Since Wednesday, the Opéra de Nice has been hosting Meyerbeer’s most famous work, “Les Huguenots.” This classic French opera in five acts, dedicated to the Wars of Religion, has experienced many versions, interpretations, and adaptations since 1836.
The current production at the Opéra de Nice ties into painful current events but is likely to leave audiences at least somewhat skeptical.
The comparison drawn between the Wars of Religion, between Catholics and Protestants, and Islamist terrorism demonstrates a rather unfortunate misunderstanding of history.
The St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre as a precursor to the Syrian war? The Huguenots or the Leaguers as destroyers of the Buddhas of Bamiyan, or worse, the ruins of Palmyra…
The quickest shortcuts are not always the smartest. It’s a pity for an opera that stands to be known for its true historical significance.
A historical-political discrepancy that heralded others. First, the staging, with a somewhat clumsy and hardly reconcilable mix of modernity and tradition, in which the roles lose their grandeur, the situations their intensity, and the work its meaning.
A staging supported by the now unavoidable video projections, with videos dedicated to Daesh… Enough is enough.
But an evident musical discrepancy still had to be added. Discrepancy between the orchestra and the chorus, which, though not strictly unbearable, is nonetheless damaging in a work that gives them a prominent role.
Finally, because not everything is bleak amidst this St. Bartholomew’s chaos, let us praise, because it is deserved, the quality of the voices, with Hélène Le Corre excellent in the role of the page, Silvia Dalla Benetta (Queen Margot) for the sopranos, and Jérôme Varnier (the Protestant servant) among the basses. A much-needed cast so that the audience finds a standard behind which to rally in what remains one of the greatest French operas.
by Paul Bismuth
