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Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Jacques Offenbach: La vie parisienne

Actors:

Raoul de Gardefeu... Jean Sébastien Bou

Bobinet... Marc Callahan

Métella... Maria Riccarda Wesseling

Le Baron de Gondremark... Laurent Naouri

La Baronne... Michelle Canniccioni

Conductor: Sébastien Rouland

Stage Director: Laurent Pelly

Jacques Offenbach’s La vie parisienne, is one of his most enjoyable works, especially in this Lyon Opera production. A satirical romp poking barbs into the thick skin of Second Empire Paris, it’s updated to a farcical sendup of a contemporary Paris populated by thrill-hungry tourists and euro-seeking natives, both groups with sex on their minds. Producer Laurent Pelly’s imaginative production makes the tangled plot, with its characters assuming false identities and roles to bilk a not-so-innocent pair of Swedish tourists, perfectly clear. And he fills the stage with endless comic bits and clever routines that keep you laughing throughout. So to depict the Swedish baron’s drunken state in Act Three, the banquet table itself rocks like a see-saw and spins like a top. Chantal Thomas’ sets make it clear that Paris itself is the subject of this madcap Opera-bouffe, with semi-abstract views of the city and a map as backdrops to the action. And further delights are provided by Laura Scozzi’s choreography, turning orchestral introductions like that for Act Four, with its dawn street-sweepers and tipsy part-goers, into a laugh-out-loud ballet.

The production also features a well-matched cast of singing actors who throw themselves into the spirit of the work with gusto. As the two young lovers of the flighty Métella, Jean-Sebastien Bou and Marc Callahan look, act and sing their roles with just the right serio-comic flair, while veteran baritone Laurent Naouri as the Swede displays a gift for farce unsuspected in his Baroque opera successes. Tenor Jean-Paul Fouchécourt stands out with his hilarious turn as the horny boot maker and faux admiral, and his Act One duet with Marie Devellereau as the pretty glove-maker Gabrielle is a highlight. Devellereau’s character also masquerades as other characters too, and she’s faultless in those as well, while singing with panache and bright-voiced flair. The same can be said of Michelle Canniccioni as the Swedish baroness and Maria Riccarda Wesseling as the elusive Métella. Offenbach’s bouncy music is nothing without bubbles galore and conductor Sébastien Rouland keeps the score moving with the appropriate champagne fizz. Video director Francois Roussillon keeps us riveted on exactly the singers and parts of the stage action where we need to be, helping to make this as intoxicating a video experience as, judging by the audience laughter, it was in the theatre.

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