The story of a Paris courtesan, Violetta, falling in love with an ardent admirer, Alfredo, then facing the wrath of his stern bigot of a father when she is already dying of tuberculosis is an operatic classic and Eyre’s lavish sets and no-nonsense production perfectly capture the tragedy. I have now seen this production at least six times and it never fails to capture the attention and arouse one’s emotions. On this occasion, the singing and acting are of supremely high quality perfectly bringing out the relationships between the main characters.
First, there is Violetta, sung here by the Albanian soprano Ermonela Jaho. I saw her in this same role, making her Covent Garden debut in 2008 and was greatly impressed by her voice which combines strength, purity and emotion to perfect effect, and the way she acted the final scene on her deathbed was glorious. Since then, however, she has got even better. Her technique when singing high notes softly is very effective, and her ability to maintain purity of voice while wheezing and coughing in character is most impressive.
The key to this opera lies in the middle act where we see three successive pairings on the main characters on stage. First, Violetta is surprised by a visit from Alfred’s father, who tells her that she must give up his son as it will wreck his family if people realise that he has run off with a former courtesan. Then Violetta faces Alfredo, knowing that she must leave him, but cannot tell him so or give the reasons, and finally Alfredo confronts his father. The drama of these successive meetings demands acting ability of the highest order and this cast really deliver the goods.
Alfredo is perhaps the most difficult part, for it is all too easy to portray him as a bit of a wimp, caught up in affairs that he cannot handle, but American tenor Charles Castronovo plays him with great assurance and a delightfully firm but passionately mellow voice. Alfredo’s father, Germont senior, is also captured beautifully by Russian baritone Igor Golovatenko, who plays the role with just the right combination of harshness and sympathy.
A final touch of excellence is provided by Italian conductor Antonello Manacorda who seemed to me to add to the drama by delivering the slow passages just a touch slower and the fast passages a tiny bit faster than I am used to, which enhanced the contrast between the joy of Parisian opulence and the tragedy we saw enacted.
All in all, as perfect a Traviata as anyone could hope for showing why it is the most often performed of all operas around the world – but it is rarely performed as well as this by such a thoughtful and committed cast. If you have never been to an opera before but are thinking of doing so, Ermonela Jaho’s Traviata is the best possible place to start. Great music, great singing, great acting: altogether a terrific production.
Box Office: 020 7304 4000 or roh.org.uk (until January 31)
This will also be shown in cinemas in the UK and around the world live on January 30, with Placido Domingo as Germont senior, and repeated on February 3.