After the previous evening’s rarity, the Rossini in Wildbad festival turned to one of Rossini’s most beloved works: his take on Cinderella, La Cenerentola. Rather than the sleek 20th-century Trinkhalle which hosted the Poniatowski, this was performed in the Konigliches Kurtheater, the gorgeous little theatre in the Kurpark. It’s a small space, but utterly enchanting, ideally suited to some of Rossini’s more intimate works.
The staging was entrusted to director Jochen Schönleber who relocated the setting to the modern fashion world – a convincing concept, provided one doesn’t think too deeply about it. Clorinda and Tisbe become jobbing models under the charge of Don Magnifico (their agent?) who lives off their endeavours and treats them at times in a decidedly lecherous manner; this commodification is a powerful reflection of the ‘original’ character’s intention of using their wombs to secure court influence. In the dog-eat-dog world of fashion, even two nominal allies – the ‘stepsisters’ – will tear each other down to get the big break, which comes here in the form of Don Ramiro, suggested to be a major player in the fashion industry. Alidoro becomes his talent scout, and poor Angelina, dashing about in a moth-eaten cardigan, is a model’s skivvy.
The production isn’t without its flaws. Video projection is a cute way of adding some décor to the stage and represents the characters’ inner thoughts and hopes, but it was clunkily deployed at times. Direction was occasionally basic; the chorus was often left standing awkwardly at the side and there were several examples of principals being left to park and bark – particularly egregious in the glorious Act 1 duet between Ramiro and Angelina. There was a certain reliance on stock gestures, but these were not laboured, and a sense of ensemble and heart anchored the production.
The festival assembled an excellent cast. Patrick Kabongo returned to sing Don Ramiro. His tenore di grazia – so thrillingly deployed in the Poniatowski – was ideally suited to this role and, with one minor moment of unsteadiness during the coloratura in “Sì, ritrovarla io giuro”, his top was secure, high notes pinged and rounded. I would be keen to see him in more Rossini. Polina Anikina was a beguiling Angelina; she radiated a simple goodness and the joy of her finale, her sheer happiness, beamed across the stage. Her mezzo-soprano has an appealing auburn colour to it, with a pleasing lower register and an open top which gave an excellent “Non più mesta”.
Emmanuel Franco, an absolute hoot in designer specs, strutted his stuff as Dandini, displaying a robust and macho, velvety baritone. His patter with Filippo Morace’s Don Magnifico was on point – and clear, not always a given. Morace, drawing immediate laughs as he staggered on stage in a questionable romper suit, nailed the comic timing, but brought a nasty edge to his Don Magnifico, a chancer, swilling the free booze and dreaming of an Indian summer, but his willingness to beat Angelina showed a viciousness that prevented his character from being sheer caricature. A little underpowered and with a slight tendency to declaim, Morace nonetheless shone in ensemble moments.
Dogukan Özkan sang Alidoro with gravitas, giving us an elegantly phrased “Là del ciel nell’arcano profondo”. Ellada Koller and Verena Kronbichler were an unusually sympathetic Clorinda and Tisbe, camping around the stage, but with bitchery clearly a result of nurture, not nature.
Once again leading the Krakow Philharmonic in the pit, José Miguel Pérez-Sierra led his band in a forthright reading of the score. Occasionally the pace seemed a little too brisk for comfort and one or two balance issues between pit and stage crept in, but it was otherwise as light and energised as the score demands.
