Translated material
Girl, light up
“Iolanta” by Tchaikovsky at the Novaya Opera
The New Opera Theater staged Tchaikovsky's Iolanta. An attempt to repeat the success of the opera “Gianni Schicchi,” which was liked by the expert council of the “Golden Mask” for its lightness, colorfulness and harmlessness (produced by Gennady Shaposhnikov and Viktor Gerasimenko), was not very successful. “Iolanta” - a magical romantic fairy tale in an exquisite score - turned out to be also colorful, also light in its own way, but at the same time surprised with its combination of mannerisms and awkwardness.A picturesque plot in which the main character is blind, but by the end she regains her sight and where the main semantic and musical load falls on the dialogue between a sighted woman and a blind woman about the greatness of light, literally drags the directors into games with black-and-white and color spaces. Shaposhnikov and Gerasimenko could not resist this and built a two-story structure on the stage: everything on top is black and white, there are also scatterings of white balloons and transparent balls (symbolizing something like the colorless lightness of being). Downstairs (all evening in the arena) there are crowds of people in colorful tights and fashionable afghans. The silhouettes clearly rhyme with the Middle Ages, but the amount of electricity and neon colors on the stage strongly suggests that Iolanta should be considered a club-street New Year's attraction.
The plays with color in the play are elegant and straightforward. Ebn-Hakia, a Moorish doctor, stands out in poisonous purple - he is clearly visible both against the black and white background of blind happiness, and in the colored chaos of general revival. He also carries a white glass ball in his hands and, frantically pressing on the buttons hidden in the coattails, turns on the ball like a light bulb. Many more small lights light up on the doctor himself at the right moment, and he becomes a Christmas tree.
Snegurochka-Iolanta - all, as one might assume, in white - is sweet and smiling (in the show on January 31 - neat Ksenia Volkova). Santa Claus (King Rene) - in gloomy black (Alexey Antonov, owner of a powerful, beautiful voice). The Snow Maiden's grooms are fluffy and white, like bunnies. The New Year's extravaganza is colored by a red stole (it is carried onto the floor by uninvited guests), symbolizing... well, what does it not symbolize in this story.
The ending of the flowery story is Iolanta's epiphany. She is immensely happy, there is a crowd around her in tights, and everyone in the crowd has colored glasses. It's time to get confused here. It is clear that the glasses also symbolize something (the directors explain: everyone has their own point of view). The fairy tale about the Christmas tree turns into a story about the Emerald City, but at this moment you already begin to uncontrollably want to go to Kansas.
Moreover, the musical component of the production is equally diverse and unpredictable. There are voices on stage, but they don’t seem to know exactly what to do with them. Everyone is on their own, singing as best they can. The orchestra works hard, but the sophistication appears as a haunting rhythmic square.
On stage and in the orchestra, a complex fairy tale was played out too simply - with layers of symbols, games and meanings in place of grace and simplicity.