Finally watched it again.
It's really hard to get past the garish art direction, but to be fair the music is some of Rameau's best, and the singing and musical direction by Raphael Pichon is top notch.
The one thing that stands out for me in this third viewing is the phenomenal soprano Gaëlle Arquez. I didn't notice it on previous viewings, but at the end of the opera, during the finale, you can see her suppressing her emotions, trying…
Now this is more like it: Rameau's opera is presented in what seems to me authentic period stagecraft, lighting, costuming, and dancing. Marvelous from start to finish!
As a fan of Polanski I know his oeuvre pretty well. So I was very surprised when I happened upon What? only to discover that it was a Polanski movie that had somehow flown completely under my radar.
I still don't know what to make of it. It seems like Polanski was having a nice vacation in the Mediterranean with some friends and got an inspiration. So he got money from his contacts to "go with the flow." Thus this…
Begin: We're outside La Scala, the mecca of opera lovers. The music is frenetic. We get a private tour of the lobby. It's empty. It feels like a sacred place, with busts and sculptures of the great opera composers, with a special focus on Rossini (which is understandable).
We enter the theatre, splendorous in red velvets and ivory whites. Though it feels very formal, it's also inviting. Lots of architectural symmetry and rhythm. The seats, the boxes, the entire hall…
