Lully: Armide on blu-ray
Given what Gaston said that I'm not much of a Lully fan, I'm giving him another chance.
Maybe it's a question of the right conductor/band and the right staging, because William Christie and Les Arts Florissants don't usually misfire, so it is with optimism that I approach this one:
Hang on, I'm starting it now, full review to follow. Good start, I must say - very entertaining prologue with the usual tribute to the king of early French baroque opera done in a very imaginative manner.
Very spectacular use of video, projected in high definition on the stage, with scenes of the Versailles palace of which singers and chorus participate, and they break into dance. Oh boy, I'll be liking this, I'm sure.
From the pit the usual competent, full, rich playing on period instruments from Les Arts Florrissants and Christie are a pleasure to hear. The images and sounds on this blu-ray are top notch. Technically perfect.
Next the dancers, after having visited the King's chamber, rush to the gorgeous gardens and dance on lawns and fountains. All very visually appealing. This production has managed to make of this very, very, very long prologue (23 minutes) something very enjoyable - which would not have happened if they had just played it in the theater.
One of the tourists sneaks into the King's bed, falls asleep, dreams, and the opera itself starts. Clever. We're back at the theater, we see Armide's bed, and it looks similar to Louis XIV's, except that it is all in silver. She wakes up, dressed on a sexy bright red night gown. Wow. She sings wonderfully (Stéphanie d'Oustrac). Hidraot enters the scene (Nathan Berg - he's OK). Claire Debono and Isabelle Druet do an excellent job during the prologue and Act I, in the multiple roles of respectively La Gloire / Phénice / Lucinde, and La Sagesse / Sidonie / Mélisse.
Act II, we get to meet Renaud (Paul Agnew - excellent singer) - it turns out that he is the tourist that had fallen asleep during the prologue. Artémidore is Marc Callahan, he's OK. Stéphanie continues to steal the scene with her impressive acting, strange beauty, and formidable singing. She calls up all the devils, and the dancers who were wearing silver clothing strip out of them and they all have bright red dresses underneath. What a clever effect, again. Gee, these folks are so talented! Christie and his troupe always put together these outstanding performances!
By now, it is already clear that this product is highly recommended. I'll pause soon for a grilled meal (it's the 4th of July) and will be back for acts III, IV, and V.
Act III: amazing. Very beautiful, again, both for the music, staging, and the opera itself.
Act IV: If all the numerous assets above weren't enough to earn my admiration, now we have one of the most striking displays of female nudity in opera - with a very beautiful dancer entirely naked, dancing for several minutes on stage, made more sexy by some veils and curtains, but displaying quite enough to make a (grown) boy like me very happy.
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After lunch, final touches: Act V just as good, great finale. Excellent opera, better than the one I had as my Lully favorite (Atys), and it is packed in a very satisfactory product.
Some details I hadn't mentioned yet (this review has been less structured than my usual one):
2008, live, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, staging (excellent) by Robert Carsen. DTS 5.1, LPCM, subtitles in French, English, German, Italian, and Spanish. All regions. Running time 168 minutes. Insert impeccable with gorgeous pictures, synopsis, track list with duration and characters. Extras include a documentary - Armide à Versailles - with insightful interviews about Lully, the baroque, Armide, its historical importance, its impact on the history of French opera, featuring Christie, Carsen, and two of the administrators of Versailles (31 minutes). Just perfect.
Buy it! Buy it! Buy it!