Pelleas et Melisande

Synopsis

Debussy's masterpiece, Pelleas et Melisande is based on Maurice Maeterlinck's symbolist play and was first performed in 1902 at the Opera-Comique, Paris. A tragic fairy-tale, the opera recounts the ill-fated love of half-brothers Golaud and pelleas for the same woman, the enigmatic Melisande.

Our Review:

Simon Thomas - 2 June 2010

Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande is one of the true gems of the 20th Century repertoire, although its delicate beauties can prove elusive for some operagoers. It’s difficult to see why, with a ravishing score and a compelling libretto drawn from Maeterlinck’s deeply evocative symbolist play.

Opera Holland Park were hardly blessed with the weather for the opening night of the season. Overriding dampness, steaming breath from the performers and a chill in the air provided an appropriate background to the opera but was a little uncomfortable for the audience.

Director Olivia Fuchs puts her cast in some perilous situations – singing while walking in a huge rolling cylinder, perched at the top of a narrowing slope and, nattiest of all, moving around on a board balanced on a ball that shifts the centre of gravity as the singer moves around it. If they hadn’t quite mastered it on the first night, it should provide a potent metaphor as...

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Latest User Review

Job - 17 June 2010:

A feast for the ears. I could scarcely fault the musical performance, so bravo to Brad Cohen and all the singers and players. Post-interval in particular it was electric and the 'Je t'aime' moment had incredible power. Fantastic work. But oh, what a stupid, stupid production these top musicians were lumbered with. P & M is a symbolist play/opera to begin with, so only a complete klutz would impose their own wannabe symbolic interpretation on top of that. It just makes a mess. Dear Ms Fuchs, engage brain before showing off. As for the magnificent seven am-dram dames, sunny smiles and chortling spread around the auditorium - not quite in the mood of the piece, but unintentional fun even so....

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