Success for L´Amour des Trois Oranges in Dijon

Aplause, LAmour des Trois Oranges, Opera Dijon May 2010
. Foto: Henning Hoholt

Staged by Sandrine Anglade, with good help, especially in the choreography by Pascaline Verrier. Well functioning scenography, with many good and well functioning ideas, the sliding walls worked well, and formed castle, houses, walls, and all needed for giving the right effects.Good arrangements with changing the Oranges to an Orange dressed woman. The visually good costumes by Claude Chestier, assisted by Julie Lardot, I enjoyed the Venice details in the end, The tall costume to the Cook. The good masques and wigs by Catherine Saint-Sever did that we believed even better in the figures played on stage. Effect full lightened (and smoked) by Éric Blosse, I liked that already in the beginning he was discretely adding Orange light, so we got the Orange feeling from the beginning. All this together with splendid singers, soloists, choir, orchestra, dancers and acrobats did that this atypically burlesque production of Sergei Prokofievs opera L´Amour des Trois Oranges at Opera Dijon is a success
. It was composed in 1919, when Sergei Prokofiev was 28 years. He was inspired by his friend the Russian revolutionary theatre modern capacity Vsevolod Meyerhold.

It was a great pleasure to visit Dijon Friday 7^th May 2010 for the second performance

. To the production the casting management has chosen a long range of first class singers, to the wide variety of main roles, 13, in the production. Headed by the great young tenor Martial Defontaine as the Prince, who is feeling sad, and it is difficult to get happy and to get to laugh, after a while he is running away from his father, the King, splendid sung by Bernard Deletré, and the Royal Castle, to try to find happiness, luck and perhaps a Princess to marry. During the way the Prince is having a first class cooperation with the Chief Cook at the Castle, Truffaldino, first class performed and sung by the brilliant Éric Huchet. Laurent Alvaro is first class as Leander.

Eric Huchet - Truffaldino, Pascal Verrot, conducter, Martial Defontaine, the Prince. L Amour des Trois Oranges, Dijon, May 2010. Foto: Henning Hoholt

On the female side, there are too many good voices. Hélène Bernardy as Fata Morgana. Lucie Roche as Princess Clarice, Carine Séchaye as Smeraldine. And last, but not least, the wonderful Katia Velletaz as Ninette. Furtheron we enjoyed Linda Durier as Nicolette, Christophe Hudeley as the Master of Ceremonies, and Frédéric Caton in a double role as a first class Celio and Herold.

The Opera choir of Dijon and Opera de Limoges is very good
. The eight impressing male singers in “nightdresses” are brilliant. I enjoyed the figures and dancers, which did their good job to that the performance has floating brilliantly without any boring periods, the nearly two hours was over without waiting for that it should be finished
. I liked the small and bigger rats. The Orchestra of Dijon Bourgogne plays very well, it is clear to me that there has been a very good working period, since the result was so good. The conductor are Pascal Veriot, is a good choice.

Childrens and part of Choir, L Amour des Trois Oranges, Dijon May, 2010
. Foto: Henning Hoholt

The opera house in Dijon has an extraordinary good acoustic.

Sergei Prokovievs Opera L Amour des Trois Oranges is based on a history by Carlo Gozzi in 1761. This production is the first production one in a line of performances celebrating Gozzi, which will be followed up by The theater piece The Green Bird (L´Oiseau Vert), in October 2010. Staged by Sandrine Anglade, who also successfully staged the production L´Amour des Trois Oranges, and ending by the Opera Turandot by Busoni in March 2011. Staged by Cisco Aznar..