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And it is so rich that each of the arias sung had its own set and each “diva” a dress signed by great designers such as Dolce & Gabbana and Armani. Augmented reality sets, such as the feather vortex in “La donna è mobile” performed by Grigolo, the images of Pertini, Mandela or Gandhi while Domingo sings Andrea Chenier or a real puddle of water that floods the proscenium for Rigoletto, Andrea Chenier, Madama Butterfly and Carmen’s Habanera performed by Marianna Crebassa in a scarlet dress, or Don Carlo’s snowy train, with performances by Ildar Abdazakov and Ludovic Tezier.
Scenery that director Davide Livermore has taken from his direction Scaligera de Tamerlano. Not just a gala but a format, in which new songs or famous authors (from Hugo to Sting, through Ezio Bosso and Montale) read, even recited, by actors like Caterina Murino and Massimo Popolizio are an introduction to arias. It is a message of hope: a musical journey that starts from the theme of Rigoletto’s curse to reach the catharsis of William Tell. Say we can “… see the stars again …” as the title of the program says.
Indeed, a unicum that maestro Riccardo Chailly hopes not to have to repeat, as well as Plácido Domingo who arrived in Milan to sing an aria by Andrea Chenier before flying to Saint Petersburg, because, he explained, the lack of public is felt. . An “extraordinary” evening, added the superintendent Dominique Meyer, forced to cancel Lucia di Lammermoor due to an outbreak of Covid in the choir to propose “something out of the ordinary”, something for which everyone came to help “the Opera “.
Starting with Lisette Oropesa (who here gave a sample of what she could have done in the entire opera) and Juan Diego Flórez, protagonists of Lucía who immediately proposed to stage something anyway. And as they said yes Marina Rebeka, Sonia Yoncheva, Luca Salsi, Francesco Meli, Piotr Beczala (with two arias because in “No dorma” he had to replace the indisposed Jonas Kaufmann), Roberto Alagna who had not set foot in La Scala since December 2006 when he left the Aida stages in controversy with the gallery’s whistles and so many others. So many artists that Wagner’s Walkure duo were cut from the TV show, because they would have exceeded the times. However, it will be visible on Raiplay and on streaming: all the arias have been prerecorded live, until the last one, (the orchestra left the theater at 4pm), and then edited together.
Even the opening part, after the aerial images of Milan at night and the entrance of the Muse of Music to the theater, when the choristers in the boxes and the workers on the stage, with the orchestra placed on a platform above the stalls. , strictly with a mask, they “occupied” the Scala to sing the hymn of Mameli. Director Davide Livermore has chosen to give a “cinematic” shape to the show with tributes to Fellini with Una furtiva lacrima performed by Juan Diego Florez on the Strada set and the Sorpasso’s Dino Risi with the spider in which Rosa Feola wears standing singing “S ‘or I too magic virtue” by Don Pasquale. This is also part of the scenery that was already used at La Scala (only for Don Pasquale with Livermore’s direction) as the Tosca lion, which opened last season.
But there was also room for dance, with a piece from the Nutcracker – Christmas ballet par excellence – performed by Nicoletta Manni and Timofej Adrijashenko, with Ondas performed by Roberto Bolle in a cone of laser light, and with Verdi suite, choreography by the new director of Michel Legris dance danced by Martina Arduino, Virna Toppi, Claudio Coviello, Marco Agostino, Nicola Del Freo. There is the entire Scala, even the memory of the 1946 reopening concert, of the reboot of “culture” as Livermore said. “Only with art can we think of going back together to see the stars again.” . “It was absolutely impossible not to do the premiere, you couldn’t do the classic, so this seems to me the best solution,” said Mayor Giuseppe Sala, who is president of the theater. “A very pleasant show, which recalled many of the wonderful moments lived in this wonderful theater,” commented Giorgio Armani. “I must say,” added Armani, who followed the evening from home, “that I am very happy with how some protagonists appeared with my clothes.” For the designer, who has dressed many premieres, including this one (his garments by many artists), the one staged tonight is “a show worthy of Milan.” A first that will enter the history of the theater. A first with many elements in which, however, the applause of the public was lacking.
Regardless, “La Scala is there, it is on its feet and it wants to move on,” said superintendent Dominique Meyer, speaking of the “extraordinary” Premium, created in six days, with artists from around the world. We all want to find spectators in the stalls and boxes, musicians in the pit and singers on stage because we have to be together ”but until we can“ we look for solutions ”.
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