Daniela Dessì Climbs "La Opera Delle Opere", Ignores The Ghosts Of Normas Past: Norma @ Teatro Comunale di Bologna, The Full Review

ok, ok let's get it outta the way:

Giuditta Pasta, Giuseppina Ronzi De Begnis, Maria Malibran, Giulia Grisi, Antonietta Fricci, Jenny Lind, Teresa Tietjens, Maria Vilda, Euphrosyne Parepa, Maria Peri, Eugenia Burzio, Giannina Russ, Ester Mazzoleni, Bianca Scacciati, Gina Cigna, Maria Caniglia, Maria Callas, Renata Tebaldi, Joan Sutherland, & Montserrat Caballé.

[not to mention Eleanor Roosevelt, Kate Summers Stratton, Edna Garrett, Dolly Parton, Golda Meir, Paris Hilton, Angela Merkel, & ur mom.]

Whew!

Now that the list of "All The Divas In The Universe Who Have Done The Best Norma Evar" (And Remember: UR Favorite Norma Sucks) is more or less out there (feel free to add whomever you want to the list), let's keep that garlic wreath handy to exorcise the various "Ghosts Of Normas Past" and let's move on to last night's Norma at Teatro Comunale di Bologna.

Opera Chic tackled the high-drama night, Daniela Dessì's first Norma, decked out in the girl equivalent of a bulletproof vest -- a vintage Chanel black cashmere shell, Diane von Furstenberg black puff skirt (with pockets...omg how we <3 that skirt!!). With classic Valentino black Mary Janes and the trusty midollino vintage Gucci bag. A shiny black Fay windbreaker to protect us from the naughty, chilly weather (it's still mild, fall-like weather around here, no summer for Italy yet).

The big drama of the night of course is that Norma is the Mount Everest for sopranos, and it's a merciless, merciless role that offers one very thin air to breathe, if at all -- it puts your voice (and your acting skills) under a microscope and shines a huge spotlight and then examines everything, blowing-up every problem, every blemish up like 10x -- coloratura, firm tops, phrasing, agility, and of course, teh powah. All in a role that's incredibly demanding emotionally, too. We won't even get into Bellini's reckless disregard for the physical limitations of the human vocal range and his own near-sadistic score markings: "con tutta la forza"; "con tutta la passione"; "così forte che scoppia una vena nel collo" -- omg lol well, we actually invented that last one, which translates in Italian as, "So loud as to bust a vein in your neck" -- but, I swear, the rest are indeed true.

Not to mention that the part of Norma is, in fact, quite low, with incredibly tough acuti. And every difficult moment of Bellini's style is there, blown up the the extreme.

It's unsurprising that Dessì -- wisely, we think --  waited until she was fifty-years-old to tackle the monstah (she mentioned in an interview in the Italian press the need for "vocal and emotional stability" if you hope to do Norma, that she called "la opera delle opere", the "opera of operas", justice).

Dessì won the game, yes -- not without difficulty, tho'...because OC had witnessed her sing effortlessly through other roles -- singing Adriana Lecouvreur, Manon Lescaut, & Tosca, which are roles that she owns completely, much more than other sopranos with bigger brand names and fatter record contracts could even dream about-- and we she is certainly the best Cio Cio San of the last 15 years, easily, at least since Madame Kabaivanska retired Butterfly from her repertory.

But her Norma, while very good, even excellent at times, did not not achieve anything like the effortlessness of her marquee roles. We never thought we'd see la Dessì sweat under her costume, but we did. Oh my! The result -- cell-phone sabotaged "Casta Diva" included (see post below) -- was vocally convincing and emotionally very touching last night (hers is a heartbroken, betrayed Norma who behaves with quiet dignity, not exactly the unhinged diva other sopranos have attempted in a vain attempt to portray you know who, la Maria) but this is a role that may be too taxing for anybody to do so often. She didn't really push only because she has all the experience and the technique to negotiate the hairpin turns of the role.

Obviously, to speak of the recent Normas Past, we all heard the Guleghina disaster and Fleming admitted she coulnd't do it in the unforeseeable future, and the sheer thought of Netrebko (whom we otherwise really, really like) doing a Norma production sends us clutching our cans of Citrosodina; La Ceci Bartoli is a mezzo who only did "Casta Diva" in the studio as, more or less, a vanity project, and is too smart to do more than that; Mariella Devia herself, the goddess of a flawless singing technique, one of the most roundly, well-prepared sopranos of recorded history, can do choice Norma bits in concert, but the whole enchilada -- even with the traditional cuts of da capos, etc -- on stage is a wilder, untamed beast.

And last night was only Dessì's absolute debut, she'll certainly grow more into the role -- but she avoided all the horrible traps, and ended up victorious.

(above: lobby of Teatro Comunale di Bologna)

Of Dessì's Pollione, super-sweet boyfriend Fabio Armiliato, a wonderful tenor with a seriously cool repertoire, we only have good things to say -- he did push a bit too hard at times, but in tune with the romantic, heart-broken Norma, he gave the interesting portrait of a puppyish, if immature, Pollione -- someone you can easily believe falling for both women, more an indecisive romantic than a thuggish cad (Opera Chic has already admitted last night in her instant teaser review that she prefers her Pollione more thuggish, but maybe it's just her).

As Adalgisa, we rilly rilly liked American mezzo Kate Aldrich so much we're posting about her tomorrow separately, to give her the space she deserves, because this is Dessì's post -- she earned the right, in a way.

Daniela & Fabio played on their home turf, with a very loving audience, so their repeated ovations must be considered in the light of that, too, but there is no doubt that they gave us a beautiful night of singing and acting, without silly fears of the ghosts of the past, because they know that history is now, and even the biggest fan (Dessì has a huge Callas poster hung in her own living room) must know that the world, here & now, belongs to the living.

We don't know whether conductor Evelino Pidò opted for the traditional cuts of Bellini's score or this was an agreement with the singers (even a ruthless "come scritto" conductor such as Riccardo Muti opted for the cuts in his 1994 Norma at Maggio Musicale, btw, for the record -- Opera Chic, when it comes to Norma and many other things, is a Marinuzzi girl).

No, the real problem we had with Pidò's work is that he should have known that in a very small theater such as Bologna, in a Bellini score, the brass drowns out the strings incredibly quick, and even if you cannot mute the brass (the great, unsung Bruno Campanella even does away with trumpets and trombones in Capuleti), you really have to be more careful than he was -- the too-brassy moments ruined so much of his otherwise nice, stable work. And the pacing must also be controlled with incredible care -- the occasional, too-sudden increases in speed should have been handled with more care. To be blunt: if his orchestra couldn't adhere to his markings, he should have relented instead of slightly (but audibly) ruining the phrasing on so many occasions -- you go to the opera with the orchestra you have, not with the orchestra you *wish* you had.

We loved -- unlike some other spectators -- the scenery, which were paintings by the late Mario Schifano. The originals had burned down with Teatro Petruzzelli back in the 1990s (the irony, Norma sets that burn down) so these were replicas from the maestro's original sketches. But the staging by Federico Tiezzi was incredibly static, the neon tree in Act I was just lame and stingy, and some of the sets looked like they had been recycled from some other production (we did like the Romans in Napoleonic uniform and the white, 2001 Kubrickian effect of Norma's 18th Century sparse furniture...but the otherwise adorable, big-haired kids playing with a toy train, not so much).

At the end of the taxing night, racing home towards Milan, realizing that as tired as OC was from the long drive, while suffering through the unseasonably chilly air, there was no way anyone could have been half as exhausted as la Dessì...who ran like the Iron Man marathon equivalent of a soprano role. Since Norma is like the wii of the opera world, OC will be perfectly content playing with her xbox & ps3 for the next decade.

(Above: a shot of balconies in Balonies)

Comments

[Willym]

Okay now I feel I really have to make that stop in Bologna on the way up and see if I can get a ticket. As always mille grazi!

[Eman]

Seriously awsome review, OC -- you see, hangin' out with you makes me talk like you...:-) You always give us so much, we feel like we were there with you. Grazie!

PS Can't wait for your wise words on La Aldrich (which I _loved_ on the broadcast).

[Tim]

I would like to add the name of Anita Cerquetti to the list of great Normas. I refer you to the 1958 Norma in Rome in which she stepped in for Maria Whatsername. Really great singing with the audience into it 100%. A young Franco Corelli is a substantial bonus. By the way, wonderful review.

Tim

[Bill Philin-Ploplis]

I am still amazed that Dessi was able to do this role. She sings so much other stuff that I can't imagine how she prepared the role while just having sung Minnie in Roma. She must have a formidable technique! Thanks as ever for your very cosmopolitan review. Loved the shots of Bologna which I visited for about 2 hours when I was 16.

[Parsifal]

After listening to the broadcast a couple of times today, i can admit that she is a great Norma (next to a great Adalgisa-Aldrich). BTW i dont think that la Tebaldi ever sung Norma but just the Casta diva +cabaletta

[tommyopera]

OC, I don't know how you crank out review after wonderful review after wonderful review. I can't wait for your reports whenever you share them with us desperate public, and pray you never retire from your blog. Please don't leave us without these little morsels of fantastic reporting! I wish I could be in all these places with you listening to all this beautiful music.

It's only through you that I now follow Daniela Dessi, and I'm so grateful that you turned me onto her. I hope this Norma is one for the ages.

[number five alive]

I was relived also when Fleming pulled out of her Norma promise. She would have been torn to shreds against the perfection of Dessi. So glad you got to go for Norma and report back.

[deadtenors]

thanks, oc. rocked it, as always. your photos brought back memories of the comunale. my italian was non-existent last time i was in bologna. were the guys hanging out around those pillars out the front trying to pick me up or sell me gear?

[A Real Cad]

The usual queens got a bad case of the vapors when Tebaldi's "Sediziose voci... Casta diva" came out, it was priceless, finally the Callas girls had the hard evidence that Tebaldi was very bad at something Callas did very well and the Tebaldi girls had the evidence that Tebaldi was much smarter than Callas because she refused to do it outside of a studio. And the funniest part is that it's all true, Tebaldi's Bellini is very bad and yes Maria was in fact dumber than Renata. For once everybody won. I'm with OC here, your favorite Norma sucks, by definition. The greatest Norma is always somebody else's, not your favorite soprano's.

[flipstinger]

Oz...merci buckets for this brill report!

gotta luv la Dessi! she has been preppin for this role for a while now and i`m sure it`s been nerve rackin to go out there and tackle this super demanding role....she pulled it out magnificently so AMEN to that!

she`s got a background in coloratura as she`s done some years ago...more like in the 80s so it`s not like a completely new way of singing for her. i do agree tho` that it was a wise decision on her part to wait later in her career to do Norma - the more experience, the better and more solid performance. BRAVA indeed!

[jpcd]

I notice a touch of irony in that AG's home site, http://www.angelagheorghiu.com/en/#
has the Casta Diva played by an orchestra....

And Oh, BTW, its stated right on her website, that her CDs and DVDs are the _best_ that's been done. Amazing the chutzpah of those AG PR flacks.... beautiful melody though when done by orchestra.... perhaps that's why its not sung there.....

BTW great review - one is in awe of your productivity and devotion....

[CrewMantle]

Although I have countless Normas in the collection, the publics' fascination with this work leaves me mystified. It was in the late 80's that I finally realised conductors/singers routinely took liberties with scores. So if a conductor cut certain sections for acceptability with more modern audiences in view (4 1/2 hour long Julius Caeser immediately comes to mind), it would makes sense. Likewise, intelligent singers will modify a role, within reason, to accomodate their particular strengths.... Something which shocked Miss Caballe upon hearing Miss Sutherland sing Norma for the first time...enough to raise the topic in conversation.

Norma the opera does have a myriad of possibilities for character development, so the stand out for me in ur review was the Pollione of Mr. Armiliato. Who would have EVER thought to play the Roman consul, a warrior, as anything BUT thuggishly cavalier? To have modernised him into a confused, immature, metrosexual is brilliant! And makes perfect sense contextually.

Miss Dessi would strike me as one who would vocally reflect Anita Cerquetti as Norma. Capable and sufficent enough to be notable...with time in the role, even memorable.

[Sandy]

Thanks, OC! Your reviews do more for my understanding and enjoyment of opera than any publication I've ever seen. And they don't dish the scholarship and scandal in equal helpings with your lavish hand!

[Les Mitchell]

It's kind of interesting that so much mystique surrounds Norma. As a pianist who's studied the score, I can see why the role is such a bear. There are so many intricate "little notes" and so many long sustained phrases that it must take superhuman breath control, which sopranos like Ponselle, Milanov, Callas, Sutherland, and Caballe' certainly had. Norma is also the longest role in opera after Wagner's Isolde. I've no recollection of Tebaldi singing Norma, save for a "Casta Diva" and cabaletta, which wasn't very good. I find that all the previous posters are interesting, and I thank OC for teaching me so much about stuff that I thought I already knew. I love to read other viewpoints, and I can get all of that here. I hope Dessi has a continued success in this role. I'd like to see SOMEONE take command of this opera in the tradition of the five great sopranos eluded to above.

[Bill Philin-Ploplis]

I think it was Maestro Serafin who offered to coach Tebaldi, early in her career, in the role, but either she or he said it would take a year to accomplish that task, and she declined the offer. I can't say she made the wrong choice, but I can't imagine the role would have been a comfortable fit with her special qualities and temperament. Coloratura was not really one of her srong points, just judging from her studio recordings of Traviata and Trovatore. Her Giovanna d'Arco, however, suggests other possibilities.

[Les Mitchell]

I agree with Mr. Philin-Ploplis about Tebaldi attempting Norma. She made the right choice. Her voice had far too much bulk and weight in the upper middle (which made her so great in verismo operas), which is probably why she had a definite tendency to veer more than slightly flat on sustained top B's and C's.
Moeover, as Mr. Ploplis points out, Tebaldi's "coloratura" (if you can call it that) was never even close to being approximate. She was a lovely Violetta, but certainly not in the closing of the first act, where the huffs and puffs in the "Sempre Libera" are pretty bad. But of course, even without Norma, Tebaldi was extraordinary.
I'm surprised that Cheryl Studer never attempted it.

[Bill Philin-Ploplis]

I agree with Mr. Mitchell about Studer. She was a good Semiramide and an admired Violetta, and, I guess, a decent Lucia; and she had some dramatic heft to her voice. However, I rather disagree with Dessi about waiting until one is much older to undertake Norma. It does require the physical stamina only a young person has; I think waiting until after 40 to work Norma into one's active repertory is a bit too late to sing the role regularly enough to develop a full characterization--vocally and dramatically. I think Ms. Radvanovsky should be working on performing it soon.