Not only due to the pandemic: the Stuttgart State Opera is showing Juditha Triumphans, Oratorio spirituale e militare, by Antonio Vivaldi, who is still having a hard time conquering the stages (back) with his operas, even if such a great singer as Cecilia Bartoli uses for him. So it should be an oratorio that is staged and has it all. The director Silvia Costa (also stage) takes the fact that in the libretto by Jacopo Cassetti based on the biblical book Judit only female choirs appear as Judith's entourage, which accompany her to the camp of the Assyrian general Holofernes, as an occasion, in the first part a feminist one To show an army marching and parading from the sides of the stage. All female soldiers are dressed in white uniforms and berets (Cost:Laura Dondoli ). After that, various collective actions are carried out, raising the flag (but not the Israeli flag, but the Jewish star in different illuminations is the omnipresent symbol), bringing in first black, then white submachine guns, surrounding the camp with barbed wire (Nato wire). The wounded are brought in and cared for in a large tent with a coat of arms. Then mysterious acts are also celebrated, such as taking blood from the torsos of the body. All this to Vivaldi's beautifully lively, harmonious music, which actually sings about love, graceful nature and the beauty of Judith. This is played lively and emphatic by a relatively small group of the state orchestra with mandolin; a continuo with theorbos and bass violone, harpsichord and organ positive supplemented. The director is Benjamin Bayl , who knows how to create an elastic flow of music that can actually contrast with the action on stage. In the 2nd part, the turning point occurs. The beheading of Holofernes has already happened, and we see a headless statue slowly falling forward. The protagonists and the collective are now dressed in white and red (skirts and pants), and the latter acts on a stepped platform. Juditha wears a red gloved hand on one hand, and Holofernes is doubled with a puppet wearing the mask of the severed head after presenting Juditha in the undergarment. (Now jubilant songs with drums and trumpets.) The women's choir (E.: Bernhard Moncado ) sings transparently and balanced. Two choral solos belong to Laura Corrales and Anna Matyushenko . At the same time, this third performance is only a celebration of the beautiful female voices (although perhaps not intended by Vivaldi). Giacomo Puccini probably has the right of first fruits for this with his 'Suor Angelica'. Four sonorous mezzo-sopranos are available as Vagaus/servants of Holofernes, Abra/Juditha's confidant and Ozias/high priest of the Jews. The fourth is the title character, Juditha herself, outstanding in the diminutive guise of Rachael Wilson, of burgeoning voice and glittering timbre, rightly hired by the Stuttgart Opera in 1919. The others are Diana Haller, a leader in the mezzo field in Stuttgart for years, Gaia Petrone , a young Italian as Abra who loves her mistress, and Lindsey Coppens as a member of the International Opera Studio. Juditha/Rachael's opponent Holofernes is performed majestically by the tall alto Stine Marie Fischer , who recently attracted attention as Erda im Rheingold.
Silvia Costa (director and stage; costumes: Laura Dondoli) reinterprets the story of Antonio Vivaldi's oratorio "Juditha triumphans" and transfers it very carefully to our time. And the first part takes place during the day, the second at night. The commander Holofernes besieges the Jewish city of Bethulien on behalf of the Assyrian king Nebuchadnezzar. And the population is faced with the choice between surrender and death. To gain mercy for her people, the widow Judith goes to Holofernes' camp. Dazzled by her beauty, the commander falls in love with her and for this reason gets drunk at a banquet in Judith's honor. Judith now seizes the opportunity and decapitates him with his own sword. The head is then taken back to Bethuli with the help of the maid Abra. The discovery of the body by Holofernes' servant Vagaus puts the Assyrians to flight. Bethulia is finally liberated. In her production, Silvia Costa wants to combine current challenges and historical references. In its interpretation, which is entirely in white and red, it concentrates on the music of the arias and what is revealed in them. It is crucial that all the characters are sung and performed by women. Because Vivaldi worked for an orphanage with a music school. The daily routine is closely observed in a military camp, where a tent takes center stage. And in the second part, the action focuses on an arena where the attention is drawn to women. You are deliberately using violence here. At the same time, the process of decapitation is linked to that of birth and childbirth. As two individuals, Judith and Holofernes consciously break away from society. Judith's silence opens at the same time the voice of Abra, who announces victory, and that of Vagaus, who feels anger. In this production, the viewers are deliberately confronted with personal questions. In the second part you can see the huge statue of Holofernes falling from the pedestal. Judith removes an arm covering the body of Holofernes. Finally, the decapitated head of Holofernes is seen in front of Judith's face, which is hiding behind it. Some connections could have been presented more precisely, but overall this production impresses with a plausible concept. A Jewish star shines in the background. Under the sensitive and fast-paced direction of Benjamin Bayl , the Stuttgart State Orchestra performs very energetically here. This is how the richness of the instrumental colors comes to the fore. The introductory chorus of the Assyrian soldiers already wins due to the precise intonation of the ladies of the Stuttgart State Opera Chorus (rehearsal: Bernhard Moncado) special weight. The eleven-bar middle section in B minor dissolves, as it were, in the radiant D major of the trumpets and timpani. The final chorus "Salve invicta Juditha formosa" also has an overwhelming dynamic brilliance. Incidentally, the sequence of recitatives and arias in the oratorio is structured in the same way as Vivaldi's operas. This operatic emphasis is also expressed by the excellent singers - above all Rachael Wilson as Juditha and Stine Marie Fischeras Holofernes. Juditha's arias are all developed in the ABA form. The solo concerto form gains in importance, which is also reflected in the characteristic treatment of the ritornello. In addition to sequences of fifths, one also recognizes a minor subdominant relationship. Modulatory links are of paramount importance - an F major aria, for example, enters in C major. In the aria "Nil arma, nil bella, nil flamma furoris, si cor bellatoris est cadens in se" Stine Marie Fischer very convincingly shows the heroic attitude through large intervals in the ritornello. Diana Haller shines as Vagaus with almost overwhelming coloraturas. Other convincing roles include Gaia Petrone as Abra, Linsey Coppens as Ozias andLaura Corrales and Anna Matyuschenko with intense choral solos. A solo viola d'amore is used in an aria by Juditha "Quanto magis generosa". The viola is notated in scordatura, the aria is in E flat major. In addition to the use of the clarinets, the virtuoso ornamentation of the oboes is particularly striking. Incidentally, in one of Juditha's arias, the mandolin is also used as a soloist. The prudent conductor Benjamin Bayl fans this extremely colorful palette of tones with the Stuttgart State Orchestraagain and again cautiously, carefully and with the ability to change. The tremolo passages have an electrifying effect, the pizzicato also spices up the rhythmic finesse. So everything stays in an even dynamic flow, even in the da capo form of the arias. Stormy and enthusiastic final applause.
