Street Clothes, Boos, Sailor Moon: La Scala Sinks Nekrosius's "Faust"

"Faust" at la Scala, that opened earlier tonight, had a lot of interesting things going on for it. A genius director (Eimuntas Nekrosius) and young conductor (Stephane Deneve) and an interesting -- at least on paper -- cast.

Then it all collapsed, fast.

The night began with the chorus on stage reading aloud their union's statement, explaining that they would appear on stage in their street clothes, refusing to wear the production costumes and to follow the director's directions (later, they just stood on stage singing, with no acting whatsoever). The orchestra in the pit was also in plain clothes.

All this to protest the new law currently in the Italian House that would diminish, according to the unions, the opera houses resources. 

The immediate reaction from the loggione was a near riot of protest; foreign Scalagoers who did not understand the Italian-only statement by the chorus were utterly baffled by the whole thing.

By the end of the (long, almost 4 and a half hours) night, everyone got booed, badly, except Irina Lungu (Marguerite). Even the conductor, not-so-shaggilly-haired-for-once Stephane Deneve, got booed, a lot.

The production team -- Lithuanian director Eimuntas Nekrosius and his team -- did not show up for curtain calls because, obviously, with the chorus refusing to follow directions and refusing to wear costumes, this wasn't really the "Faust" he had created.

Opera Chic's take on the whole mess?

If you don't feel like putting on a show because you're protesting for what you perceive as your inalienable workers rights, stay home. Strike. And let the opera house cancel the show, refund the ticket buyers (Platea and front-row Palchi tickets for la Scala, will set you back 224.40 euros, i.e. 277.93 US dollars).

Stay home next time. This passive-aggressive, half-a$$ed chicanery is just -- well, sad.

Comments

[josephine]

That's why labor protesters of the last century were courageous. We take for granted the principles of workers' protections, but these were fought for with blood, sweat and tears. They didn't do anything halfway back then, because they understood it wouldn't have been effective. No pain, no gain, whatever one thinks of the issues at hand. I agree, OC, they needed to stay home and let the house worry about how to compensate the public. That's how strikes work, for goodness' sakes.

[qui]

This is incredible. OC., you're completely correct. They had no business subjecting a paying audience to this kind of performance.
They paid to see an opera -- not a street clothes rehearsal. They aren't going to get much sympathy for this at all. Bad mistake!!!!!

[Rogier]

Just another night at La Scala! Opera as a blood sport. Thanks for the latest.

[Howard O.]

I don't know what I'd do if I showed up for an opera after paying my hard earned paycheck and the chorus and orchestra showed up in street clothes. If it's a free rehearsal, they've got every right in the world to wear whatever they want. I couldn't care less. But I find it disrepectful to their audiences. Without an audience, they're nothing. I feel for the workers and know they have rights just like any employee but what they're doing isn't like an office worker. They're artists and art is supposed to transcend these manipulative tricks.

[yadayada]

Artists have to make a living. So often one feels that people in the Arts are treated as if they are hobbyists and should simply be grateful they have opportunities to perform. The chorus and the orchestra should just put up and shutup, that sort of thing.

It's no different from any other profession, actually, and it's quite prone to labor abuses - or at least advantage-taking on the part of management or government or whoever is in charge. As in the case of the Met, for example - have the administrators taken pay cuts commensurate with the pay cuts for stage hands, et al, percentage-wise? Which work, on a daily and very tangible basis, is more critical to the running of an opera house?

Of course there is a way to do things, and no paying patron of La Scala should have been subjected to such silliness. They are the ones who have the right to protest, now! And what of these employees? Are they going to strike properly, or just make scenes and threaten to? They are clearly fearful about losing their jobs and in this economy they are probably correct to be wary. They may not want to risk doing anything more dramatic. These are tough times.

[Ken]

Clearly it is intended to be disrespectful to the audience, as proxy for the public at large (i.e., the electorate/taxpayers). You see, if Italy's philistine government had the right priorities (with opera funding at the top of the list, ahead of such prosaic line items as servicing the national debt), or if the stingy taxpayers would cough up enough money (in the midst of a bad recession) so that priorities need not be an issue, this job action would not have been necessary.

It's called singing truth to power.

[Bill Philin-Ploplis]

Will this nightmare ever end? The audience just has to stand up for its rights and just stop buying tickets. Period. One can enjoy beautiful performances at home on DVD and CD for a number of years. One can even "dress up."

[Lily]

Being dedicated to an art is not like being a monk in a silent order who has to flog himself, too. Opera professionals do not have to suffer simply because they have chosen an artistic vocation.

I do think it was wrong of them to deprive the audience of the opportunity for a refund. Go on, bite the hand that feeds you.

But then, isn't the problem at La Scala that it is a publicly funded venue, so in reality these people were--ahem--staging an anti-government protest?

[nick]

They're sinking themselves even deeper with this one!

[WILLYM]

Its interesting that the press office told me the performance would be canceled because of a "strike" and then they go ahead with this sort of crap! For you sake I wish they had simply gone through with that plan and you got at least the ticket price if not the prenotarie fee back. That is bloody criminal and hurts no one but the people who are supporting them regularly.

So what was the point - did the government that passed the law suffer? Where they in any way effected? No - only the people who paid to see the performance. The government types where spending Friday night with their mistresses, second families, trophy rent boys or cronies having a wonderful time.

Irresponsible union leaders and a group of sheep!

[WILLYM]

As a side bar, I have yet to see any strike in this country actually effect the outcome of anything.

Here in Rome we have one or two "transportation" strikes a month - between 0930 and 1530 on a weekday. Sometimes they are announced and don't happen other times they are announced and some of the drivers take part but not all. Other times it is utter chaos - okay more utter chaos!

Why are they striking? Who knows? And the result of their strike action? Nothing! Hell the bus/tram divers still get their smoke breaks, their coffee breaks, they don't loose their daily meal voucher because they are on the job the minimum required 5 hours. The public - boh! what do they matter! But we showed the government didn't we? Well no actually the government types run around in chauffeur driven limos, so the only people that were shown anything were the old people trying to get around town and the average Joe trying to get to work.

[walter]

Hey Willym, you got it down.
You should be teaching Italian social studies!
(maybe you do...)

[WILLYM]

Sorry Lily but this had what effect on the government????

[Eric]

I would have requested a refund of my ticket and not have put up with this nonsense!

[Lily]

None, I imagine.

[vale]

Is it true the La Scala chorus is striking Monday evening's performance of Faust and is it also true that the half a§§ Filharmonic Chorus is off in Hungary doing a concert?
Is it a coincidence that then they are cancelling a perfromance on Monday? Do they need the rest to be able to do more performances in their street clothes?
Very bad.
VERY bad indeed!
That place needs some serious auditing!

[Frauke]

How long can La Scala administration-board and Milanese politicians accept such an uncompetent Artistic Direction?
It's time to take a drastic decision.

[Yumiko]

This show was awful. I invited my elderly parents from Japan for this once in a lifetime experience and what a major disappointment. We've been looking forward to this for months. Not only did the performance suck, we could even see the orchestra joking around and making fun of the performers. The translation device stopped working at the start of act 5 too. I feel robbed of by time and money.

[Susan]

On a totally unrelated note, I love the picture!

[Hypnotherapy London]

Brilliant!