Some Locals Got Cheated Out of Seeing 'Lucia di Lammermoor,' the HD Movie Opera

It isn’t often that an opera review also has some “news” to impart, but enough people were sufficiently put out by what happened, that it is worth a mention.  So here it goes:

On Saturday, March 19, soon after the the Metropolitan Opera’s HD film production of Donnizetti’s  Lucia di Lammermoor  started, the  transmission  broke down in one of two theaters showing the movie in White Plains’ “City Center Multiplex”— ironically it was the reserved-seat theatre, in which many viewers had purchased tickets well in advance.

To placate viewers, all patrons were issued refunds plus a free movie ticket. But a great number were truly disappointed because they so love the ill-fated Lucia and looked forward to famed Natalie Dessay’s descent into musical and thespian madness.

Gaetano Donizetti’s (1797-1848) Lucia premiered in 1835. The opera is based on the novel The Bride of Lammermoor by the very successful Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832,) which was published in 1819. The story itself is based on an actual tragedy of a forced marriage and its gory consequences which took place during the reign of Queen Anne (1702-1714.)

The present production, the brainchild of Tony Award winner Mary Zimmerman—which premiered in  2007— is set in Victorian times. So now we know that human nature doesn’t change that much if we make allowances for the extremes unconsummated love and mental illness can cause.

The young, fragile Lucia, (sung by Dessay who is deliciously agile, both vocally and physically) is in love with and secretly promised to the ardent, but impoverished  Edgardo (tenor Joseph Calleja). Unfortunately, the lovers are parted as he goes off on a political mission.

Possessed by the fact that the family fortunes are at stake, Lucia’s brother Enrico, (baritone Ludovic Tezier) forces her to sign a marriage contract with wealthy Arturo (tenor Matthew Plenk.) This is accomplished via intercepted letters and forged information that Edgardo now favors another. 

Edgardo returns, is shown the contract, decides Lucia betrayed him and leaves in a fury, cursing her.

There are further plot complications, but basically what matters is that Lucia, who has descended into insanity, kills Arturo on their wedding night. This gives rise to the ultra-famous “Mad Scene,” complete with its extremely challenging coloratura pyrotechnics and the dramatic shock of her bloodied appearance. 

Ultimately, Edgardo hears of her death and stabs himself in hopes of meeting her in heaven.

Dessay, who delighted the HD Movie audience last year with her winning performance as  La Fille du Regiment, thrilled us again  as the ill-fated Lucia. This was a pleasant surprise after the scathing review the New York Times gave her performance earlier this month. It accused her of playing the character devoid of the emotion called for, even claimed her voice has “thinned.”

The thundering applause at the Met itself and the reaction of the HD audience attests to neither being the case at this matinee. Dessay herself, during several interviews, explained that she had decided to “do less, in order to accomplish more.” She also mentioned not being sure that it was working. Well, she certainly must have changed for our performance. Possibly it was the close-up camera work capturing all the nuances that made the difference. The result: an extremely moving, inspired rendition.

The Met has a history of many highly successful coloratura sopranos, who “owned the part” in their time. We’ve all  been told about their bel canto achievements or heard great recordings of Galli-Curci, Pons, Callas and Sutherland. Vocally Dessay and her high Cs stand up to them all. Physically, we can be certain that none of them rolled their bodies down the last few steps of the obligatory “Mad Scene” staircase, as she so bravely managed.

Dessay’s miniature body size helped to underscore her fragility. Tezier, the nasty brother Enrico, happens to be very tall, so his mere size easily overwhelmed her delicate spirit.

And that leads me to admit that there are also male singers in this opera. The critical New York Times review accused Dessay of handing the earlier performance over to them by default. Here the balance assuredly was hers, but everyone contributed with ardor and splendid adherence to bel canto style.

The orchestra under the baton of  Houston’s Patrick Summers acquitted itself with its usual brilliant tonality.

The intermissions, besides containing informative interviews hosted by Rene Fleming, gave us a chance to experience the complexities of a repertory company like the Met. We witnessed the “folding” of the enormous Lucia sets, because this was the last performance of the opera this season and therefore everything had to be packed up and accounted for before going into storage.

Since it was a matinee, it all had to be accomplished within 3 hours in order to move everything in place for the opera offered that night. It was a giant undertaking in more ways than one!

Here are some comments from audience members who did see Lucia:

Rena Herz of Scarborough described the performance as “the best thing she has seen in years.” She noted  that the siblings are mentally ill from the start; that Lucia’s persona is defined as “a weak little thing” by her diminutive body type. “I love all kinds of music, from bel canto to Wagner, but I draw the line at Rock & Roll. My taste does not go that far.”

Ann Tourk of Hartsdale compared Dessay to Sutherland whom she considered “in a class by herself.” She then expressed that she prefers a beautiful voice to a great acting performance. “Of course, all things being equal, I love having both!”

Paulette Didato of Ossining was “moved to tears” and took specific issue with the New York Times review. “Dessay’s performance was marvelous both vocally and dramatically.” She mused that possibly Dessay reacted to the review and therefore “put in more body language.” 

Gloria Weil of New Rochelle “liked Lucia, but did not adore it.” She said she didn’t know whether or not she’d rush to see it again so fast. “I like Russian opera and everything by Puccini, for instance. I could see Tosca again and again but I recognize that I have to see an opera repeatedly before I fall in love with it.”

Christine Soper of Elmsford  “loved it”—thought Dessay “was wonderful,” but explained that this is not one of her favorite operas. “I prefer  Verdi, Wagner, Puccini,” she said. She used to attend the actual Met a great deal but now is reluctant to drive into the city. “These live HD transmissions are a gift for us all.”

Those who missed this Live  HD performance of  Lucia should make it their business to catch the encore on April 6.  It is worth it.