2023-11-14 07:38:15
The cross : For your first dive into the lyrical universe, a work as emblematic as The Magic Flute is it an opportunity or a challenge?
Cédric Klapisch: It could be both but, despite a complex libretto with its mixture of naivety and philosophical scope, I chose to let myself be won over above all by the pleasure provided by Mozart’s music, by the childish part of the ‘opera.
I savored the intense happiness of coming every day to listen to this incredible music, as I had already experienced while filming a documentary on the dancer Aurélie Dupont, to the sound of Chopin, Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky.
According to the principle of the Germanic Singspiel, The flute alternates spoken dialogue and singing. Was it a difficulty?
C. K. : Even before confronting it, I had to immediately abandon my realism as a filmmaker for the symbolism of the living stage, especially at the opera. But, in fact, what to do with dialogues in German in front of an audience the majority of which does not master this language?
I opted to translate and adapt them into French, which was not immediately obvious to the teams at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées. Ultimately, I think (I hope) that this works, by doubly emphasizing the shift from the naturalism of speech to the symbolism of song which, of course, remains in German.
What are the main points of your staging?
C. K. : I based the production on the opposition between the Queen of the Night and Sarastro. She is nature, magic, darkness. Him, civilization, science, Light, in the philosophical sense of the term. But this duality is not Manichean. The spirit of vengeance of the Queen of the Night is that of a mother from whom her daughter, Pamina, has been taken away. As for the very wise Sarastro, he is responsible for the kidnapping and his way of always being right is something frightening…
This game of doubles occurs throughout the opera, notably between the noble Tamino, a valiant and educated prince, and the bird catcher Papageno, a man of the woods, good-natured and not always very courageous. With the baritone Florent Karrer, we underline the melancholic dimension of this comic character, whose love duet with his Papagena is one of the hits of The Magic Flute !
What is the major difference between singers and film actors?
C. K. : The relationship with their body, their work instrument. In this, they are closer to the dancers, even if the suffering is not the same. In this month of November, terrible for the throat, I saw how singers protect themselves and cannot go on stage before having “warmed up” their voices. An essential prerequisite, when you have very great film actors who give the best of themselves without any preparation.
You insist on the choreographic dimension of your work…
C. K. : For several filmings, I have collaborated with the choreographer Laura Bachman and, in The flute, his contribution was decisive in streamlining and harmonizing the gestures of the actor-singers. Thus, the three Ladies of the Queen of the Night, fanciful, even excessive, owe a lot to this choreographic vision.
It continues in their costume – long stiff dresses by Stéphane Rolland and Pierre Martinez – and their spectacular hairstyles. So many essential elements in the characterization of the characters: Tamino’s nobility is reinforced by his large cape and Pamina’s grace by her immense flowered braid…
Does this experience make you want to attend the opera more regularly?
C. K. : I loved this team spirit, artisanal and delicate, felt an indescribable emotion listening to so many moments of musical flight. So, yes, I want to continue. Perhaps with a musical comedy where theatrical play, movement, dance, light, and music of course converge!
———-
“The Magic Flute”, new production
From November 14 to 24 Théâtre des Champs-Élyséesthen on December 3 at Imperial Theater of Compiègne and December 9 and 10 at Municipal theater of Tourcoing.
The musical direction is entrusted to François-Xavier Roth, at the head of the Les Siècles orchestra.
The vocal cast includes: tenor Cyrille Dubois as Tamino, soprano Regula Mühlemann as Pamina, baritone Florent Karrer as Papageno, soprano Catherine Trottmann as Papagena, bass Jean Teitgen as Sarastro, soprano Aleksandra Olczyk as Queen of the Night , baritone Marc Mauillon in Monostatos…
#Magic #Flute #abandon #realism #filmmaker