Les Pêcheurs de perles (1863) was the first full-length opera written by Georges Bizet and it represents his most famous work after Carmen, composed a decade later. The libretto, by Eugène Cormon and Michel Carré, is a typical example of 19th-century Orientalism; set in the isle of Ceylon, it tells the story of two friends in a village of pearl fishers, both in love with the same Brahmin priestess. She, of course, falls for the tenor, breaking her sacred vows of chastity, leaving the baritone enraged and vengeful. The story is flimsy, the characters mono-dimensional, but the music features ravishing melodies, interesting orchestration, exciting ensembles with chorus. The duet between tenor and baritone “Au fond du temple saint” has become a feature of many recitals; Bizet, recognising the quality of this melody, used it as a sort of leitmotif across the whole opera.
Nicholas Carter did justice to the score, conducting the Philharmonia Zürich in a passionate interpretation, a bit bombastic – at times overpowering the stage – but with appropriate attention to the many lyrical passages.
Director Jens-Daniel Herzog transports the action to a modern fishing trawler, Mathis Neidhardt's set showing the cross-section of a ship, divided into three levels: the top deck, the captain’s lodgings, and a crew of workers in the keel, busy cleaning and gutting the catch of the day. These three levels are connected by stairs and platform, also used for the dramatic action. The visuals are remarkable, aided by stage machinery moving the sets up and down, or bringing certain areas forward. As usual, the idea of a modern setting clashes against the libretto: what are a Brahmin priestess and high priest doing on a modern fishing boat? Praying for the well-being of the crew? And why are the crew demanding her chastity and calling for her death because she engaged in some frolicking? The moral framework of the story doesn’t fit modern times. The only reference to actual pearl fishing was embodied by four actors being stripped down and reluctantly thrown into the water. The scene of Leïla entering the ship from above, in full pink and gold sari, lowered down from the ceiling on a platform, was admittedly impressive, albeit out of place.
Nadir, the villager who returns home after running away to avoid fighting over Leïla with his best friend Zurga, was sung by Javier Camarena, dressed as a guerrilla warrior, including a bandolier (costumes by Sybille Gädeke). His high tenor seemed perfect for the role, virile and powerful with exciting high notes, but extremely sweet and tender in the lyrical moments. He had some glitches at the attack of his aria “Je crois entendre encore”, his pianissimo cracking on the first few high notes, but it must be conceded that this aria is fiendishly difficult, with a very high tessitura. Overall, his performance was brilliant.
Étienne Dupuis was Zurga, the captain of the ship in this production. He gave a very good portrayal of the conflicted character, and managed to convey all the emotions: his jealous rage, his love for Leïla, his tenderness towards Nadir, the friend of his youth, and, in the end, his sacrifice to allow a happy ending for the two lovers. Dupuis' baritone was powerful and elegant, supported by an excellent technique and helped by his native French.
Ekaterina Bakanova sang Leïla with a high soprano which tended to be a bit sharp and edgy in the very high register. She managed all the difficulties of the part, but perhaps her timbre lacks the lyrical quality needed for such a role. She was at her best in the love duet with Camarena, where they displayed great chemistry, but especially in the duet with Dupuis, one of the few dramatically convincing scenes in the libretto. After her affair with Nadir is discovered and they are both sentenced to death, she pleads with Zurga for Nadir’s life, unaware that he is also in love with her. Bakanova and Dupuis managed to display all the fiery emotions involved.
The cast was competently completed by Hubert Kowalczyk, his deep bass very suited to Nourabad, high priest of Brahma. His interpretation was lacking a little commitment to a character who, to be honest, is barely delineated in the libretto.
The chorus plays a very important role in this opera, which abounds with ensembles, invocations to the gods, festivities in the village, scenes where the mob riots against the blasphemous couple. The Zurich Opera Chorus, prepared by Janka Kostelic, gave a very convincing performance, the evening a resounding success.
