A rehearsal of Verdi’s “Aida” at La Scala in Milan. With an assist from the Italian government, the opera house’s much publicized financial woes appear to be diminishing.
MILAN, Dec. 8 — Even for those who embrace opera as a celebration of excess, it seemed almost a provocation to open the Teatro alla Scala’s season on Thursday with an extravagantly lavish new production of “Aida” created by Franco Zeffirelli. Indeed, after the buildup that preceded the show, how else could the audience respond but by cheering the singers, the orchestra, the director, La Scala — and themselves for being there?
Roberto Alagna as Radamès and Violeta Urmana in the title role in Franco Zeffirelli’s “Aida” at La Scala.
Yes, attending La Scala’s annual opening gala on Dec. 7, the feast day of St. Ambroise, this city’s patron saint, is a must for anyone who matters in Milan. And this year was no different. Italy’s prime minister, Romano Prodi, and his guest, the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, occupied the royal box, while the theater’s six tiers of boxes and its sweeping main floor were bursting with government ministers, foreign dignitaries and the home-grown rich and glamorous.
As is tradition, while elegantly attired mounted police guarded the limousines depositing the chosen at the front of the house, the square facing the theater was crowded with protesters, with banners denouncing military spending and the war in Iraq, and a labor union loudspeaker complaining that it was “una vergogna nazionale” — “a national shame” — that public money should be wasted on opera.
Still, La Scala, which was inaugurated in 1778, remains a unique institution. And after the troubles that early last year prompted the resignation of the house’s top management, including its longtime music director Riccardo Muti, there is no small relief that its new president and artistic director, Stéphane Lissner, has not only restored peace to the theater but is also rebuilding its reputation as one of Europe’s most innovative opera houses.
Add to this a new “Aida.” While the opera was first performed at the Cairo Opera House on Dec. 24, 1871, it was just six weeks later that Verdi took his four-act spectacle to La Scala. And ever since it has been one of the theater’s most popular works. Mr. Zeffirelli, now 83, first produced “Aida” here in 1963, and two other productions have followed. Yet, strangely, there has been no performance of “Aida” here since 1984.
“It represents a return to La Scala’s popular roots,” Mr. Lissner said, explaining his decision to commission a fresh production. “It’s a work that is central to Italian love of opera. It is also a work that enables us to involve the entire house, from costume makers and stage builders, to a huge chorus, dancers, orchestra and top singers.”
By commissioning Mr. Zeffirelli, who first directed Rossini’s “Italiana in Algieri” here in 1953, Mr. Lissner was also inviting something grandiose. And the veteran director delivered, with no fewer than six different sets; golden temples covered in Egyptian reliefs; pharaonic statues galore; richly colorful costumes; and lengthy ballet interludes. In these, dancers darkened like Ethiopian slaves were accompanied by two leading principals from La Scala’s ballet corps.
“La Scala triumphs in a Hollywood-style ‘Aida,’ ” the newspaper La Repubblica proclaimed. Another daily, Il Messaggero, said Mr. Zeffirelli offered “an Egypt of dreams presenting unforgettable scenes capable of captivating even video game freaks.” Only elephants and camels were missing from the famous Triumphal March at the end of Act II. But four figures dressed like large birds swept over the stage in compensation.
The burden of carrying this production rested on the shoulders of four singers, with the Lithuanian soprano Violeta Urmana as Aida, the Ethiopian slave who loves and is loved by the Egyptian warrior Radamès, sung by the French tenor Roberto Alagna. The pharoah’s daughter, Amneris, who also loves Radamès, was sung by the Hungarian mezzo-soprano Ildiko Komlosi, while the Italian baritone Carlo Guelfi was Aida’s father, Amonasro, the captured Ethiopian king.
La Scala’s orchestra was conducted by Riccardo Chailly, one of several conductors who is being considered as a possible future music director. After Mr. Muti’s resignation last year, Mr. Lissner decided to postpone appointment of a new music director to allow time for the orchestra to try out several contenders. Meanwhile, from next year, Daniel Barenboim will conduct two operas and several concerts each year. From 2010 through 2012, he will also conduct Wagner’s Ring Cycle here.
Most Italian critics responded positively to the lead singers in this “Aida.” While Mr. Alagna seemed nervous in his opening aria, “Celeste Aida, forma divina,” he steadily gained in confidence, climaxing with his poignant final duet with Ms. Urmana as Radamès and Aida prepare to die in each other’s arms. In 12 minutes of applause at the final curtain the audience in turn singled out Ms. Komlosi and Mr. Guelfi for their smoothly rich voices and strong performances.
Although Mr. Lissner began his first season a year ago, he had only six months in which to prepare it, a minimal period in a business in which opera singers and conductors are booked years ahead. For the 2006-7 season, however, he has been able to make his mark, increasing the number of opera, ballet and concert performances to 260 from 160 only two years ago.
Further, while including Italian evergreens by Verdi, Puccini and Donizetti, along with Wagner’s “Lohengrin” and Mozart’s “Così Fan Tutte” this year, he is continuing to bring more 20th-century works into a house that often seemed trapped in the past. This season includes Richard Strauss’s “Salome,” Janacek’s “Jenufa,” Shostakovich’s “Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District,” Leonard Bernstein’s “Candide” and a newly commissioned opera by Fabio Vacchi, “Teneke.”
Mr. Lissner, 53, who previously ran the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris and the Aix-en-Provence opera festival, is also famous for planning far ahead. So already he has announced that next year’s season opener will be Wagner’s “Tristan und Isolde,” conducted by Mr. Barenboim and directed by Patrice Chéreau, and on Dec. 7, 2008, all Milan will be offered Verdi’s “Don Carlo” in a version conducted by Daniel Gatti and directed by Stéphane Braunschweig.
And Mr. Lissner can now plan with confidence, he said, because La Scala’s economic problems are behind him. Thanks to increased support from Milan’s new mayor, Letizia Moratti, and Italy’s new culture minister, Francesco Rutelli, the opera house’s perennial financial headache appears to have eased. “I always need more money,” he added, “but we have no financial crisis.”
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