The Alpha event of the year: following Le Poème Harmonique's DVD of Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme by Lully and Molière, which sold over 20 000 copies worldwide, the team, led by Vincent Dumestre (musical direction) and Benjamin Lazar (stage management), have produced Cadmus et Hermione, the very first French opera, composed in 1673 by Lully to a libretto by Philippe Quinault. With its historically aware design and costumes, machinery, body language and pronunciation, entirely candle-lit, this production ought to become a landmark in the rediscovery of baroque opera. It is also a unique opportunity to discover a musical masterpiece fallen in oblivion over the last three centuries.
Director: Martin Fraudreau
Artistic & musical direction:Vincent Dumestre
Stage management: Benjamin Lazar, Louise Moaty
Choreography: Gudrun Skamletz
Chorus master: Daniel Bargier
Set design: Adeline Caron
Costumes: Alain Blanchot
Lighting: Christophe Naillet
Make-up: Mathilde Benmoussa
January 2009
*****
“The production is a spectacularly successful realisation of the principles of early French opera. Apart from the ravishingly painted sliding sets and flying deities, the use of Baroque gesture, which can often seem artificial and stilted, is fully integrated into the acting and entirely convincing. Vincent Dumestre directs a magnificent ensemble performance... the leads are magnificent, in particular the central pair of lovers. The camera work... magically captures every nuance of the acting while losing nothing of the production's essential grandeur.”
2010
“Lully's Cadmus et Hermione (1673) inaugurated the era of tragédie lyrique that held sway until the Revolution. The performances by both singers and dancers are first-rate, thanks in no small part to Vincent Dumestre's clear and zestful conducting and the responsiveness of the orchestra. André Morsch as Cadmus, Claire Lefilliâtre as Hermione and Arnaud Marzorati as the cowardly confidant Arbas deserve particular praise. All are at ease with the theatrical gestures of the time, and the choreography by Gudrun Skamletz and Anne Tournié is stylish and entertaining. The costumes are exquisitely crafted and so, too, the masks and the maquillage, bringing to life the images Berain left us. The giant Draco's dinosaur coat is a triumph, although some of the women's costumes seem a trifle short for the time. Other pleasures include the carefully researched scene sets with marvellous machinery (transporting gods and operating monsters) and the striking quality and quantity of light, originally generated by candles and oil lamps. Among the musical high-points are the chaconne that ends Act 1; Cadmus's and Hermione's farewell in Act 2; the divertissement that ends Act 3; the moment when Cadmus and Hermione are reunited in Act 4, tellingly in a minor key; and the divertissement that concludes Act 5. Important, too, are the comic scenes with servants in Acts 2 and 3 – a holdover from the comédies-ballet of the previous decade, which Lully avoided in later operas.”
February 2009
“The performances by both singers and dancers are first-rate, thanks in no small part to Vincent Dumestre's clear and zestful conducting… André Morsche… Cadmus, Claire Lefilliâtre as Hermione and Arnaud Marzorati as the cowardly confidant Arbas deserve particular praise. All are at ease with the theatrical gestures of the time, and the choreography by Gudrun Skamletz and Anne Tournié is stylish and entertaining. The costumes are exquisitely crafted and so, too, the masks and the maquillage, bringing to life the images Berain left us.”
