Performed by the American Repertory Theater in association with the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Philip Glass's new opera Orphee made its world premiere this spring in Cambridge, Massachusetts under the direction of Francesca Zambello. Orphee spins the Greek legend of Orpheus on its head, painting a picture of a once-successful but now burnt-out poet who is more attracted to the possibility of his own death than to his own wife.
Based on Jean Cocteau's 1949 film by the same name, the opera opens in a French cafe, where Orphee (Eugene Perry and Leroy Villanueva) witnesses the accidental death of Jacques Cegeste, a young-and-upcoming poet (Paul Kirby). But nothing is as it seems, and soon Orphee finds himself following a beautiful princess (Wendy Hill) into the underworld, where she resurrects Cegeste's spirit to serve her.
As the opera progresses, Orphee becomes fixated upon the princess - but what is supposed to represent the poet's fascination with death comes off looking like a cheap extra-marital affair. Meanwhile, the princess's chauffeur falls in love with Orphee's wife Eurydice, setting the stage for a tangle of emotions that are never realized.
The high point, of course, is the music by Philip Glass, which weaves a rich musical tapestry that builds for the audience both anxiety and suspense. Despite the pounding repetition that is Glass's trademark, I was surprised by how well the music fit the action, mood, and setting of each scene.
My French is rusty, so I followed the production with one eye on the stage and another on the screen where the show's "supertitles" provided an adequate, although lackluster, translation. Perhaps one day English- speaking opera-goers will be blessed with a simultaneous translation broadcast into the audience over an infrared link.
For lovers of Glass or French postmodernism, this is a must-see. Orphee takes the stage next at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, October 27 through November 1. - Simson L. Garfinkel
Tickets: US$10 to $40. Brooklyn Academy of Music: +1 (718) 636 4100.
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