Operas About the Romanovs

[Silja]

Well, I think a musical on the Romanovs could not leave out the tragedy altogether. This is perhaps indeed the problem of the whole project, that it might degenerate into a melodramatic tear jerker. One would have to strike the right balance, and what's more important, raise some questions so that the viewer is left to debate things.

With regard to Elisabeth, the show, yes, apart from the Austrian versions there were productions in Hungary, Sweden, Holland, Japan and Germany. Since October it has been showing again in Vienna.

The musical is not at all altogether sympathetic to Elisabeth. As Lucheni sings in "Kitsch", "I will tell you something, in reality your Sisi was a terrible egoist ...". It gives the ambivalent and contradictory picture of a woman who sought to live a life of her own in an age when women were denied such ambitions, but who ultimately cared about noone and nothing but herself. She increasingly lived in a dream world and was haunted by that death drive. Ironically, by killing her, her murderer could not have done her a greater favour.

To Robert,

If you're interested in the subject I suggest  Brigitte Hamann's excellent key work Elisabeth - The Reluctant Empress.
Regards,
Silja

[Robert_Hall]

Thank you, I do have the Hamann book, along with several others on the  Empress E. [a lot of which I cannot red, but I like the pictures]. Just wish I could at least see it in English !
I just thnk musical theatre is suppose to be something to entertain, & if lucky, perhaps to inspire thought.
In my view, the way these mega-productions go in the West End, I can see a Romanov story,  I do not write or compose, but would not be surprised if  something shows up soon, After all "Mary Poppins" ??

[Silja]

To Robert,

But you do have the Hamann book in English, don't you?

[Robert_Hall]

yes, 1986

[Silja]

Good  

[Robert_Hall]

Did not know quite where to put this.
However, am listening to  "Killing Rasputin" a London cast-1999.  I missed it, one of the few West End musicals I have missed, but I think it was sort of a flop.
Did anyone see it?  It sounds quite a camp, Felix is really played up.
The 2 operas I know about I missed as well, does anyone know if cast cds are available?

[Johnny]

Hi all,
Last Sept. I flew from Boston to LA to see Deborah Dratell's (BTW, it is not Drateck, and it is pronounced dra-TELL) opera Nicholas and Alexandra. Someone in the forum said that he(she?) trusts his friend's artistic judgement of the opera and apparently it has been positive. I am a professional composer, with graduate degrees in composition, and adore opera, and let me tell you this was the most god-awful thing I had ever seen in my life. The characters were so one-dimensional and boring it wasn't even funny. Rasputin's real orgies (from the first hand accounts that I have read ) were much more interesting than the stupid thing that I saw on the stage. Alexei's bleeding episode was a joke. Anastasia was constantly called "Ania" which I am sure all of you know stands for Anna and never for Anastasia (my family is from Russia, so trust me on that one.) Rasputin's murder scene convinced me that neither the composer nor the librettist had ever bothered reading Yussupov's or Purishkevich's memoirs or Radzinsky's book on Rasputin, for that matter. They had probably tried to base their imaginary scene on the little account about the murder in Massie's Nicholas and Alexandra which doesn't provide much detail on the event, therefore they shamelessly managed to get all the details (that they had to invent) wrong. Except for Yussupov, the other murderers' names were all made up, and the murder scene was not only inaccurate but also toned down and totally unengaging and childishly silly. There was not a moment of real intensity. There was no tragedy nor any comic relief which Rasputin or the kids or even Alexandra could have provided. Anna Vyrubova apparently never existed for the creators of this opera, instead they had to make up a fictional friend for Alexandra. The music was the most appaling part of the whole thing. Not because it was modern and difficult to listen to. On the contrary, because it was so flat and unimaginative, without a single melody to stand out or any Russian local color. It was poorly orchestrated and almost amateurishly composed. It got the most horrendous reviews and it deserved all of them. One reviewer said that during one performance it seemed that the only thing that would make the audience happy was Dratell's head in recompense of having to sit through this most boring thing ever. Can you imagine turning one of the greatest stories in mankind's history into two hours of total boredom. As Alexandra often wrote in her letters to Nicholas:"Hang her!"

[Jmentanko]

Thanks for that great review!

[Robert_Hall]

Johnny-
Great review. Seemed to be the consesus. Guess I can stop looking for cast cd now.I would like your opinion on RASPUTIN, by Reise, I think. I came & went so fast I don't think anyone even knows about it. I think it closed after one night in NY.
About Elizabeth- well, I do not speak or understand German, so I went for the perfomance. I enjoyed it a lot, still listen to it & hope it one day comes to the West End or SF in an English version.
Cheers,
Robert

[Johnny]

Rodger,
I don't think historical accuracy is impoartant at all when it comes to opera. My complain is that in this particular case the real story (including the very possibly grossly exagerated accounts by Yussupov or others) is much more interesting, engaging, dramatic not to mention operatic than what the composer and librettist manage to put together. I could care less about historic accuracy if some other stuff would go on on the stage. There was nothing hapenning, neither in the paly nor in the music. It was plain boring. In most operas with a murder scene the victim doesn't die until he has sung three more arias. Here we have a famous case of someone who simply doesn't die and needs to be shot several times after he has been poisoned. But in the opera he just drops dead as soon as he's been shot. Talk about anti-dramatic! The creators of the opera didn't seem to have a dramatinc bone in their body. BTW, I have heard other stuff by the composer. She is an expert in composing boring stuff! That's what I think.

[Johnny]

Robert,
Are we talking about the musical "Rasputin" or an opera about him. I don't know Reise. I heard excerpts of a musical about Rasputin over the internet. I don't think it was very good. You can't treat such a topic as a Broadway show and not become (as someone mentioned above) melodramatic. This topic needs a very objective and serious (I don't mean without humor, just respectful) treatment or it can easily become ridiculous.

[Jane]

Rodger, with all due respect, I think your sarcasm is a bit excessive regarding Johnny's opinion on the opera.  As a trained musician, he's certainly entitled to voice his opinion that he thinks it's dreck if he wants to--just as you are entitled to voice your opinion on genetic matters as one who has training in that very complicated field.  We are ALL entited to opinions. I  sensed a tone in your post that really bothered me, but I am sure, however, you didn't intend to offend anyone.    

The opera's historical inaccuracy may be a very big concern to some viewers, by the way.  So many people develop historical "knowledge" from various media.  I heard some woman on the radio this morning talking about a new band named Franz Ferdinand.  She mentioned how the band named themselves after the (and I quote her) "Crown prince of Spain whose assasination started WWI."  I nearly drove off the road after hearing her appalling mistake.  But somewhere out there some fool's going to take it as a historical truism.  

I am an opera fan but there is no way I am spending my money on this one.  

Jane

[Johnny]

Jane,
Thank you for bringing up this very important point. You know the saying "Ignorance begets ignorance", and not only in historical matters. I am sure that half the audience in the opera house now thinks that Ania is a short form for Anastasia, simply because someone didn't bother checking her facts before writing an opera.
And you know how much that is going to "improve" the Americans' stereotype image as ignorant among other nations. Historical inaccuracy is different than historical irresponsibility.

[Jane]

Historical inaccuracy is different than historical irresponsibility.

Excellent point.  

[Silja]

Johnny,

Thanks for the interesting review! Sounds as if it's really one to be missed  
I totally agree with what has been written by Jane and you regarding historical inaccuracy and opera.
Too funny this thing about Rasputin dying in a second when there would have been a chance to present an operatic death with a real historical background . Really ironic!

Robert,

I also hope for an English production of Elisabeth!!!! There has been talk about it but nothing has come of it as yet.