Ernani

Giuseppe Verdi is the composer of some of the most glorious operas in the canon, from the glittering La Traviata to the spectacular Aida to the humourous Falstaff, with many smash hits in between.

The opera Ernani was composed by him very early in the career and was his first major success. We see in this opera his potential for greatness.

Sadly, the opera does not stand up as well as his other hits. Intermittently a moment would arrive when a lead would sing an aria – ah here is the beautiful tune coming up I thought – but the music did not always resonate.

My date was an experienced opera aficionado – who thoroughly enjoyed the production – however less frequent visitors to the artform were overheard murmuring that they did not like it very much, and there were noticeable empty seats after interval.

For starters, the story is hard to get your head around. It is set in Spain in 1519, and in the first act three men are fighting for the hand of the beautiful virgin Elvira. The suitors are the outlaw Ernani, the King of Spain Don Carlo and her fiancé Silva.

After an opening flurry of activity from the chorus, the leads barely moved from their positions for long stretches. Adding to the fog was the director’s decision to stage the opera as a play within a play.  

In recent times Opera Australia audiences have been treated to cutting edge productions involving extraordinary videography. In this co-production with Teatro alla Scala it was back to the good old days of large painted cloth backdrops and heavy sets, which took a long time to move. In one break between acts, cast members came out with signs telling us it to wait for three minutes.

After interval there was more joy in the production. In a wedding scene, the array of costumes and masks was utterly gorgeous.

So too were the leading players in the opera. The formidable Diego Torre as Ernani always impresses. Natalie Aroyen sang the role of Elvira beautifully, whilst Vladimir Stoyanov as Don Carlo earnt his opening night ovation.

The co-production with La Scala is a great initiative to allow lesser-known works to be seen on a grand scale.  This one did not quite hit the mark.

David Spicer

Photographer: Prudence Upton