La Traviata at The Royal Opera House

In the current season, the Royal Opera House has scheduled 22 performances of Verdi’s La Traviata, the tragic story of the doomed courtesan, Violetta Valery. Richard Eyre’s production with stage designs by Bob Crowley dates from 1994. Rodula Gaitanou was responsible for the current revival. At the beginning of the Prelude to Act I, one sees the seated Violetta, whilst videos of her as a young girl are projected as flashbacks. 

The gambling scene in Act Two was particularly effective. Because of the large stage, the final act, set in Violetta’s bedroom, seemed pretty bare. The production is classical and non-flamboyant and has always been an audience favorite. It is certainly more effective than Franco Zeffirelli’s extravaganza seen at the Metropolitan in New York although it is by no means as thought-provoking as Willy Decker’s innovative production seen initially in Salzburg and more recently in Amsterdam and New York. 

The two principal male singers were exceptional. Especially impressive was the glorious Italianate lyric tenor of Piotr Beczala. This Polish artist gave a wonderful portrayal and is certainly an Alfredo to be reckoned with. He sang with ardour and enthusiasm. His Lunga da lei (Out from her presence) at the beginning of Act 2 was one of the most outstanding renditions that I could recall. 

Alfredo’s father, Giorgio Germont, was sung by British baritone Simon Keenlyside. He certainly brought dignity to the role with his glorious sonorous baritone. He remained somewhat reserved, aloof and detached even in his final encounter with the dying Violetta. 

Completing the trio was Ailyn Perez, the American light lyric soprano who has sung this role with the Royal Opera on tour in Japan as well as the Vienna Staatsoper. She was a little unsettled at the beginning but mustered all her resources to give a masterful account of the fiendishly difficult E strano (how wondrous) from Act One. On occasion she had a tendency to swoop and glide to reach the higher resisters. 

Ms Perez rose to her greatest heights in her encounter with Giorgio Germont and in her passionate duets with Alfredo. There was palpable chemistry between the two lovers. She succeeded in bringing out all the emotional intensity and pathos of the aria Addio, del passato (Farewell to the bright visions) in the final act. 

Patrick Lange, chief conductor of the Komische Oper in Berlin, led a lively paced rendering of the score and brought out some lovely passionate playing from the Royal Opera House Orchestra. Especially impressive were the beautifully nuanced sweeping strings in the two preludes. 

This was the second of the three casts of this revival. La Traviata remains in the current repertoire until January 2012, when Anna Netrebko reprises as Violetta. That should prove to be a sure show-stopper. 

Fig 1: The staging of Act 2, Scene 2 in the Royal Opera production of La Traviata, © ROH / Catherine Ashmore.

Fig 2: Ailyn Perez (Violetta) and Piotr Beczala (Alfredo) in the Royal Opera production of La Traviata, © ROH / Catherine Ashmore.