Predchádzajúce výrobné recenzie
6"Child, you don't have to think so terribly much..." Eduard Künneke's "Vetter aus Dingsda" at the Dresden State Operetta oscillates between directorial ideal and reality. Conductor Johannes Pell and his orchestra delivered a spotless performance at the premiere of the operetta “Der Vetter aus Dingsda” by Eduard Künneke at the Dresden State Operetta. Sensitively and passionately, the ladies and gentlemen brought Künneke's sound worlds to life under his baton and enabled the audience to enjoy the stylistically diverse, humorous and compositionally imaginative score. Every single number, every stylistic element and all the breaks and contrasts in between were played perfectly on their own and ultimately led to an enchanting overall musical impression. Cary Gayler's dignified, fairytale-like and changeable stage design is also a big magic box [...] The employees from the painting room and workshops deserve great praise for the craftsmanship, Frank Baschek skillfully set everything in the light.
Every self-respecting operetta company needs a production of one of the 20th century’s greatest operettas: Kalman’s Die Csardasfürstin. Whether Dresden Staatsoperette needs this particular production, I am not so sure.Let me be really positive and begin with the fifteen-strong ballet company, which, under the choreographic leadership of Radek Stopka, is simply superb. The company is used several times, especially at the start of Act Two for the “Bodyguard Ballet”, danced to an up tempo version of the Act Three entr’acte, which is slick, very amusing, and impeccably danced. Then there is the Angels’ Dance, sumptuously costumed by Okarina Peter and Timo Dentler, who are also responsible for the set design. The dancers used the huge angel wings they had been given to produce some simple, but spectacular effects.Musically, overall, the production is a success, the orchestra playing stylishly under Peter Christian Feigel and the chorus (directed by Thomas Runge) sounding better (and louder) than I remember from previous productions. Many of the principals are equally successful: Elvira Hasanagic displaying a gorgeous soprano, with the ability to sing ‘off the words’ rather than just make a pleasant sound, and it was wonderful to have an Edwin (Bryan Rothfuss) whose high notes really pinged their way to the upper tiers.Barry Coleman as Feri was most amusing, when allowed to be, as was Julia Danz as Anastasia, but Johannes Strauss’s singing (Boni) needed more projection to carry even to midway back in the theatre. The director, Axel Koehler, had decided to update the whole production to the 21st century. He did this by having Eugen von Rohnsdorf (Jürgen Mai) portray the Chancellor of Austria – an ultra right wing politician whose policies included (1) restoring the nobility in Austria, (2) leaving the EU, (3) deporting all economic migrants. Because of this last policy, his son Edwin could of course not marry a foreigner, let alone a ‘gypsy’, even if she is the Gypsy Princess of the title! Herr Koehler jettisoned Stein and Jenbach’s dialogue, with a few exceptions (it was easy to tell, as those few passages were amusing) and replaced it with a turgid, dull, un-humorous version which seemed twice as long as the original. (You could easily follow all of this since there were English and German supertitles.) The audience had to endure a political speech in Act Two and a voice-over one at the very end of Act Three which totally ruined the climax of the show!In addition, he interpolated the ‘Ein kleiner Slowfox mit Mary’ from The Duchess of Chicago into Act Three – one of Kalman’s most inspired and lesser known numbers, but a mistake because it does not sound as if it belongs to The Gypsy Princess: American rather than Hungarian! Why do directors think they can write better dialogue than the original librettists? If the original libretto is ‘dated’, why not employ successful C21 librettists to rewrite/update? I have seen a few of Herr Koehler’s productions before in other theatres, and he never knows what to do with the chorus: they just stand around, as if their sole function is to sing in four-part harmony. He appears unable to use a chorus to enhance his production.
The revue operetta “Im Weißen Rössl” has a lot to do with Berlin at the Dresden State Operetta. An “Austria-O-Mat” has to help out for the Alpine ... For the new Dresden production, the director Toni Burghard Friedrich and the conductor Johannes Pell opted for the legendary version of Ralph Benatzky's genius trick, with which the Pfister siblings caused a sensation in 1994 in the Berlin bar of all reason. In addition, they have moderately reduced the staff. […] Under the direction of Johannes Pell, the whole thing also works fabulously in the orchestral version, which is down to a seven-strong band. The spark [..] jumps over to the audience. Which is not only due to the indestructible music, but also to the scene, which is well choreographed at the right tempo (Marie-Christin Zeisset). [...] the "AUSTRIA-O-MAT" is fed with a few coins. Then the curtain opens and there are mountains for yodelling, the Wolfgangsee, the sweet alpine cow and the sky blue as well as the skyline of Vienna for the waltz. Event catering that the directing team should have patented.
Toni Burghard Friedrich's “White Horse Inn” turns into a surprise box at the Dresden State Operetta. [...] director Toni Burghard Friedrich presents a refreshingly humorous reading of the popular stage hit on his debut at the house. [...] No, you really won't miss anything in this "Rössl". [...] Christian Grygas gives a wonderfully rushed waiter Leopold [...] Laila Salome Fischer shown as a strict businesswoman who does not allow herself to be looked into her heart so quickly. [...] Markus Liske, as Wilhelm Giesecke from Berlin, brings life-loving local color into play. The "Rössl" is not Mallorca, but it is still fun - which his daughter Ottilie, who shows Christina Maria Fercher as a lively bee, also takes care of. [...] The surprise of the evening is probably Ella Rombouts as the housemaid Kathi. Both vocally and playfully, she repeatedly attracts attention and seduces the beautiful Sigismund alias Riccardo Romeo into a passionate kiss with a lot of humor. [...] Quick-witted dialogues, delicious comedy situations, clever choreographies (Marie-Christin Zeisset) and the enthusiastic joy of playing of the ensemble, which radiates into the orchestra pit, make the evening a carefree pleasure. [...] The orchestra of the Dresden State Operetta, under the direction of Johannes Pell, impressively proves that less can actually be more.
Susanne Serfling setzt gläserne Spitzentöne, ...schaltet mit Biss blitzschnell um auf bravourös attackierende Ausbrüche. Ihre Salome ist eine todsicher Strategin, die alle Probleme mit Sexappeal enthebelt und nichts verloren hat außer sich selbst."
Die Oper "Salome" steht und fällt mit der Besetzung der Titelpartie... Susanne Serfling sieht aus wie ein junges Mädchen, hat den nötigen Sexappeal, sie spielt kompromisslos intensiv und sie hat stimmlich das Zeug zu einer Hochdramatischen. Das kommt nicht oft zusammen... Ich habe lange keine so überzeugende Salome-Interpretin erlebt, auch an bedeutenden Opernhäusern nicht...
