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Anna Netrebko as Lady
Macbeth, René Pape as Banquo, and Željko Lučić in the title role of Verdi's
Macbeth. Metropolitan Opera. Photo: Marty Sohl/Metropolitan Opera
Reviewed by James Karas
The Metropolitan Opera’s ninth season of broadcasting productions
from New York to cinemas around the world is under way with an exceptional revival
of Adrian Noble’s staging of Macbeth. The production is dramatically
intense with a triumphal finish and a fine twist in the final tableau.
The first-rate cast is dominated by the plush voice and
extraordinary beauty of Anna Netrerbko as Lady Macbeth. This Lady Macbeth
dominates her husband by the force of her character and the magnitude of her
ambition without histrionics or overt pressure. Her physical appearance and
vocal prowess establish and maintain her authority right to the end. Her Mad
Scene is a model of restraint and controlled drama. The drama comes from within
and not from any overt melodramatic movements. What a performance.
Baritone Željko Lučić is the ideal husband and foil
for this Lady Macbeth. He appears older than her and although he falls in for
her ambition, it seems as if it is not entirely in his nature. Even after he
commits horrendous crimes, we never grow to hate him completely. Lučić has a wonderful voice, on the lighter side of
the baritone scale, thus giving him a more humane and less threatening persona.
Bass René Pape and tenor Joseph Calleja play Banquo and Macduff
respectively. They are both victims of Macbeth with Banquo being assassinated
because the witches predicted that his children will inherit the throne and
Macduff’s family being eliminated as a precaution. They sing impeccably.
Anna Netrebko as Lady
Macbeth and Željko Lučić in the title role of Verdi's Macbeth. Metropolitan
Opera. Photo: Marty Sohl/Metropolitan Opera
Verdi increases the number of Shakespeare’s witches into the dozens giving himself
the opportunity to compose some outstanding choruses. The Metropolitan Opera
Chorus looked like a bunch of bag ladies and the children looked like
ragamuffins but all to good effect. The bag ladies carried purses which shone a
light on their faces when opened. That is how they can foretell the future, I
suppose, but they also sang marvelously.
Noble and Set and Costume Designer Mark Thompson deliver a dark
and brooding production in modern dress with no attempt at realistic sets. The
set is dominated by huge black columns that resemble tree trunks with rings of
light. There are also leafless trees and for many stretches we see only a dark
background. Much of the performance is done in a spotlight with red as the contrasting
colour to the darkness. Blood is a dominant image of the opera, of course, with
Macbeth emerging covered in blood after the murder of the king. Banquo and Lady
Macbeth also appear covered in blood.
The staging is highly effective with numerous brilliant directorial
touches. King Duncan’s bed can be seen on the stage between the columns. After
the murder, his slit throat on the blood-spattered bed is revealed in an
intensely dramatic scene.
The Met Orchestra is conducted with vigour and intensity by Fabio
Luisi.
You will recall that the witches predict that Banquo’s descendants
will occupy the throne of Scotland. We see Banquo and his son Fleance (Moritz
Linn), the latter wearing a bright red scarf, leave the palace followed by
Macbeth’s henchmen with orders to kill them. They kill Banquo but Fleance
escapes.
At the end of the opera, order is restored with the crowning of Malcolm
(Noah Baetge), the son of the murdered king. As the newly crowned king rises,
he glances to his left and sees the boy in the red scarf. Is this the
restoration of order or simply a prelude to the next battle for the Scottish
crow? Marvelous touch.
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