Verdi - Rigoletto (Fabio Luisi, Zeljko Lucic, Juan Diego Florez, Diana Damrau) [2010]

“

Opera never has shown its contrasts more than in this Rigoletto from the Sächsische Staatskapelle in Dresden. The production is full of harsh conflicts, which Verdi himself implies by filling this tragedy with so much cheery music. All of the performances here are outstanding. Željko Lučić vanquishes the title role with his powerful voice and emotive acting, which makes him riveting if slightly painful to watch as he is emotionally destroyed. Juan Diego Flórez has one of the best tenor voices currently in opera, and though he has now stopped singing the Duke, it is not because he could not fill the role. His voice is as agile and pure as ever, but still powerful enough to hold his own against the rest of the cast. His interpretation of the Duke is delightfully lecherous, but also shows signs of truly deeper emotion during his Act 2 aria. Diana Damrau certainly has the voice for Gilda, but she's not quite convincing as a young girl. Georg Zeppenfeld is a callous Sparafucile, but sympathetic to Maddalena, his sister. His voice is smooth and without any push for his high notes. The ensemble is superb: the choral diction is clear, with well-measured dynamics and precise cut-offs; and the dancers stand out, with eye-catching animal-like physicality in the opening scene. Under Fabio Luisi the orchestra plays with what might be called sarcasm through the happy music, and with heart-rending, moaning intensity through the sad. The modern minimalist aesthetic of the production is brutally effective. The minimal sets, mostly consisting of blank walls contrasted with the boldly-colored costumes, highlight the on-stage activity. The court scenes feature some riotous action, making for some "fun" moments (if you can apply that term to Rigoletto), but when Gilda appears the stage becomes less busy. The most remarkable part of the production is how well all the pieces come together to form the whole--the lighting strengthening the sets, the sets highlighting the costumes, and all of it supporting the action on stage. The sound and video quality is excellent, though I do have a small issue with the editing; sometimes the cuts from one shot to the next seem premature, which is unnecessarily jarring. However, the production team does a fine job of providing close-ups while not losing continuity of action or breaking the whole-stage atmosphere. This production kept me engaged each time I watched it, and I would be glad to go back for more. The unrestrained style of the production may be off-putting to some, but most observers will find it truly compelling--a Rigoletto not to be missed. Highly recommended. --Rob McGinness, ClassicsToday.com

”

Performer:
Il Duca di Mantova – Juan Diego Flórez
Rigoletto – Željko Lučić
Gilda – Diana Damrau
Il Conte di Monterone – Markus Marquardt
Il Conte di Ceprano – Markus Butter
La Contessa di Ceprano – Kyung-Hae Kang
Marullo – Matthias Henneberg
Borsa – Oliver – Ringelhahn
Sparafucile – Georg Zeppenfeld
Maddalena – Christa Mayer
Giovanna – Angela Liebold
Un usciere di corte – Dominik Licht
Un paggio – LinLin Fan
Sachsische Staatskapelle Dresden
Conductor – Fabio Luisi