centuries. True, there was a quote prominently displayed in the background suggesting that time has no place where love is concerned. Of course it does. Love personifies life; it can’t exist between the dead.

Despite all this, and I’ve barely touched on the complexities of the plot, there’s much to like about this spirited and inventive reimagining of Francesco Celia’s work, first performed in Milan in 1902.

Italian director Rosetta Cucchi gives us an opera that evolves from its original 18th-century setting to one with more contemporary images, including black and white film of actors from the early days of cinema, flickering soundlessly in the background while the present-day cast perform in the foreground.

Michael Fabiano as Maurizio and Natalie Aroyan as Adriana Lecouvreur in Opera Australia's new production of Adriana Lecouvreur. Picture: Keith Saunders

The first hitch was the discovery that the much-anticipated appearance of Albanian soprano Ermonela Jaho in the title role would not go ahead on opening night because she had a cough. Fortunately, Armenian-Australian soprano Natalie Aroyan stepped in at extremely short notice and what a stunning performance she gave.

She was highly focused, with a firm soprano rich in warmth and expression. She displayed excellent control, with a thrilling top register and a weight of sound capable of soaring above chorus and orchestra, seemingly without stress.

Her rendering in Act I of the opera’s signature aria, l’umile ancella, in which Adriana ascribes her acting talent to God, was a delight.

Confusingly, her lover has two roles: as Maurizio, an officer in the Count of Saxony’s army who, it turns out, is actually the count himself. Why the plot contains this, one of the many wrinkles therein, is anyone’s guess but US tenor Michael Fabiano was well up to the musical challenge.

The prince, in the reliable form of Australian bass Richard Anderson, is a jealous figure who conspires to arrange an assignation between his mistress and Maurizio, hoping to catch them in flagrante.

Anderson’s lofty figure has long been an engaging addition to many an OA production, most recently as Colline in the latest production of La Boheme.

Carmen Topciu as The Principessa injected pathos and venom. Picture: Keith Saunders

As Adriana’s rival, Carmen Topciu — last seen by Sydney audiences in the title role of Carmen at Cockatoo Island last November — deployed her accomplished mezzosoprano with focus and agility, injecting equal notes of pathos and venom.

Italian baritone Giorgiia Caoduro, as the besotted Michonnet, gave us a thwarted lover frustrated at being unable to divert Adriana’s attention from Maurizio, although she does turn to him in the poisoned posy scene in the last act. Even then, she imagines herself to be in Maurizio’s arms.

Some of the minor characters made the most of their roles, particularly Italian tenor Virgilio Marino, who, as the prince’s abbé, was a study in grasping sycophancy and moral elasticity.

There were occasional flashes of humour and set designer Tiziano’ Santi’s inspired designs contributed well to the flow. Much of the action took place as if the audience was behind the curtain, with performers heading back through it to address the phantom theatregoers hidden beyond.

I don’t normally care for dance routines in opera because they contribute so little to the plot although they may add something either to the music or the atmosphere of the proceedings.

I’m making an exception here for Brendan Irving, described in the program as a aerialist, although he is also an actor and singer. In a fascinating acrobatic display, he used what looked like red silk streamers suspended from the roof to climb, swing and display alarmingly flexible poses with an agility and poise we mere mortals can only envy.

The chorus provided consistently strong support and conductor Leonardo Sini swept the orchestra along with characteristic flair and impeccable timing.

Pity about the plot but it’s hard to fault the cast for talent, energy and sheer appeal.

DETAILS

• OPERA: Adriana Lecouvreur

• STARS: Natalie Aroyan, Carmen Topciu, Michael Fabiano, Giorgio Cauduro

• AT: Sydney Opera House

• UNTIL: March 7

• BOOKINGS: 9250 7777, www.sydneyoperahouse.com