AT A time when society’s downturns are increasingly commonplace, dashes of feel-good optimism tend to be few and far between. For centuries, though, the arts have consistently and ingeniously trod the line between tradition and sophistication, innovation and intellectualism, with surprising and thought-provoking results that push our inner consciousness to far-fetched realms, becoming a no-brainer when seeking a soothing respite amid the world’s frantic chaos.

For Hugo Marchand, the art of dancing felt like a tool he could use to mould his freedom. “As a kid, I remember being in the studio, realising that my body was going to be a tool to express feelings,” recalls Marchand, laughing and talking with a gently poised demeanour like we’re in the back row at school. “While growing up, you become acquainted with the fact you have a body and you feel differently about it. That was the first thing that struck me strongly: that I had a body I could use, and within myself, I was triggered that this was going to be a tool of freedom.” 

_{Photograph: Alessandro Lo Faro}

Hailing from Nantes – a small town nestled in Western France – and now based in Paris, Marchand glimmers with an electric energy. Approximately a few minutes in, I’m already besotted with my interviewee. “I began dancing when I was nine years old, and previously I took circus and gymnastics classes,” he offers, as we begin to settle into our conversation. After four years at the Conservatoire de Nantes, Marchand joined the Paris Opera Ballet at 13, living in a boarding school which he deemed “challenging.”

“I feel very grateful, because the Paris Opera school is free as it’s a government-owned institution, and I would have never been able to join if it wasn’t publicly-funded,” he freely admits. “I did four years there, and I was lucky enough to be hired in the company when I was 17.” Marchand confesses the hierarchy and complexity present within the company’s ranks, detailing how one has to go through all of these to become a Principal dancer.

_{Photograph: Alessandro Lo Faro}

“You have an exam every year, a contest you have to pass which is quite complex because the Paris Opera has 154 dancers, not one more,” he says. “If you want to achieve the rank above you, you need to wait for a place or that someone retires in order to be promoted.”

Following a performance by La Sylphide, in which he took on the role of James on the stage of the Bunka Kaikan in Tokyo (Japan) on March 3rd 2017, he was named danseur étoile. “I wasn’t scheduled to attend the trip, but I did because one of the dancers got injured two weeks before going,” he opines. “La Sylphide is a very romantic ballet, and after the first performance, I got nominated.” 

As a dancer with a wealth of artistic feats under his belt, I couldn’t help but wonder how the past year was. “Very challenging and packed!” he grins, with cheer. His season began in September when he danced William Forsythe’s at the Paris Opera. Moreover, Marchand has starred in a ballet titled The Blake Works (choreographed over James Blake’s music) and Mayerling: a historical ballet by Kenneth McMillan that is daunting because the main character, Prince Rudolph, goes through a sad plot.

_{Photograph: Alessandro Lo Faro}

“He was a crazy man who got a disease, and he had to take morphine to deal with the pain,” he explains. “Moreover, the character has very complicated yet violent relationships with women: he ends by committing suicide with the last lover Mayerling, who is a city in Vienna, in Austria. This is a very famous story across Central Europe, but not very known in France and Italy. It’s a really incredible ballet that I loved dancing.” Marchand has recently rehearsed alongside Mats Ek, a modern choreographer that he’ll be working with in April 2025. 

Marchand is an artist of great poise and sheer gratitude: a feeling I sensed when he touched on the importance of mentorship. “I would say that Manuel Legris has been really the strongest example for the Paris Opera and myself,” he admits, “because we’ve been seeing him dance for so many years. All the Nureyev versions are mostly danced by Legris, and it’s great to be in Milan because I’d never worked with him.”

_{Photograph: Alessandro Lo Faro}

Marchand admires dancers Rudolf Nureyev and Nicolas Le Riche, to whom he’s very drawn from a technical and emotive perspective. “[Le Riche] was always very human in the way he embodied characters on stage,” he opines. “Never too much, but always with strong inspiration and taking risks.” 

Risks, then, with a wealth of determination for the taking were the elements that helped him navigate through the ranks amid a pool of talented artists. “I just followed my path and tried my best time after time, but I wouldn’t consider my career extraordinary,” he says, nodding his head without signs of peacocking braggadocio on display.

“When I was in the ranks in the company, I felt the urge to go out of them because it was a race about who would make it first,” Marchand reflects. “Once you’re a Principal, your role lasts for 15 years; so if there’s an available spot you need to take it and be ready for it. At first it was hard because I’m very tall, and my body is a bit different compared to the standards people see at the Paris Opera. I’m quite muscular, and I would be too visible in the corps de ballet. I was worried about that, but I actually discovered that it was a strength because I could dance with many different artists.”

_{Photograph: Alessandro Lo Faro}

On career challenges, he speaks with unguarded honesty. “Injuries spark many doubts within you, and when you have so much pressure and feel the stress sometimes you wonder whether you’re going to make it, if you’re talented enough, if you have what’s required to be an interesting artist so you can have big moments of doubt. It happens very regularly.”

It’s not all doom and gloom though; artistically speaking, Marchand’s talent is tinged with a positive air, with his impassioned identity providing weight and the slightly-potent confidence pulling all his qualities into sync.

Moving on to lighter territory, Marchand will debut in Milan’s Teatro alla Scala premiere of Nureyev’s Nutcracker, alongside the company’s Principal dancer Alice Mariani on December 18th. “The Nutcracker is a big deal for me because it’s the first role I danced as a soloist at the Paris Opera,” recalls Marchand. Back then, he was a coryphée (leading dancer in a corps de ballet) and he jumped into the role to dance with first soloist Melanie Hurel. “I remember that being a very stressful experience, and that before the last pas de deux I wanted to die,” he offers, chuckling between sips of water.

“After dancing my first show I felt so much anxiety that I kept thinking that I made a mistake, that I’m not made to be a dancer and all that,” he says, pausing momentarily. “After the second performance, though, I remember that during the pas de deux the music felt so beautiful to my ears that something let go and I began to take pleasure in the chasses, where I found a sense of freedom.” 

_{Photograph: Alessandro Lo Faro}

It’s exactly the reason why Marchand has a strong affection for this version of The Nutcracker. “It’s not about sugar-sweet vibes or little princesses: the ballet is much more complex than that, and the performances are much deeper and more meaningful. What I love about this version is that there’s a very psychoanalytic way of seeing things, because Clara is changing through the whole ballet; she’s a young girl discovering all her femininity and sexuality, while becoming a woman.”

Rudolf Nureyev always twisted the plot somewhere, and that’s a point of this Nutcracker Marchand feels it’s interesting because it shows how complicated the relationships in families can be. “It’s interesting to see that Drosselmeyer was a prince who is not just a charming person, but someone who will take Clara on a trip to help her discover herself. I love this version even though it’s very challenging technically, and musically with tricky patterns, but I’m really happy to dance with Alice as it’s the first time we dance together.” 

The duo met in January, the last time Marchand paid a visit to Milan to take a class and see the company. “After two days, Legris asked if I wanted to come and dance in a show next season,” he says. “That’s how the Nutcracker came about, and I’ve been waiting for this moment for a few months now.” 

Marchand feels “lots of pressure and very honoured as well to be invited to La Scala, because of how prestigious the institution is.” 

_{Photograph: Alessandro Lo Faro}

An institution that never lacks in ambition, which will see him partnering with the brilliant Alice Mariani, Principal Dancer at Milan’s Scala who completed a mesmerising performance of Balanchine/Robbins’ triptych a few weeks back. “I was five years of age when I started dancing, and as a very bubbly kind I was always running around to free-up my energy,” Mariani reminisces. “I started ballet and I’ve loved it since day one, so it felt like an awakening to me: there were mornings when I woke up, waiting for that hour to come.” 

Mariani’s ballet teacher advised her parents to take her to La Scala’s academy, a place where she didn’t know what to expect. “I didn’t even know what being a professional ballet dancer meant, and the beginning was quite hard because coming from a private ballet school and getting into the academy is no mean feat: the discipline, the rules like you had to be always silent and bow when the teacher was making her way in were quite shocking,” she says. 

However, her then-mentor Tatiana Nikonova saw something in her. “I joined the school at 13 to then graduate in 2011, and then moved to Dresden for 10 years; but then, I felt the desire to come back home and to join La Scala.” 

_{Photograph: Alessandro Lo Faro}

The first time Mariani saw The Nutcracker, she was shocked. “When they told me I had to do it, even more!” She exclaimed, “because I think it’s one of the most challenging ballet there is in the classical repertoire. For myself, I find that there are many ballets that are very hard, technically. But in a way, in this one you have to be very clean because there are some steps like the assemblè – which isn’t very hard – where if you don’t cross your legs enough it looks terrible.” 

The first time Mariani met Marchand in January, she had a winsome feeling about the artist. “I actually said it to people when he came, and I didn’t even know he was rehearsing for The Nutcracker and he probably didn’t even know,” she says. “I think we’re missing a dancer like him at La Scala, so I think it is an amazing opportunity for Milan, for our theatre, for us dancers to work with someone like him. And also, he’s such a hard worker too, fully committed to his role.” 

Turns out that Marchand’s least favourite roles fall into place when there’s a lack of honesty. “What is very hard for me to interpret is when the story is not true, if I don’t believe in the story myself, or if I don’t find my character real enough,” he admits.

_{Photograph: Alessandro Lo Faro}

“There are some roles in which I feel dumb in,” he says. On the flip side, though, he’s fond of the impassioned characters within Manon, La Dame aux Camélias, Onegin or Mayerling. “All these roles are very strong and allow you to share many different emotions,” he opines, “while showing all the skills of how theatrical we can be, because we’re like actors.”

Today, Marchand is aware of how the passing of years has changed his creative persona. “Well, I’ve been seeing myself changing a lot and it’s very reassuring, because changes are reassuring to me. It shows that we are moving on and we’re always improving,” he says. “Because if you don’t change and you find yourself doing the same things always the same way, what’s the point? You just repeat yourself all over again.”

_{Photograph: Alessandro Lo Faro}

On days off in Paris, Marchand enjoys a glass of wine with friends, connecting with nature, meditating and filling his life with other things than ballet. “Otherwise, we’re always staying the same!” He says, “so we need to have other experiences in life: love, pain, joy, disappointment, freedom—things that need to be explored, so that we can live them through the characters we bring on stage.” 

What will he do at 42, when étoiles are contractually obliged to retire? “Drag!” he wildly cackles, past our allotted interview time. “I’m joking, but I’d love to try once,” he concludes. “On a serious note, I’d love to still be on stage as an actor or as someone telling stories. I feel like storytelling is what I love the most about my job right now.” Retirement isn’t imminent though. Until then? “I hope to keep expressing freedom and love through my art.” And just like Marchand, I very much hope the same.

by Chidozie Obasi

Photographer: Alessandro Lo Faro (@alessandrolofaro.archive)

Stylist: Chidozie Obasi (@chido.obasi)

Hair: Gaetano Pane (@__mr.bread__) via (@julianwatsonagency)

Make up: Sofia Foiera (@sofiafoiera) via (@blendmanagement)

Set Designer: Irene Coveri (@pennyennyemmy)

Head of Production: Jessica Lovato (@jessicalovato_)

Fashion Coordinator: Davide BeloO (@coccobeloooo)

Photography assistant: Pietro Dipace (@_jamas_)

Styling sssistants: Isabella Petrocchi (@isabellapetrocchi) + Lilly Padilla (@lillympadilla)

+ Veronica Vaghi (@vaghiveronica) + Clara Bacetti @clabacetti + Linda Ripa (@lindaripaa)

_{Clothing Credits:}

_{Look 1: GIORGIO ARMANI}

Look 2: PRADA

_{Look 3: Top PHILOSOPHY DI LORENZO SERAFINI | Shorts GIVENCHY | Earrings ALICE’s OWN}

_{Look 4: Blazer BOSS | Trousers PAUL SMITH}

_{Look 5: Jacket GIVENCHY | Trousers JIL SANDER}

_{Look 6: Hugo Top PAUL SMITH | Trousers GUCCI | Alice Dress TOD’S | Skirt DOLCE & GABBANA}

_{Look 7: Top, skirt MARNI}

_{Look 8: Coat ACT N.1 | Tank DOLCE & GABBANA | Trousers HERMES}

_{Look 9: Jumper HERMES | Shirt MOSCHINO | Pins LOUIS VUITTON}

_{Look 10: DIOR MEN}

The post Inside Hugo Marchand’s pursuit of expression first appeared on The Glass Magazine.

MILAN, ITALY – After Balanchine/Robbins’ great success at Milan’s La Scala and all the principals involved in the three 20th-century masterpieces, the Ballet Season has drawn to a close.

But the city’s buzz continues apace, ready to immerse in the Christmas atmosphere and in the lights, but also in the shadows of Rudolf Nureyev’s Nutcracker. Set to open the new Ballet Season 2024-2025 and return to the stage from 18 December to 12 January 2025, anticipated on 17 December by the customary Preview for young people, has already sold out like all the replicas.

_{Photograph: Brescia e Amisano ©} 

_{Photograph: Brescia e Amisano ©} 

A welcome return of one of the most interesting and technically demanding ballets in the classical repertoire, but also an important occasion to welcome the La Scala debut of Hugo Marchand, étoile of the Paris Opéra, and many of the protagonists who have illuminated the 2022/2023 performances in the role of Clara and the Prince/Drosselmeyer as Nicoletta Manni, Martina Arduino, Alice Mariani, Agnese Di Clemente, Timofej Andrijashenko, Claudio Coviello, Nicola del Freo, Navrin Turnbull and the debut in January in the title roles of Camilla Cerulli and Marco Agostino. 

Hugo Marchand will open the performances with Alice Mariani (17, 18 and 20 December 2024); Agnese Di Clemente and Claudio Coviello will be on stage on 29 December 2024 and 4 January 2025; Nicoletta Manni and Timofej Andrijashenko will dance on 31 December 2024 and then the evenings of 3 and 5 January 2025.

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The afternoon of 5 January and then the evenings of 9 January will be the performances of Camilla Cerulli and Navrin Turnbull and on 7 and 11 January Marco Agostino and Martina Arduino. Virna Toppi and Nicola Del Freo will be given the final performances on 10 and 12 January.

Alongside them will be the Corps de Ballet, which will shine in the Christmas dances and above all in the marvellous choreographic designs of the famous waltzes, the soloists of the numerous dances, the students of the Ballet School and the Academy’s Children’s Choir, and, on the podium, conducting the La Scala Orchestra Valery Ovsyanikov. 

by Chidozie Obasi

The post Rudolf Nureyev’s Nutcracker gears up to spark winter joy at La Scala first appeared on The Glass Magazine.

MILAN, ITALY—Never lacking in ambition, Milan’s famed Teatro alla Scala has arguably set itself a big challenge with its production of Verdi’s sprawling tragedy La Forza del Destino, opening again 59 years after its previous staging. 

The opera was written during the middle of the composer’s career, and founded on a Spanish work by the Duke of Rivas. In the recent production that premieres for La Scala’s new season – a yearly tradition that falls into place on 7 December, in conjunction with St. Ambroeus’ celebrations – the opera brings in various elements with the centrifugal force that leans not only on one but two axes (namely, war and hope). 

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Yet it’s a mark of the strength of Leo Muscato’s direction, with a starkly atmospheric setting that sets the plot in a concentric wheel, holding up the thrill of the conclusive glimpse of redemption. The opera ostensibly exemplifies the power of fate, in a way that two lovers – Leonora (interpreted by Russian soprano Anna Netrebko) and Álvaro (played by Brian Jadge) – are pursued over the years by Leonora’s brother, Don Carlo, who is obsessed by his desire to avenge his father’s accidental death.

In addition to wanting to stain his family’s honour caused by his sister attempting to elope with a Peruvian man. Around them, war is taking place, cheered on by those profiteering from the havoc. 

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“This is an extremely complex opera,” explained Director Leo Muscato, “an opera that already from the script the libretto maintains a layered complexity. The acts are divided in different days, and each day is distant from one another, sometimes even years apart. The matter of this play is well-rounded, and we’ve tried to make it even more complex but with the sole objective of trying to tell this story that could also be exciting for the viewers who come to see it because of its background, which is the conflict. Right from the first scene, the war is only mentioned in our version, but it’s the key fil rouge, let’s say.” 

Verdi’s piece highly resonates with the global turbulence that is currently shaping the world’s conflicts. “In the opera, Verdi has also poured elements of hope in it, especially in the very last moments of the finale,” offered Muscato, explaining how “Leonora gives Alvaro the chance to forgive himself, and when he does, there is a change of melody and a change of harmony in which he finally says to Leonora how much he’s redeemed. In short, we hope to be able to give this emotion to the spectator because it is a very dramatic work, it is an epic tale, a historical one as well, which fortunately alternates dramatic scenes and also funny scenes in some cases, but in the finale fortunately has an element of hope that we push to emphasise.” 

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From American tenor Brian Jagde – who was brought in on short notice to replace German tenor Jonas Kaufmann, who dropped out due to personal reasons – to Ludovic Tezier and Anna Netrebko, leads were firing on all cylinders. “Success is the happiness of sharing this music with the audience and then, if it works, I’m happy because we shared a mutual experience together, brightly emphasizing the works of great composers.”

An emphasis that Dominique Meyer felt grounded in the very work of all trailblazing soloists. “To be able to tackle these roles, you cannot be a young man of 25,” concluded Meyer.  “So when we are lucky enough to have a generation of these artists, we can only thank God and the nature of things.” 

by Chidozie Obasi

The post Milan’s La Scala premieres Verdi’s sprawling opera La Forza del Destino first appeared on The Glass Magazine.

La Scala’s concertos are, for the most part, genre-bending performances that are apt to tie musicologists in knots. Most of them date from early years and were composed for gifted virtuosi rather than professional amateurs. Their impact can vary, but the meticulous way they’re conducted is as prominent as ever.

Alexandre Kantorow’s concerto is one example: the French pianist, who performed on La Scala’s stage earlier in November, released a beautifully shaped performance including Brahms’s Piano Sonatas alongside works by Bartók and Liszt, and proved himself as a classical interpreter of sharp insight and distinctiveness.

_{Riccardo Chailly. Photograph: Brescia e Amisano ©}

In the sonatas, it’s the dark, gothic, almost supernatural side to the pieces that come through notably strongly. Several times, Kantorow sends his left hand far down the keyboard, either echoing or working against a melody heard at a much higher pitch, and in his playing these bass-line mutterings come across as something unsettling, even incomplete.

_{Brescia e Amisano | Teatro alla Scala. Photograph: Brescia e Amisano ©}

In the loudest passages, he makes the instrument ring, drawing the maximum resonance out of all those vibrating quavers yet somehow still maintaining clarity and definition in each pause. In the softest passages, his playing has a beguiling, sometimes dreamlike sweetness. His skill is a whole world in itself, and Kantorow’s interpretations reckon fully with their scope; his pacing of the shorter movements rounds the work off in a completely convincing way.

His penchant for spreading out chords from bottom to top might be a bit much for some listeners, especially when teamed with how he creates a rhythmic tug back and forth between the playing of his right and left hands, making a small discrepancy in where the beat falls, but it’s all in the service of some beautifully fluid and beguilingly expressive playing.

_{Brescia e Amisano | Teatro alla Scala. Photograph: Brescia e Amisano ©}

Simone Young’s baton is a marvel: not only does she demonstrate the wonderful poise and triumphant elegance of Brahms in her conduction, but she projects a captivating synergy typical of the composer’s regality and tonal ubiquity. A regality transposed in her conduction of Ein Heldenleben, leaning on Strauss’ diaphanously light coloratura juxtaposed with the orchestra’s depth.

These elements make a sweet coupling, though these works are, in fact, portraits of Strauss’s know-how and expertise. Heldenleben mockingly pits thoughts of domesticity against the twists and turns of stardom, nicely directed here by Young’s precision and irreverence, which comes across as a striking Straussian in some capacity.

_{Brescia e Amisano | Teatro alla Scala. Photograph: Brescia e Amisano ©}

The multiple ironies of Heldenleben are superbly caught, though the emotional rigour of her interpretation lies in an equally rigorous account of the touchingly beautiful treatment of the finale. The orchestral sound is lean and sinewy; it’s not for those who like their Strauss uber-opulent score. That this is deliberate, however, is born out by the warmer orchestral colours that Young adopts for her regal yet imposing performance of this season’s Heldenleben. 

Reimagining Verdi’s great tragedy of guilt, obsession and the reckless nature of fate in terms of 20th-century military conflict and its aftermath, Leo Muscato’s 2024 staging of La Forza del Destino returns to La Scala for its first revival, conducted by Riccardo Chailly. The show opens the Teatro alla Scala’s 2024/2025 Season on Saturday 7 December.

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The opera will be sung by Russian soprano Anna Netrebko (Donna Leonora; the part will be sung on 28 December and 2 January by Elena Stikhina), Brian Jagde (Don Alvaro), Ludovic Tézier (Don Carlo di Vargas),  The direction is by Leo Muscato, with sets by Federica Parolini, costumes by Silvia Aymonino and lighting by Alessandro Verazzi.  The opening evening is dedicated to Renata Tebaldi on the twentieth anniversary of her death.

The artist was a splendid performer of the part of Leonora at La Scala in 1955 under the baton of Antonino Votto.  The opera will be performed in the 1869 version reworked by Verdi for La Scala, according to the critical edition edited for Ricordi by Philip Gossett and William Holmes in 2005. Every year, the performance will be filmed by Rai Cultura cameras and broadcast live on television on Rai1 and radio on Radio3. The Premiere will be preceded on Wednesday 4 December by the Preview for the Under 30s and followed by seven performances on 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 28th December 2024 and 2 January 2025. 

The opera marked the conjunction between Giuseppe Verdi and La Scala after the rift that had occurred with Bartolomeo Merelli at the premiere of Giovanna d’Arco in 1845. Verdi would no longer write a new opera for the Milanese theatre until Otello in 1887, but he did make substantial changes to the score of La Forza presented in St. Petersburg in 1862.

In the 19th century, the opera would only be revived in 1871 and 1877, with Franco Faccio conducting. It was Arturo Toscanini who revived the title in the new century with a performance in 1908, and then in 1928 with a new production designed by Giovacchino Forzano. The sets, by Edoardo Marchioro, were also the backdrop for productions directed by Giuseppe Del Campo (1929, 1930), Gabriele Santini (1934), Gino Marinuzzi (1940), Victor de Sabata and Nino Sanzogno (1943).

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After the war, the first conductor to bring La Forza del Destino back to La Scala was Victor de Sabata in 1949, again alternating with Nino Sanzogno. Particular affection for this title was shown by Antonino Votto, who directed it in 1955 with Renata Tebaldi as Leonora and Giuseppe Di Stefano as Don Alvaro, and again in 1957 and 1961. In 1965 Gianandrea Gavazzeni chose La Forza to open the season, the direction was by Margherita Wallmann and the sets again by Nicola Benois.

The cast of 7 December sees Ilva Ligabue, Carlo Bergonzi, Piero Cappuccilli (replaced from the second act by Carlo Meliciani), Nicolai Ghiaurov and Giulietta Simionato for the last time Preziosilla at La Scala after four productions. Luciana Savignano, who has recently joined the La Scala Ballet Company, is also among the solo dancers.

After opening the 1965/66 season, La Forza del Destino returned to La Scala in 1978, conducted by Giuseppe Patanè and directed by Lamberto Puggelli. The sets of this legendary production were designed by Renato Guttuso, who had already collaborated in the creation of three other performances at La Scala.

The cast was historic, with Montserrat Caballé, José Carreras, Piero Cappuccilli and Nicolai Ghiaurov. It took 21 years for the title to be revived, and it was Riccardo Muti who revived it under the direction of Hugo de Ana, who also designed the sets and costumes.

The protagonists include Georgina Lukács, José Cura, Leo Nucci and Luciana D’Intino, but also Alfonso Antoniozzi as Melitone. This same production would be taken on tour to Japan the following year, again with Muti on the podium: these would be the last performances of the 1869 La Scala version with the theatre’s ensembles.

La Forza also returned to La Scala in 2001, when the Mariinsky ensembles conducted by Valery Gergiev performed the 1862 St. Petersburg version as part of the Grandi Teatri per Verdi festival.

by Chidozie Obasi

The post From Strauss to Verdi, Milan’s La Scala teeters between wrathful darkness and riveting sweetness  first appeared on The Glass Magazine.

DAS RHEINGOLD, the first performance of the new Ring des Nibelungen, will be staged at Milan’s La Scala for six dates continuing in 2025 with Die Walküre (from the 5th to 23rd of February) and Siegfried (from the 6th to the 21st of June) and in 2026 with Götterdämmerung and two complete cycles.

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Simone Young is one of the most authoritative batons of this repertoire: she conducted her first Tetralogy at the Vienna State Opera in 1999, leading her to continued success in Berlin, Hamburg and this summer in Bayreuth. “Wagner had a clear idea of sound, which is sustained and transparent, rich yet so intense and the current cast interprets it ever so brilliantly,” she opines at the opera’s press briefing. 

_{Photograph: Brescia e Amisano ©}

_{Photograph: Brescia e Amisano ©}

The direction is by David McVicar, who after his triumphant debut at La Scala with Berlioz’s Les Troyens (2014), is back with new productions of Verdi’s Masnadieri in 2019 and Cavalli’s Callisto in 2021. This Ring, McVicar reflects in the interview in the issue of the Theatre Review, is an arc stretched to its conclusion. “It’s an opera that changes meanings according to the situations and circumstances, and we can only pull out the aspects one at a time, leaning on the power of myth,” he says.

“It’s a story that resembles a web of complexity and contradiction, a comedy that kicks in deeply”. Wagner changes profoundly throughout the opera: at first a revolutionary anarchist and socialist, then a disillusioned man who has accepted the failure of his youthful ideals. 

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Fundamentally, however, the Ring is a unified opera. It is a great representation of the world and humanity. The opera is also a great experience of love in all its forms, from the primal sexual impulse to the highest form of love, which is selfless compassion for other human beings and nature.

La Scala, during the 19th century, received Wagner’s operas with diffidence and repulse (the first one, which was badly received, was Lohengrin in 1973, two years after Bologna). In the 20th century, it became a musical and scenic reference point for this repertoire thanks to Arturo Toscanini’s Wagnerian fervour. 

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If there is a watershed work in modern music, it is Richard Wagner’s Tetralogy (case in point: The Ring of the Nibelung), of which The Rhine Gold is, as we all know, the first of the four panels. Driven by a veritable anxiety of re-foundation, the composer conceived these musical dramas as a totally new structure, free of the ties and constraints of patronage and performance context.

Wagner took to the extreme consequences a process of dramatisation and broadening of the boundaries of tonality already taking place, especially in post-Beethovenian German music. Through the mists of mythical distance, references to historical modernity also clearly transpire.

by Chidozie Obasi

The post How Wagner’s Das Rheingold projects old mythology and wistful drama to the modern day first appeared on The Glass Magazine.

From 8th to 20th November 2024, the show will pay homage to two trailblazers who have been a cornerstone in the world of dance: George Balanchine, with Theme and Variations and Jerome Robbins, with Dances at a Gathering that presents a beautiful ballet of great delicacy. The Concert, sparkling and witty in equal measure, will also be a fun piece for the audience.

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“For me it’s important to keep this kind of repertoire alight, and to take it further,” opines Manuel Legris, Director of La Scala’s Corps de Ballet. “I love giving as much information as possible to the dancers, as I also danced this back in the day, and all three ballets seem old but have so many refreshing aspects to them, likewise newness.” Legris reflects on how the ballet, despite being written decades back, is ever so modern. 

“If well rehearsed, it’s a great facet for the present day.” On its complexity, he speaks frankly. “The dancers are changing, and 2024 is not like 60 years ago; for sure the mentality and the work is different, but one needs to find the right approach to give them the sense of interpretation and sheer meaning.” 

_{Photograph: Brescia e Amisano ©}

Three classics of the 20th century, iconic titles for an evening that celebrates two undisputed masters and their utter modernity. George Balanchine with Theme and Variations, which returns to the stage in a brand new guise, signed by Luisa Spinatelli. Focused development of ballet’s vernacular, this masterpiece of Balanchine’s purest style was born from the intent – as the author wrote, to evoke the grandiose period of classical ballet, which flourished in Russia with the help of Tchaikovsky’s music. 

This will instead be the first time at La Scala for two of Jerome Robbins’ best-known ballets, both based on piano pieces by Chopin: Dances at Gathering, a feast of pure dance, inspired by the musical fabric and its nuances, and The Concert, a unique, ironic and brilliant cross-section of human reverie and extravagance, of a series of characters attending a piano recital.

_{Photograph: Brescia e Amisano ©}

The Balanchine-Robbins Triptych also marks the La Scala Ballet debut of Fayçal Karoui on the podium to conduct the Teatro alla Scala Orchestra. His extensive experience in ballet is reflected in his collaboration with the Hong Kong Ballet, and regularly at the Dutch National Ballet Amsterdam and the Vienna State Opera. Also making his debut was Leonardo Pierdomenico, who played the piano for Chopin in Jerome Robbins’ ballets not only in the pit but also on stage.

Showcasing a renewed look at three titles that are as much a part of history as their authors, this will stand as a reference point for the world of dance and the ballet world. 

by Chidozie Obasi

The post Balanchine-Robbins’ ballet gears up to spark delicacy and vibrancy on La Scala’s stage  first appeared on The Glass Magazine.

THE MOST eagerly awaited conducting debut of the season, but perhaps of recent years, is undoubtedly that of Berliner Philharmoniker conductor Kirill Petrenko who, in 2016 with the Bayerisches Staatsorchester, makes his debut with La Scala Orchestra’s six performances of Richard Strauss’ Der Rosenkavalier. 

The production is by Harry Kupfer born in Salzburg in 2014 and seen at La Scala in 2016 with Zubin Mehta conducting. Die Marschallin is Krassimira Stoyanova, who had already performed the part in 2016 with Mehta, among others, Simon Boccanegra, Aida, Ariadne auf Naxos, Messa da Requiem and numerous concerts.

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Alongside her in the role of Octavian is Kate Lindsay, who sings for the first time at La Scala after starring in the diptych dedicated to Kurt Weill conducted by Riccardo Chailly during the pandemic. Sabine Devieilhe, who made her La Scala debut as Blonde in Entführung conducted by Zubin Mehta in 2017 and returned in 2019 as Zerbinetta alongside Stoyanova’s Ariadne, who plays Sophie.

On the male front, Günther Groissböck proposes, after Salzburg and La Scala in 2016, his virile and swaggering Baron Ochs, epitomising an aristocratic character stranger to the refinements of the capital but not merely grotesque. The Italian tenor has the ring of Pietro Pretti, who has performed a repertoire ranging from the bel canto of Lucia di Lammermoor and Pirata to Verdi’s Un ballo in maschera, I Vespri siciliani and Rigoletto.

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The opera arrived at La Scala in 1911, in Italian, conducted by Tullio Serafin with sets and costumes by Alfred Roller, an innovator of the stage design of the Staatsoper conducted by Gustav Mahler and future founder of the Salzburg Festival together with Strauss and Max Reinhardt. The evening’s outcome was compromised by a substantial misunderstanding of the opera aggravated by nationalistic protests against the depiction of the treacherous Italian Valzacchi and Annina.

With characteristic pragmatism, the names of the characters were immediately changed to Rys-Galla and Zephira. The knight returned to La Scala in 1927 with Ettore Panizza on the podium (but Strauss himself conducted the revival in ‘28), costumes by Caramba and Conchita Supervía as Octavian, while Iris Adami Corradetti appeared fleetingly in the part of the milliner; Panizza again conducted the 1947 edition, in which Italo Tajo was Ochs and the costumes were by Lele Luzzati. 

The revolution came in 1952: Herbert von Karajan imposed the German version and an incomparable cast: Elisabeth Schwarzkopf is Die Marschallin, Otto Edelmann Ochs, Sena Jurinac Octavian and Lisa della Casa Sophie.

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The director is Karajan himself. Schwarzkopf and Otto Edelmann returned in 1961 with Karl Böhm and Rudolf Hartmann directing; with Christa Ludwig as Octavian and Anneliese Rothenberger as Sophie. The parade of excellent masters continued in 1976 with Carlos Kleiber conducting Evelyn Lear, Hans Sotin, Brigitte Fassbaender and Lucia Popp in Otto Schenk’s classic production. 

In 2003 Der Rosenkavalier arrived at the Arcimboldi with Jeffrey Tate conducting and Pier Luigi Pizzi directing: Adrianne Pieczonka and Cheryl Studer alternate as Marschallin, Ochs is a highly acclaimed Kurt Rydl, Octavian is Kristine Jepson and Sophie Laura Aikin.

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In 2011 La Scala presented, in a co-production with Madrid and Paris, a production by Herbert Wernicke with Philippe Jordan on the podium and in the principal parts Anne Schwanewilms and Camilla Nylund, Peter James Rose and Kurt Rydl as Ochs, Joyce DiDonato as Octavian and Jane Archibald as Sophie.

Zubin Mehta conducted the 2016 Salzburg Festival production revived today: in the principal parts Krassimira Stoyanova, Sophie Koch, Christiane Karg, Günther Groissböck and, as Italian tenor, Benjamin Bernheim. 

by Chidozie Obasi

The post With political savvy and a modern setting, Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier stands the test of time first appeared on The Glass Magazine.

CLASSICAL soundscapes steeped in popular culture references make for compelling experiences as hidden meanings and wider citations add depth to lyrics and draw admirers in. This is why, in a world where society’s troubling downturns are increasingly commonplace, it’s fair to say that nothing soothes you more than the power of music – allowing its potent resonance to flow into an irresistibly magnetic stream of emotion.

In a bid to adhere to a near-obsession with the endeavours of art, Scottish-born sensation Reece Clarke enjoyed indulging in the warmth of music ensembles while growing up. “Back in the day, the power of orchestras made my spine tingle,” Clarke reminisces, expanding on how those moments sparked something special inside him.

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From his early path as a dancer that helped to nourish his soulful lyricism, to important ballet roles at London’s Royal Ballet, his tenacity led to his appointment as Principal dancer in 2022. Throughout our interview, he humbly name-checks almost everyone who has helped him get to where he is today – especially family members – and now, Clarke’s efforts are undoubtedly paying off.

“Watching my older brothers perform as professional dancers gave me inspiration, and I have many happy memories leaving the theatre after watching them, trying to do the big jumps I had seen on stage,” he shares, with no signs of peacocking braggadocio on display.

Hailing from Airdrie – North Lanarkshire – Clarke used to travel on an overnight sleeper train to take professional ballet classes in London on a fortnightly basis. “Even though I was stepping into the unknown in many ways, I was very happy when I was accepted to train at The Royal Ballet School in London,” he nods. “Before graduating, I received the award of the Young British Dancer of the Year and the Lynn Seymour Award for expressive artistry, and was offered a contract with the Royal Ballet”.

As a man of great poise, staunchly driven and unapologetically focused, he managed to secure a great year under his belt. “It was everything I hoped for!” he exclaims, as we begin to settle into our conversation. “I had a chance to perform interesting roles, travelled the world and work with people I admire; in short, I feel educated as an artist and a human.”

_{Photograph: Tom J. Johnson}

_{Photograph: Tom J. Johnson}

Beyond ballet, Clarke was also drawn to other activities while growing up. “I think, if not a dancer, I would have become a football player or a tennis champion,” he recalls. “In my childhood, dance was just another after-school activity in a household of four boys, and I would play a 90-minute football match then go to a ballet class. This was the norm for me.” When he became a professional ballet dancer, the challenge of creating a role, expressing himself artistically through the body and unravelling new layers of this art form drew Clarke further into the craft.

With a portfolio that showcases his artistry in a myriad of iconic productions, portraying roles like Romeo in Romeo and Juliet, Prince Florimund and Florestan in The Sleeping Beauty, Prince in The Nutcracker, Count Albrecht in Giselle, Prince Siegfried in Swan Lake, it seems apt to ask what roles have resonated the most throughout his career.

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“I do have to mention Des Grieux in Kenneth MacMillan‘s Manon,” he opines. “The journey of this character has a very special place in my heart, and I was fortunate to perform it early on in my career; each time I have revisited the role I also got (a little) older, and I could bring real life experiences to it each time, adding layers to the drama and emotion.”

Clarke also credits the role of Onegin, which he will be revisiting in January in London with the Royal Ballet. “This role is also very special to me, as I discovered different qualities in my own artistic abilities since it happened to be one of the last performances I had before the pandemic hit,” he says, explaining how “I would constantly think back and feel those powerful emotions from those performances to keep that fire burning during difficult times”.

On the wealth of hardships encountered within his performances, he speaks candidly about the role that challenged him recently – that of Woyzceck on Kenneth MacMillan’s A Different Drummer. “The role was unlike any other I’ve performed, as dealing with themes of torture, violence, rage, jealousy at the same time as expressing vulnerability and sensitivity was such an emotional rollercoaster,” he says.

“My director Kevin approached me about the role and told me it would take me out of my comfort zone and be a challenge for me, to begin with, I questioned if I could take the role to the deserved level of performance, but I found my way in it. I’m so grateful to Kevin for guiding me to push myself when things don’t seem possible.”

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As one watches fully-fledged dancers negotiate their identities as lovers, friends, dwellers and enemies on the dance floor, they’re never asked how they feel. “The feelings I have when I’m on stage are hard to describe sometimes, but it can feel like complete euphoria,” Clarke asserts, his voice full of joy.

“Whether I’m able to tear up the stage and push my limbs to the maximum or take on a dramatic journey with other artists, it’s such a unique feeling and as many artists describe it, as an addictive experience. Months of work and preparation goes into a few hours on stage, and it’s such a rush to just let go and trust that the mind and body will unfold as they should. I feel so lucky and privileged to be able to do what I do and feel what I feel. I’d love to bottle the feelings I have on stage and revisit them when I’m old, sailing around on a boat somewhere.” 

Clarke is keen to unpack his rise to Principal, detailing the setbacks which, no matter what, helped in shaping his tenacious spirit. “Like many other dancers, when I first became a professional, the goal was to become a principal dancer in the quickest possible time,” he opines, though he feels his journey to Principal was just as it should have been.

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“Of course, the pandemic was a huge setback, training at home and trying to keep the fitness levels high without performing took two years out of a dancer’s career. But what I have been so fortunate about is that I’ve been given principal roles throughout my journey and for that I’m incredibly grateful.”

But in an industry that has witnessed the meteoric rise of dancers such as Mikhail Barishnikov, Rudolf Nureyev, and Carlos Acosta – whose tenacity Clarke is profoundly inspired by – the world of ballet is no mean feat: saturation constantly soars and precariousness reigns aplenty, with little permanent positions for emerging dancers in recent years.

Thus, one might wonder, how has he managed to stay afloat in such a challenging time? “I think resilience is one of my strengths, and also stubbornness,” Clarke freely admits. 

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There have been times when Clarke has questioned whether he could have kept performing at the level he expected from himself. But when these thoughts do happen, they stem from times of fatigue. “These moments may come when I’ve tried to stretch myself too much,” he says.

“There’s also been a huge element of sacrifice throughout my childhood and teenage years when I was training to hopefully one day become a professional dancer, which was also a mental challenge. But as I say, it’s built resilience, grit and stubborn determination which I think is vital in this career.”

Speaking of mental health, Clarke reflects on the fact that having interests outside of the ballet world avoids it becoming all-consuming. “I’m lucky to have the support of my family and have some of them near me in London. Sport gives me motivation and sparks that passion inside me.” But his real source of therapy comes from his dog. “Being with him in nature brings me peace and enables me to reconnect with myself and is a reminder that the simple things in life give me the biggest rewards.” 

_{Photograph: Tom J. Johnson}

It’s common knowledge that ballet holds the ability to be much more than a sequence. And even though Clarke has danced at coveted theatres and equally fascinating roles in his journey, the artist still had his sights fixated on L’Histoire de Manon’s glittering drama performed at La Scala alongside étoile Nicoletta Manni. The ballet can be attributed to its raw and impassioned portrayal of love.

“It really was one of the highlights of my career,” Clarke enthuses, explaining how great he felt performing at the iconic venue, with Nicoletta who he deems “a very inspiring dancer and an amazing human,” and being coached by Manuel Legris. “It was the most inspiring and heartwarming experience for me. We spent two weeks preparing for the performance, in both London and Milan and everything just clicked between Nicoletta and myself from the get-go.” 

As we wrap up, Clarke is currently sitting on the Eurostar making his way back to London after spending three days in Paris, where he prepared for a few gala performances that’ll fly him to Tokyo. “I will be dancing alongside Dorothée Gilbert, an etoile with Paris Opera and it’s our first time working together,” he notes.

_{Photograph: Tom J. Johnson}

“Then I will make my debut with ABT in New York at the end of October, in the Kingdom of the Shades, which I’m so excited about. It’s a dream to be asked to perform alongside this fantastic company and I’m sure it’s going to be a very rewarding experience. After this I have more gala performances in Zurich and then I will start my London season with Cinderella. But I think the highlight of my London season with the Royal Ballet will be Onegin, in which I will perform the opening night on January 22nd.”

We’re way over our allotted interview time but before Clarke leaves I’m dying to know if he has any exciting ventures ahead. “It was always my dream to become a Principal dancer and to also perform on stages around the world, and I’m currently living that dream,” he concludes. “Over the years I’ve become more and more intrigued with the acting elements of the roles I’ve performed, and this also has made me curious about the acting world!” Clarke grins, chuckling with a gleeful demeanour.

by Chidozie Obasi

Photographer: Tom J. Johnson (@tomjjohnsonphoto) 

Stylist: Chidozie Obasi (@chido.obasi)

Grooming: Michael Gray (@michaelgraymakeup) 

Styling assistant: India Terras (@indiaterrasx)

_{Clothing credits: Look 1: TOD’s | Look 2, 3: DIOR | Look 4, 5, 6: FENDI | Look 7: FENDI & BURBERRY | Look 8, 9: FENDI}

The post Reece Clarke on resilience, optimism and ballet’s soulful euphoria first appeared on The Glass Magazine.

Milan’s Teatro alla Scala is exploring what narrative dance can do, and it seems its streak of poignancy has been blooming with increasing velocity since L’Histoire de Manon’s staging back in July. What are the deep truths and clever parallels between 19th-century ballet and the modern day?

Ask John Neumeier’s woman, La Dame Aux Camélias, back at the famed Italian stage after seven years, which has been portrayed in many guises since Alexandre Dumas Fils’ novel was first published in 1848. Neumeir’s 1978 adaptation, revived by the Dutch National Ballet with Anna Tsygankova and James Stout as Marguerite Gaultier and Armand Duval, still bewitches with its remarkably fresh and absorbingly thrilling throughline.

Through Jürgen Rose’s staging and costumes, La Scala’s performance radiates a very lavish French 19th-century aristocratic atmosphere. Rose’s costumes are opulent whilst the stage is sparingly yet effectively organised and well-lit. A chaise, a mirror, an on-stage piano, some ample chairs: it’s simple, but worked well.

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The score moves from subtle to dramatic, drawn from Chopin’s solo piano works, concertos and the Andante spianato. Simon Hewitt is a soulfully-driven conductor, who avoids adding bombast in the most famous pieces and allows the listener to appreciate the melodies in a careful manner. It’s honey for sour ears: I was particularly touched by the first and conclusive piece played with vehemence and subtlety by Vanessa Benelli Mosell. 

Benelli Mosel’s brilliance, though, is to make the piano the heart of the story – with lead dancers translating it into dance form. That brings us to the actual drama, and what drama it is. Roberto Bolle and Nicoletta Manni conveyed this story of wrecked love with clarity. Dumas fils’ tale is well known: Armand falls in love with the courtesan Marguerite, who is slowly passing away from consumption.

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Once in love, they relocate to the countryside but Armand’s father disapproves and convinces her to abandon her lover to protect his family’s reputation. Armand, not knowing why she went, is fueled by despair and revenge that he humiliates her publicly. When the illness finally hits her, Armand is handed her diary by her maid. And that’s when the exhilarating, absorbing vein of the ballet unfolds: upon reading it, he discovers the truth that Marguerite never stopped loving him, leaving him heartbroken.

In full Romantic fashion, romance only works if dancers are fully committed. After a few moments of restraint in the first act, Manni grew into thralls of love helped by Bolle’s daring throws and lifts. Doing this with imposing costumes is no mean feat, but there were never times when they got stuck or had to be adjusted mid-move. Bolle’s character acted radiantly and love-struck, yet at the end his remorse felt formidable, showing he’s brilliant at delivering convincing steps through dazzling grand jetès en tournant.

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Manni, with her slender lines, played Marguerite with impassioned drama, initially resistant but ascending into a moving characterisation in the second act. Her pleading with Armand’s father in the second act was especially riveting, embodying a soulful plea for mercy.

The couple’s virtuoso dancing gave the audience much to swoon about, from the seduction to their last shreds of intensity. After all, Neuimer’s assorted dance lexicon is devoted to the continuous unfolding of tragic storytelling, which is why this romance works well.

In a remarkable final scene, Manni writes her last lines in a chaise placed at the back of the stage, tumbling forward and, later on, passing away while Bolle reads this last page facing the audience. Stellar technique, with a pleasing chemistry to match.

Neumeier weaves through the ballet as a play-within-a-play thread that has you in your feels. Other notable performances included Caterina Bianchi dancing in the role of Olympia, bringing vibrancy, warmth, and effortless command to her irreverent chassès; she hops on pointe with the same ease as walking.

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Also worthy of note was Virna Toppi—in the role of Prudence—who dances with astonishing freedom after returning from her first maternity leave, filling her character both with the radiance of her musicality and the thrill of her gestures. Impressive performances count those of Martina Arduino (Manon) and Nicola Del Freo (Des Grieux) mirroring a delicate movement, always elegant, full of delightful lifts and balances.

“As Director of La Scala’s ballet company, I’m excited for the return of this masterpiece by John Neumeier,” opines Manuel Legris, Director of Teatro alla Scala’s corps de ballet. “[I’m also excited] to show the audience three different casts in the main roles of Marguerite and Armand, first and foremost the opening one that sees together Nicoletta Manni and Roberto Bolle for the first time, our two étoiles, which seems to me a beautiful and symbolic occasion to inaugurate this return of the ‘Dame’ to La Scala.”

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He then adds how the ballet holds an important theatrical component throughout, as it “shines a beautiful light on the whole company, and on all the young artists who hand at this production for the first time.” Legris deems La Dame aux camélias a ballet that makes one grow artistically, explaining how he’s “happy that the new generation can be confronted with Neumeier’s style and that La Scala’s audience will have this new opportunity to experience a thrilling drama.” 

Seven years since her last performance, étoile Nicoletta Manni still cherishes her role in the production, speaking candidly and with utter excitement. “Last night, La Dame aux camélias returned to the stage after seven years since my debut,” says Manni in a preview.

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“I danced it with Roberto Bolle for the first time, a partnership that after last year’s Onegin is being consolidated. I’m particularly happy to play the character of Marguerite once again at this moment in my life: after such a long time, so many things have changed, new experiences happened, and for me it’s the birth of a new Marguerite because she’s a character that never stops evolving, and last night was my first evolution because after years I’m in her shoes again,” Mani says.

“She’s a particularly complex character because of her double personality: a heart that yearns for love but has a mask; a mask with which she presents herself to other people, but behind it hides a pure soul.” 

All in all, La Dame is a great ballet, portraying such a classic romance without plunging into stale melodrama. Albeit its initial constraints, its impassioned vulnerability is what makes it quite a feat.

by Chidozie Obasi

The post Glass recounts La Dame Aux Camélias’ absorbingly thrilling ballet at Milan’s La Scala first appeared on The Glass Magazine.

Teatro alla Scala’s symphonic season closes with Schönberg’s Gurre-Lieder, superbly conducted by Riccardo Chailly, and passionately sung. Pivoting between post-Romantic excess and contemporary experimentation, it’s a score that in many ways suits Chailly down the ground, and throughout he was formidably alert to the complexities of its soundworld. Yet, all the while steeped into its dramatic vehemence and metaphysical glory. 

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Gurre is the name of the castle where Tove—the woman loved by King Waldemar and killed by the poison of his jealous wife—resides: a love affair and wrathful death that dominates the first part of this work is followed in the second part by Waldemar’s rebellion against God, and then by the exhortation (also through the voices of a peasant and the jester Klaus) of the nocturnal wild hunt to which the king and his knights are doomed.

Eventually, the sunrise dissolves the nightmare. Schönberg conceived the entire cantata compositionally between 1900 and 1901, but in 1903 he interrupted the instrumentation at the beginning of the third part. He resumed it and finished in 1910. The first performance was conducted by Franz Schreker in Vienna on February 23, 1913, to triumphant acclaim. Milan’s famed Teatro alla Scala performed this work for the second time, more than half a century after their premiere in 1973 with Zubin Mehta on stage. 

Thought-provoking textures dominate the opening, as the affair between Wadlemar and Tove encompasses both a sheer awareness of transience and its troubled nature of a desire to transcend the grave.

The clatter of the then spectral journey was utterly thrilling, though Chailly’s ear for detail also allowed us to love Schönberg’s musical complexity at this point rather than let the passage decay into a racket. The Wild Hunt of the Summer Wind, however, in which the Romantic aural panoplies fade and fall as down rises, was remarkable in its crystalline evocation of a new sonic world.

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There were, in part, inconsistencies in the vocal parts of the performance. Camilla Nylund’s range can be thrilling, but her tone can also be steely. Andreas Schage’s opening piece lies quite low for a tenor, and he seemed a little uneasy.

His voice soon settled and by the end, he was breathtaking, both in the anger of his imprecations against God, and the rapture of his steadfast desire for Tove. The combined forces of Teatro alla Scala’s choir (conducted by Alberto Malazzi), and the choir of Des Bayerischen Rundfunks (conducted by Peter Dijkstra) sounded formidable, with a slightly uneven tempo in the very last section of the cantata. 

I’m not sure we needed an interval, which somewhat breached the momentum. The narration, too, spoken in German felt smooth in its context, delivered with considerable passion.

by Chidozie Obasi

The post Riccardo Chailly matches beauty and excess in Arnold Schönberg’s immense drama  first appeared on The Glass Magazine.

A FEW months after the summer pause, the ballet season resumes on September 25, with an undisputed masterpiece, John Neumeier’s La Dame aux camélias. Seven years after previous performances, a title exemplary of Neumeier’s predilection for narrative evening ballets and his conception of contemporary drama, created in 1974 for the Stuttgart Ballet and Marcia Haydée, to whom it is dedicated, returns to La Scala.

Neumeier turned to the novel by Alexandre Dumas’s son, written in 1848, a few months after the death of Marie Duplessis, whose story inspired Verdi’s Violetta in La Traviata. He therefore chose to draw inspiration from the novel and not from the play reworked by the author himself with a set design described as “Visconti-like” and Jürgen Rose’s beautiful and evocative staging.

_{Nicoletta Manni Roberto Bolle ph Brescia e Amisano ©Teatro alla Scala}

Because of its structure, the intensity and refinement of the choreographic writing, this ballet requires a high technical and interpretative depth. First and foremost from the protagonists: in the principal roles of Marguerite Gautier and Armand Duval, for the first time together in this ballet, La Scala’s étoiles, Nicoletta Manni and Roberto Bolle will perform together.

New partnerships for subsequent performances will occur as well, starring Alina Cojocaru with Claudio Coviellonew, and Martina Arduino with Timofej Andrijashenko. The body of music by Fryderyk Chopin, chosen by Neumeier for this production will be performed by Teatro alla Scala Orchestra and conducted by Simon Hewett.

_{repertorio La Dame aux camélias-.ph Brescia e Amisano ©Teatro alla Scala}

The plot begins with Marguerite Gautier dead. The contents of her luxurious apartment are about to be auctioned off. Curious visitors, buyers, acquaintances and friends of the deceased, including old Monsieur Duval, to examine the furnishings. A young man – Armand Duval – desperately bursts into the room and loses his senses. Duval recognises his son and lovingly supports him.

_{repertorio La Dame aux camélias-.ph Brescia e Amisano ©Teatro alla Scala}

Overcome by memories, Armand begins to tell his story. Thus begins John Neumeier’s La Dame aux camélias, immediately strongly affirming the originality and poetic sensibility of the author, one of the greatest living choreographers, an innovator and revitaliser of the genre of dramatic ballet. A

firm believer in the principle that “technique simply becomes the means of getting to the emotions,” Neumeier thus approaches the archetypes of the ballet or literary repertoire with a  curiosity that dissects psychological, intimate and sentimental dynamics and goes in search of the truth of the characters and their emotional development.

_{repertorio La Dame aux camélias-.ph Brescia e Amisano ©Teatro alla Scala (5)}

Here then, borrowing techniques cinema, in a montage of sequences between objective and subjective, and through the use of flashback, the fate of Marguerite Gautier is revived through the memory of Armand, the young man whom Marguerite loved but whom she had to give up.

It is duplicated, with a real dramaturgical coup, through the device of the “theatre within theatre” when, attending the ballet Manon Lescaut at their first meeting, Marguerite and Armand identify with the characters of Manon and Des Grieux. Thus continues with the revival of Dame aux camélias the relationship with the great choreographer that will see materialise in the coming season.

by Chidozie Obasi

The post John Neumeier’s La Dame Aux Camélias ballet returns to Milan’s Teatro alla Scala after seven years  first appeared on The Glass Magazine.

THERE’s something utterly bewitching about watching dance at a distance when everything seems so effortless. But arguably it’s more interesting to experience ballet up close, to witness the beads of sweat, the potent vein of endurance and the heat gleaming from the dancer’s bodies as they push themselves on. MacMillan’s moving creation for the Royal Ballet, now a timeless classic part of La Scala’s repertoire since 1994, makes the most of that proximity. 

_{Claudio Coviello. Photo: Brescia e Amisano}

For those who remember theatrical settings years back, there’s something of the same sense of thrill in L’histoire de Manon that strips human motivation to its core, revealing intention through the language of drama. The switch from casual to dramatic underpinnings is revealed from the start, with a depiction of a society built on the principles of avarice swathed by its miseries. But there’s more to the story.

Nutty aristocrats, eccentric dealers, capricious thieves and beggars: the ballet may be set in 18th-century France, but one could easily note the wealth of characters as a contemporary mimicry of the state of our times. Still, the ballet (like many of us, oftentimes) takes this ambience for granted. 

_{Myriam Ould-Braham and Claudio Coviello. Photo: Brescia e Amisano}

To wit: Manon is sixteen years of age, loves life and cannot resist the pleasure it offers her. Charming yet troubled, there’s something childlike about her, as she’s made up of nothing but instinct. Lingering on this louche momentum, two men will decide Manon’s destiny: the handsome scholar Des Grieux, and the rich, revolting Monsieur GM (interpreted by the alluring Massimo Garon).

Falling in love with Des Grieux, she remains truly attached to him, but she is incapable of living this love in destitution, while the manifold temptations of a luxurious life are at her fingertips. But GM won’t get his perverse pleasures denied and uses his wealth to lure her. Without even being aware of it, she leads a young man to degradation who then becomes a coward, a thief, and who kills for her. 

_{Myriam Ould-Braham and Claudio Coviello. Photo: Brescia e Amisano}

The depth and complexity of her character are no mean feat: in fact, one of the most fascinating aspects of Manon’s character is that there seems to be a constant thread of irrationality in her behavior. With a soulfully charged delicacy and nuance, at one moment she goes to live with Des Grieux, whom she loves, and the moment next she leaves him behind.

As MacMillan notes, the key to her behaviour lies in her background: a dignified family, but modest and soon reduced to poverty in the 18th century when fortunes are made and unmade with an increasingly capricious pace. Because in misery, one ends up losing all dignity–and Manon is extremely afraid of the latter. And the piece epitomises such ambivalence: The disparity between great wealth and poverty, in the France of the Age of Enlightenment.

_{Photo: Brescia e Amisano}

The reckless, moving virtuosity of the duets is breathtaking, and the scene in which the female protagonist is lifted with an intricate texture of movement is also searingly powerful when the characters come into their very own fragility while condensing a plethora of ambivalences into a single tableau. Plight, indeed, is the salient component.

For the closing night, Paris Opera Ballet étoile Myriam Ould-Braham brilliantly keeps her contradictions in place: innocent and seductive; realist and escapist; threat and a victim. With a freeing movement, delicate epaulements and intense control, she illuminates the men she partners (Claudio Coviello’s Des Grieux comes to life with her, though some technical steps—like the grand battement derrièrs—looked less secure than they often do), and is well supported by Christian Fagetti’s jaunty but despicable Lescaut, and the exceptional Caterina Bianchi as his spirited kept mistress, who imbued elegance, poise and frisky poetry in her role.

_{Myriam Ould-Braham and Claudio Coviello. Photo: Brescia e Amisano}

If the ballet’s narrative is engineered to cast its characters into a perennial void of darkness, dominated by a sexual villain, the foreign world it portrays pretty much mirrors the one it started from, only with a new spin. 

All three Manons, at different stages, touch greatness. Ould-Braham’s performance achieved radiance in Acts 2 and 3, conjuring a vast imaginative world of passion and pragmatism in which to love ourselves ever so dramatically.

La Scala’s performance was, then, a compounded mix of vision and myopia. As potent as it was patchy, simultaneously expressive and escapist, it was exquisitely performed and made for an adventurous entertainment. Seek it out.

by Chidozie Obasi

The post Glass recounts L’histoire de Manon’s glittering, tragic ballet at La Scala  first appeared on The Glass Magazine.