On the night of October 25th, the NCPA’s production of Verdi’s opera Otello was revived at the Beijing Performing Arts Centre. This version, elaborated by Giancarlo del Monaco, a world-renowned director, is as visually beautiful and amazing as a film. Under Maestro Valery Gergiev’s baton, the Mariinsky Orchestra and China NCPA Chorus staged this masterpiece, by joining hands with singers from the Mariinsky Theatre, including Hovhannes Ayvazyan, Irina Churilova, Ariunbaatar Ganbaatar and Roman Shirokikh, as well as China’s vocalists including GUAN Zhijing, KOU Jing, WANG Jing, MEI Jie and other NCPA resident singers.
Otello begins with a tempest chorus in its most breathtaking scene. Like a psychodrama in which human nature is put to the test, the opera is extraordinarily difficult to interpret in terms of vocal singing and theatrical acting. Every character in it, including the protagonist Otello or Iago, and supporting roles, such as Casio and Montano, has a rich inner world.
For the heroic tenor Otello, his image as a brilliant and gloomy general needs to be played through a high voice, vigourous physique and solid acting skills. Tenor Hovhannes Ayvazyan came on the stage and, just a dozens of bars later, visualised Otello’s heroic spirit. He gave a vivid portrayal of Otello, especially of how the character turned from an imposing and affectionate man into a credulous and desperate person.
Desdemona is seemingly an angel, played by soprano Irina Churilova. She gave a perfect portrayal of a pure and kind-hearted princess. Her soft, melodious voice is just in contrast to the male lead’s deep, powerful voice, sounding beautiful and pleasant. When lost in love, Kurilova sang in an exceedingly sentimental and tender tone, touching the hearts of the entire audience.
Iago is a Mephisto-style demon, the initiator of all tragedies, portrayed by baritone Ariunbaatar Ganbaatar. In the opera, Iago’s arias are barely melodic, yet composed of free phrases and irregular structures. Ganbaatar captured the character’s motive in his distinctive voice. He revealed the character’s hypocrisy in his body postures and facial expressions, vividly visualising Iago’s personality traits.
Trapped by the great conspiracy, Casio is manipulated like a puppet by Iago. Tenor Roman Shirokikh gave a portrayal of this simple, loyal subordinate with his precise understanding of the character. Meanwhile, GUAN Zhijing appeared as Lodovico, KOU Jing as Rodrigo, WANG Jing as Emilia and MEI Jie as Montano, making the performance much more brilliant that night.
The composer Verdi let choral singing play a pivotal role in expressing feelings and shaping the characters. Under Maestro Gergiev’s baton, the China NCPA Chorus gave a world-class performance of this highly demanding opera with their years of stage experience.
On the afternoon of October 26th, Otello will be staged again with Hovhannes Ayvazyan, Albina Shagimuratova, Ariunbaatar Ganbaatar, JIN Zhengjian, GUAN Zhijing, KOU Jing, WANG Jing, MEI Jie and CHEN Jian to present this timeless classic opera to the audience.
