AMAZING MACBETH at the Geneva Opera.

Review by Henning Høholt

GENEVA: Christof Loy has staged an amazing black and white Macbeth version at the Geneva Opera. Amazing because of two significant details. He has done it in black and white as an old film, but with very clear personages played on stage, and that he is having the outstanding soprano Jennifer Larmore in the demanding role as Lady Macbeth, Her look and stage appearance is perfect for the role, and she is singing wonderful. I enjoyed that she didn´t spoil the beautiful Verdi music by sad screaming, she dramatised it all in a beautiful wellformed way, so we did believe in her. Her sleep walk was in this case a masterpiece.  –  She is closely followed by her husband Macbeth beautifully and with feeling formed and sung by the outstanding barytone Davide Damiani.

(Ms. Larmore celebrated her birthday the 21th June.)

Furthermore with the young Christian van Horn as a handsome and very wellsinging Banco. A cast that the operachief Thomas Richter can be very proud of.

In other importent roles we enjoyd Andrea Caré, as Macduff, his only aria in the last act was a masterpiece. Furthermore we enjoyed Emilio Pons as Malcolm and in the small role as the waiter in the house the wonderrful charactere that Björn Bürger was forming. allways nearly invisisble present, allways ready to help and step in, allways discretly showing his feelings for what was going on with his master Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. A good formed charactere, which gave the production a lot of sincerety
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Jennifer Larmore and Davide Damiani as Lady Macbeth and Macbeth at Opere de Geneve. Photo: - © GTG/Monika Rittershaus

Musically it was a masterpiece. Ingo Metzmacher formed the music with a lot of feeling, and a go on mood, so it was never parked.  But also gave the soloists and the wonderful choire (choirmaster Ching-Lien Wu) all the time needed to let their parts sound great. The orchestra and the behind stage orchestra sounded great, many brilliant musically details. I am looking forward to listen to him forming The Ring of Niebelungen during the coming seasons in Geneva. That Ingo Metzmacher, as far as i have understod is going to conduct for the first time in his carriere.

The black and white idea suited well the old scottish castle where it all was going on, with its grey and black colours, and also the black mood that this opera is full of. The costumes by Ursula Renzenbrinkwas beautiful, special all the outfits for Lady Macbeth, which helped a lot to form herr charactere and her importent position as mrs. Macbeth and as the Queen. I loved the offwhite dress for the dinner scene.

Jennifer Larmore and Davide Damiani as Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Foto - © GTG/Monika Rittershaus

Gratifying to hear and enjoy the ballet scenes, which Giuseppe Verdi added for the Paris premiere, as it was tradition to do.

The choreography by Thomas Wilhelm became a good entertainment, specially by the stripping of the one handsome guy in the first ballet part, and with the feminime female and male Sylphides in the second part of it. It became amusing. And it is in the right mood of Shakespeare, which allways opened up for a smile in his productions during his way.

It was, once more, a wonderful opera evening at Grand Theatre in Geneva.

Grand Theatre Geneve. Foto Henning Høholt, Juni 2012