Russian Verdi

Every now and then in my opera singing and spectating careers, I find one transcendent performance, one hauntingly memorable singer. Last night was one of those times.

Joined by my friend Peter (himself a former music critic for a major urban daily newspaper) and his partner, I heard the Kirov Opera from St. Petersburg, Russia, present Verdi's Otello at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts here in Washington. It was a rather odd production, with the staging and sets centered around a large lighthouse and a performance that opened with the lighthouse beacon shining painfully brightly into the audience's eyes.

The true beacon of the evening, though, was Irina Mataeva and her sensitive and beautiful portrayal of Desdemona, the unfortunate wife of Otello. Miss Mataeva is a very beautiful, slender, young woman, perfectly cast for the role. Her voice is powerful and dramatic, yet her acting skills and vocal nuance allowed her to be the vulnerable victim of circumstances. Her emotional pain could be felt, even when the production got in the way, such as in her fourth act "Ave Maria," when the production put her in an intenable location. In the immediately previous scene, though, her "Song to the Willow" was touching and compelling.

Avgust Amonov sang Otello and Edem Umerov sang Iago. Otello normally is a four act opera; the Kirov chose to combine acts 1 and 2 into one long act. It wasn't until the end of that long first act that I felt Amonov and Umerov's voices blended into a powerful dramatic force, but, alas, that was really the only time. Umerov spent his time skulking around and Amonov spent his time knocking things over. I enjoyed more the performance of Sergey Semishkur in the smaller role of Cassio, the young lieutenant Iago tries to set up as Desdemona's alleged paramour.

Valery Gergiev conducted the Kirov Orchestra. They were particularly fine, although Gergiev often had them playing at surprisingly loud volumes when singers were singing. It was an exciting orchestral performance, though, especially at the end of act 2 (the opera's act 3). While they did have a few problems in the opening choruses staying precisely together with the orchestra, the Kirov Opera Chorus was solid.

The concept for this production is unusual, and I still haven't quite figured it out. Male costuming seemed to be mid-19th century, whilst female lead costuming was early 20th century. Clearly, they were "updating" from Verdi's intended 15th century time frame. Verdi's direction also put the set by or in a castle. Here, a huge lighthouse dominated the upstage center, with long, white, stuccoed walls on the diagonal leading the eye along their V to the lighthouse. During the opera's opening storm sequence, the lighthouse beacon beamed very bright light into the eyes of the audience. When the action goes "in" the castle, a cherry wood desk and credenza with hutch that look much like office furniture from the "traditional" collection at Office Depot are added to the stage right half of the stage with a rather contemporary large "ceiling" light fixture suspended on a wire over the desk.

The final act of the opera is supposed to take place in Desdemona's bedchamber. The first portion ("Song to the Willow") takes place far stage right in front of a black backdrop in front of the curtainline. When Desdemona begins her transition to prayer ("Ave Maria"), she leaves that set, the stage left half of the black backdrop raises to reveal a close-up of the top of the lighthouse, and she emerges on what is a raised level above the stage on the lighthouse; Otello soon enters the lighthouse yet one more level above. Why? Exactly what the production designers wanted to accomplish escaped me.

I enjoyed the evening. The audience's reaction, though, I felt was oddly restrained and polite. During the curtain calls, Mataeva was the only singer greeted with cheers. A number of audience members chose to stand when Gergiev came on, possibly in tribute to the orchestra, but it did not seem a majority. As the principal cast all came on stage in front of the black backdrop and remained there for multiple bows, it was a little awkward, and I think I felt some impatience from the audience for them to exit more quickly than they did. Nevertheless, this is an interesting production, and there still remains a Sunday afternoon matineee for those who wish to see it.