With twelve minutes of applause, standing ovations and a shower of roses for Anna Netrebko, audiences at La Scala in Milan celebrated the start of the season with Giuseppe Verdi’s opera “Macbeth” on Tuesday evening. Italian director David Livermore, who staged highly dramatic operas in a contemporary setting, suffered from booze and whistles.
“The tragedy of Macbeth does not take place in medieval Scotland. The ambition and ferocity of the hero can be seen in the terrible metropolis of our time or in the near future. Macbeth and Banquo are generals in suits and ties”, on the production of the Milanese daily“ Corriere della Sera ” Commented on. Heroes wear costumes inspired by 1940s fashion.
“The David Livermore directorial lives in two dimensions. The first performance is attended by the audience in the theater. Another dimension is being rediscovered through film and digital magic for the audience of Rai 1. Thanks to technological tricks, video games, micro-cameras inserted into interiors and virtual walls that are superimposed and mixed with concrete structures, what you see on stage is partly different from what happens live”, the Roman daily La Repubblica “” commented.
Austro-Russian soprano Netrebko, who dances in an elevator like a cage, a symbol of power, was excited about the premiere. “It’s a brilliant, modern direction that gets better with every performance. It’s a modern show that takes opera into the future,” said the singer.
Director Livermore reacted calmly to the criticism. “The uniform was not afraid of boorishness and censorship. We are proud of the show. The birth of something new is always a little painful,” explained the director.
With the opening of the season, Scala is celebrating her new beginnings, with the traditional premiere last year being canceled and replaced with a gala evening on television without audiences in theatres. “The whole theater worked with great enthusiasm at the premiere. We have done everything we can to guarantee the health of Scala employees and audiences,” emphasized Scala Director Dominic Meyer.
The evening’s star guests included Italian President Sergio Mattarella, whose seven-year mandate expires next February. The audience applauded the President for six minutes and called on him to accept the extension of the mandate. However, 80-year-old Matrela has repeatedly insisted that he is not ready for a second term.
Spanish tenor Placido Domingo also participated in the performance. “It’s amazing to be here. I made my debut at Scala 52 years ago today, it was an incredible feeling. La Scala is a unique theater and ‘Macbeth’ is an extraordinary opera,” Domingo said before the performance began, media According to reports.
“Macbeth” has already been performed four times at the opening of the Scala season, the last time in 1997. With this year’s production, Scala closed the trilogy of Verdi’s youth operas, starting the season with “Giovanna d’Arco” and “Attila” in previous years. With “Macbeth”, La Scala celebrated its 70th premiere on 7 December, the day of Saint Ambrose, the patron saint of the city of Milan. Prior to 1951, the Scala season was traditionally open on 26 December.
(Service – www.teatroallascala.org)
From: apa