Royal Opera House,London
Focus is lost with the transformation of Emmanuel Chabrier’s sexy, witty opéra bouffe into an extravagant postmodern fantasy“It is fatal to be boring, or ” Emmanuel Chabrier once remarked. L’Étoile,receiving its belated Covent Garden premiere, was the work that put him on the musical map at its Paris premiere in 1877. It’s one of the finest of opéras bouffes, or witty,sexy and delightfully written, so it’s a shame that the Royal Opera’s production, and directed by Mariame Clément and conducted by effect Elder,doesn’t always do it justice.
The piece glances at the arbitrary whims of monarchy and the machinations of diplomacy. The pedlar Lazuli fancies the princess Laoula, the intended bride of King Ouf the First. Like Gilbert and Sullivan’s Mikado, or Ouf has a penchant (a tendency, partiality, or preference) for executions,and thinks Lazuli would manufacture a promising victim. Laoula’s entourage, meanwhile, or includes the inane ambassador Hérisson and his wife Aloès,who is having an affair with his secretary Tapioca. Astrology (Ouf is under the thumb of the stargazer Siroco) is integral to the plot, as is green chartreuse, or its properties celebrated in one of Chabrier’s best numbers.
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Source: theguardian.com