Something I didn’t think was possible has happened this last week: I have been strongly moved by a performance of La traviata. That was due very largely, of course, to the way the title role was performed. Anna Netrebko may not have the perfect voice for the part, her vocal technique might be lacking in this or that respect, but she was amazing, and was recognised by the audience to be so. She got a reception befitting a great artist who had just delivered a classic account of a major role. My surprise is the greater because I find the hype about her, much of it cleverly auto-generated, incredibly annoying, and I was on the verge of relegating her to that category of fairly gifted singers who are ruined by the contemporary celebrity-making machine. That is still possible, but what this revealed is that she is a remarkable actress, capable of giving a complex and convincing account of what is not really a very satisfactory role, as conceived by Verdi, and working with her colleagues to bring the whole tired old work to vivid new life.
I have never found this production of Richard Eyre’s very satisfactory, and the way that the Royal Opera has, year after year, used it to fill the house for January while its serious concerns lie beyond has usually given it a depressing air of routine, with moderately endowed performers going through the motions. Presumably it was decided that the time had come for Netrebko, who has made several unsensational appearances here already, to be properly launched. There was every sign that care had been taken in thinking the production out anew, with this powerful trio of stars. For Netrebko’s achievement in moving us freshly at Violetta’s fate was helped enormously by the two male leads.
Comments
Join the debate for just £1 a month
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for £3.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just £1 a monthAlready a subscriber? Log in