Mignon at Opéra Comique

Opéra Comique, April 10, 2010: Mignon (an opera by Ambroise Thomas)

Opéra Comique - the night of the premiere of Mignon

Conductor François-Xavier Roth
Director, Jean-Louis Benoit

Mignon, Marie Lenormand
Wilhelm Meister, Ismael Jordi
Philine, Malia Bendi-Merad
Lothario, Nicolas Cavallier
Frédéric, Blandine Staskiewicz
Laërte, Christophe Mortagne
Jarno, Frédéric Goncalves
Un serveur, Laurent Delvert

Accentus
Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France

Olivier Py recounts masterfully Les Contes d'Hoffmann

This DVD is a recording of the much praised Olivier Py's revisited production of Les Contes d'Hoffmann, shown last year in Geneva. I saw it only now, on DVD, and I can understand the rave reviews the production received from both the critics and the general audience.

It is a very traditional theatrical style but it is very well done. If you already experienced one or more productions directed by Olivier Py, you will recognize his peculiar manner to organize the sets through a system of moving scaffoldings, a structure that allows him to quickly change the scene and avoid any slowdown of the dramatic action. His clever way to fit the scene transformations with the text result in a flawless flow of the show. The traditionalists may be upset by Olivier's aesthetics, but they will be more than happy to see that he never drifts away from Jules Barbier's libretto. Personally, this is the only aspect of this show I don't fully appreciate -- lack of the surprising element.