Social distancing in this case must be taken literally, and at all levels. The distance must be respected by both the Royal Opera House in Madrid Royal Theatre visitors and Giuseppe Verdi Traviata production participants. This means that in this version Alfredo must never touch Violet – two meters, darling! – and it makes the story even more painful and tragic than usual. Physical distance emphasizes the heroine’s isolation, the theme of human misunderstanding and alienation. The fateful two meters show how close and at the same time how far apart we can be.
Fear is overcome
Royal Theatre is one of the first large opera houses in the world, which, returning to life after quarantine, from July 1, delights the audience not with concerts, but with something as close as possible to a theatrical adventure. Made in Madrid Traviata is something between a show and a concert version. Director Leo Castaldi has come up with an original concept that meets the requirements of a pandemic period. Violet will not be able to die in Alfredo’s embrace, but music will help to overcome the emotional-psychological distance – the tension created by Verdi and the strong feelings conjured in the sound will bring the lovers closer.
“Music doesn’t know what isolation is, and we’ve created a production that will hopefully delight the audience,” promises Leo Castaldi. Each singer is given an area of two square meters on stage. “It’s an island from which each soloist transmits the emotions of their role,” explains the director.
“This is a historic moment. We have finally overcome fear and are together again,” a few days ago Traviata Marina Rebecca said at a news conference in Madrid. His last performance before the “explosion” of the coronavirus – Vincenzo Bellini The norm At the Hamburg State Opera – she sang on March 11. The next day the theater was closed. Marina Rebecca gladly accepted the offer to sing Violet in Madrid. “Traviata has played an important role in my career. This is the very first opera I sang on stage in 2007. Since then, I have participated in eighteen different productions. Traviata is also the first opera I have recorded and produced in my company Prima Classic (The album recorded in Riga was released in 2019 – not a word). Traviata is an opera about love and about living in love. This is a wonderful job to return to life after this long break, “Marina Rebecca told reporters in Madrid.
Five Purple 27 in the evening
It was originally planned that the public in Madrid would see the famous minimalist Traviata Anna Netrebko, Rolando Willjan and Thomas Hampson shone at the 2005 Salzburg Festival. In May and July on Royal Theatre stage it was to be performed a total of nineteen times. In times of crisis, it was not possible to prepare this show.
Now for Royal Theatre could satisfy the interests of all ticket and subscription holders, Traviata will sound 27 times from July 1 to 29. 869 people will attend each show – that is 50 percent of the hall’s capacity. Spectators will be required to wear a face mask throughout their stay at the theater.
Traviatu four solo ensembles will sing. The role of Violeta Valeri will be played by five artists – Marina Rebeka (July 1, 4, 9, 15, 21, 24 and 27), Rūta Injesta, Jekaterina Bakanova, Lana Kosa and Lizete Oropesa. Marina Rebecca’s partners will be American tenor Michael Fabiano (Alfredo) and Polish baritone Arturs Ručiņskis (Georges Žermons). Twenty-one performances will be conducted by Nikola Luizoti, six – by Luis Mendes Chavez. As this is not a full-fledged show, subscription holders will be refunded half of the ticket value.
Sung area
“Our choice was either to cancel the performances altogether, as many theaters have done, or to modify the production. In this situation, it seemed important for us to still take the stage, although it requires a lot of effort and change,” he said. Royal Theatre artistic director Joan Mataboš. To participate Traviata, Singers from the USA, Austria, Croatia, Italy, Latvia and Poland have arrived in Madrid. The rehearsals began on June 19 and lasted only ten days. Director Leo Kastaldi, who has prepared the new Traviata version, is William Decker’s assistant.
Properties, costumes and accessories have been found Royal Theatre in storage – thus demonstrating “ecological thinking”, in times of crisis should not encourage the overproduction of clothing and props. Soloists are also allowed to use their own costumes, which fit into the director’s intended mid-20th century style.
Traviata the idea of scenography is determined by the minimum conditions of distance. How do they change our lives and affect our behavior? An area of two square meters for each soloist is marked on the stage floor with red tape. A similar “grid” illustrating the characters’ psychological imprisonment and impasse is projected on the big screen.
Royal Theatre reports that the total area allocated to soloists is 100 square meters. There are also 51 choir artists (occupying 260 square meters; the distance between the choirs is also two meters) and a group of sixteen instrumentalists (60 square meters). 56 musicians play in the maximally enlarged orchestra pit (140 square meters) – which is usually used when performing the operas of Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss. They have to wear face masks, each sitting at an individual desk. The distance between the musicians is one and a half meters. Protective panels are placed in front of the wind instrument group.
Traviata The number of performances in July is high, so Royal Theatre the orchestra and choir are divided into two groups. To give the musicians a rest, each group gives three performances in a row.
Can’t sit and wait
A system of enhanced security measures has been introduced in the theater, which has cost 340,000 euros. The theater is divided into sectors, the flow of spectators is specially regulated, the entrance to the building takes place in groups with an interval of fifteen minutes. Six entrances are open. Visitors are measured for temperature and disinfected shoes. Printed programs are not shared, they are available digitally. The break has been extended to forty minutes to allow the public to visit the toilet and one of the nineteen bars (according to the seating sector) and to avoid congestion in the theater. Technological improvements have been made in toilets to minimize contact with surfaces. All processes that can be automated have been automated. Royal Theatre closely monitors the health of all employees and artists.
The management of the theater claims that everything possible has been done to make the audience feel safe, and the problems have been solved with responsibility and inspiration. This is an important step towards the normalization of artistic life.
“After a forced break, we can no longer sit back and wait for things to work out on our own. Our priority is to guarantee the safety of our visitors, and from that point of view, we need to have the courage, take the initiative and know how we can adapt to this situation.” confidence says Royal Theatre creative leader Joan Matabosh. He recalls that many musicians have become hostages to the Covid-19 crisis. “So we can no longer afford to cancel performances, and Royal Theatre looking for opportunities to continue working. It is convenient to take the following position: “We will not open the theater until we can fill 100 percent of the space.” Royal Theatre will act differently, “he concludes.
Traviata conductor Nikola Luizoti adds emotionally: “We must not be afraid to live. We must be afraid not to live. The world needs art. It is our duty to return to life.”
Information: www.teatroreal.es
–
