Anmeldelser af tidligere produktion
3The performance of the show is perhaps the most complete that we have seen in recent years at the Zarzuela. Beatriz San Juan's scenography , enhanced by the strident lighting of Valentín Álvarez , has a frankly impressive force. Sol Picó's choreographies disturb and move in equal measure. In another order of things would be the artistic team Each character in the plot unfolds into a singer and an actor / dancer / reciter. Sticking to the musical chapter we will not stop giving a closed ovation to the singers who brilliantly gave voice to the troubles of Liríope, Amor, Delfa and la Ninfa
The action is therefore planted on a bare stage and under harsh lights, with a backdrop dotted with black tubes or crimson spots (designed by the painter Frederic Amat), on which stand out the characters dressed in ageless allegorical outfits. in parsimonious gestures. The events which bring together the actors of the drama, the mythological one of Iphigénie confronted with avenging oracles, therefore remain confined to the metaphorical stature. Rather attractive! The musical side, it seems that the approach is of the same order. Since it uses the theater orchestra holds more customary repertoire of the XIX th and XX th centuries. On the contrary , other baroque productions in this house, such as the Durón diptych seen last season with García Alarcón's Cappella Mediterranea (2) or Viento es la dicha de Amor, by the same Nebra, performed in 2013 with the excellent Baroque Orchestra of Seville. In addition to the forty or so instrumentalists of a traditional “Mozart” formation, there is however a continuo, with cello and harpsichord, as well as natural winds, in a completely period style. A way of treating Nebra like a classic, like we treat Mozart. Why not? ... Especially that the lively direction of Francesc Prat knows how to find the carried accents which innervate a splendid score, whose brilliant exuberance returns to soloists who defend it without counting. The merits of María Bayo (photo) are no longer to be singled out, who plays the title role with the vocal authority that we know her. But Auxiliadora Toledano, Ruth González, Erika Escribá-Astaburuaga and Lidia Vinyes-Curtis, also experienced in baroque singing, give it a proud reply.
María Bayo, around 60 years of age, can boast of having what made her a first-rate singer. The unmistakable timbre, the projection with a glass and steel tip capable of reaching the last chair in the room. It also has its own ways, for better and for worse, and for this and that I have it as a voice with a strong personality, recognizable with blindfolds. Personally, I was pleased to find that voice so similar to how I heard it the first time, back in 1998 in Barcelona, playing the main character of La Calistoin Barcelona. Later I was able to enjoy it, already in Madrid, playing Manon, Mélisande and Cleopatra. I remember that in his Mimì de Bilbao (2004) I already noticed changes in his voice. Shortly after she played Rosina in Madrid and it was evident that she had started on the vocal path somewhere. In 2008 I applauded her as Blanche de la Force ( Dialogues des Carmélites ) in Oviedo and thought to myself that she was still on the road somewhere. When in 2016 I witnessed his performance in the baroque zarzuela Iphigenia in Thrace, disappointed me. That is why I celebrate that in this concert, singing what so many praises brought her, she found her with a clear voice, with freshness. It should not be forgotten that the passage of time has had its natural effects, especially in the low zone, but what has been gained in experience comes to the aid of a voice that is still there, to continue giving joy to many fans. A pleasant surprise, for me, has been the Vespres d'Arnadí group, directed by Dani Espasa from the harpsichord. They shone in instrumental interventions, especially in Vivaldi's L'Olimpiade overture . The audience applauded enthusiastically and tore tips from the artists of Nebra and Martín y Soler.
