Faust, opera by Charles Gounod, Oct. 11 in the Four Seasons Centre. Long Long (Faust), Kyle Ketelsen (Méphistophélès), Guanqun Lu (Marguerite), Szymon Mechlinski (Valentin), Alex Hetherington (Siébel), Megan Latham (Marthe), Korin Thomas-Smith (Wagner). Canadian Opera Company Orchestra and Chorus, Johannes Debus, conductor. Direction by Amy Lane. Repeats Oct. 16, 18, 24, 27, Nov. 2. Tickets here.
Formerly popular as a repository of memorable tunes, Gounod’s Faust is seen less often these days, even if the supernatural dimensions of the story continue to attract the interest of directors. The staging unveiled Friday by the Canadian Opera Company offers plenty of editorial intervention, as well as some redemptive singing, notably by Long Long, the tenor in the title role.
This is a new production, although the “p” word seems rather a grand one to apply to a set comprising little more than an array of trees and a spiral staircase situated mid-stage in front of a giant projection of (get this) an x-ray of a torso. The trees look like pulmonary arteries and the staircase looks like a spinal column. Something about being trapped in a body that defines you. You can read all about it if you buy a program.
The palette is dark. Of Faust’s study, Marguerite’s garden, and other picturesque elements there is hardly a trace. Costumes, redolent vaguely of the 1930s, are mostly black. Among the exceptions are various figures of cabaret and commedia dell’arte inspiration who periodically dance around the principals for unclear reasons. Gounod’s ballet music is missing, as it usually is. There is quite a bit of choreography to make amends.
True to contrarian form, the British director Amy Lane has decreed minimal dancing during the waltz sequence, which was delivered largely in can-belto style from the stage apron by the robust COC Chorus. The villagers then savagely pummel some unfortunate mannikins, taking care to behead at least one. Hmm. Thought-provoking.
While this episode marked the nadir of the evening, it was not the only low point. The Soldier’s Chorus is presented as a kind of can-can — the forthright representation of patriotic sentiment on stage having been disallowed by the International Convention on Contemporary Opera Direction. The duel of Faust and Valentin is staged as a fistfight.
It is common during such nights in the Four Seasons Centre to seek solace in the voices. Long, who is active mainly in Germany, was a standout in all senses, tempering his high-range brilliance with a sure sense of lyrical line. A comparison with Jussi Björling might not be overdrawn. Long is still in his 20s. Catch him in person while you can.
Soprano Guanqun Yu, also Chinese and also making a COC debut, was sweetly melodious as Marguerite. Polish baritone Szymon Mechlinski made a solid if monochromatic Valentin. Mezzo-sopranos Alex Hetherington and Megan Latham, both Canadians, were in good voice as Siébel and Marthe. The latter, a comic character, was encumbered by a tea cart stacked with cakes.
Kyle Ketelsen, an American bass-baritone who has performed many major roles for the COC, looked the part of Méphistophélès with his sharply etched features and trimmed beard. Alas, it cannot be said that he mustered much menace with his singing or his presence. Fred Astaire tails and pair of female attendants (Lucifer and Beelzebub according to advance publicity materials) did not help. It should be noted also that Ketelsen was required to deliver “Le veau d’or” from the staircase — possibly not an ideal vantage from which to make oneself heard or to follow the conductor’s beat.
In truth I am willing to cut the whole cast some slack given the circumstances in which they found themselves. If the prevailing darkness (often thickened by stage smoke) had an upside, it was the inventive lighting design it occasioned from Charlie Morgan Jones (who, like choreographer Tim Claydon and set-costume designer Emma Ryott, is British). A long fabric suggesting stained glass windows made do for the church scene.
COC music director Johannes Debus preferred moderate tempos in the pit. Balances were just and the orchestra sounded strong. Musical matters are well attended to in COC performances. Staging remains hit and miss. This miss is particularly unfortunate since it represents the first ground-up COC project in six years. Why was it farmed out to a squad from the U.K.?
It must be recognized that Faust, despite all those hummable tunes, has not aged well. Germans famously use the title “Margarethe” to distinguish it from Goethe’s masterpiece. The sell-your-soul-to-the-devil story is very familiar. The impulse to modernize the opera is strong. The lesson of this reworking (a co-production with the Malmö Opera) is the need to proceed with care.
Or so say I. Opening-night applause was ample. Note that in the last performance of Nov. 2 the role of Marguerite will be taken by a Canadian, Ariane Cossette.
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