Donizetti: ROBERTO DEVEREUX

Teatro Regio, Turin, Italy

Elisabetta: Alexandrina Pendathchanska
Lord, Duke of Nottingham: Alessandro Corbelli
Sara, Duchess of Nottingham: Enkelejda Schosa
Roberto Devereux, Count of Essex: Roberto Aronica
Sir Gualtiero Raileigh: Luca Gallo
Conductor: Bruno Campanella
Direction: Jonathan Miller
Orchestra and Chorus: del Teatro Regio di Torino

Roberto Devereux surely is not one of Donizetti's masterpieces. Nevertheless it's not right to define it as an opera "written with the left hand". Certainly it's a product built to meet the expectations of 1837 audiences. So its structure is the typical Romantic melodramma one, clearly loomed with numeri chiusi (arias, duets, concertati), thoughtfully distributed following singers' "rank". The merit (or the demerit) for the libretto is to be given to the great Salvatore Cammarano. We have to remember that Cammarano died when only 51, and wrote more than 50 librettos: a really fertile artistic mind. And to his poetic creativity we must add his great ability to evaluate and choose the works on which he based his librettos, usually from the vast English and French novel production, and the attitude to transform them in a product suited to the particular opera audience. Such a transformation means inevitably to compress an often conspicuous literarymaterial, obtaining a libretto of equal or better dramatic effect. In Roberto Devereux, as in other works, Cammarano made the transformation writing exaggerated lyrics ad effetto, that to the ear of a modern listener have quite a comic effect, but we must say that they perfectly render the different characters' psychology. Elisabetta, by example, is depicted exactly as we could imagine her: a cold lady, devoured by power and pride, so jealous of her public image that she doesn't want anybody to be able to say: "...la regina d'Inghilterra ho veduto lagrimar" (I saw the Queen of England weeping); but anyway she is a woman, not unable to love.

In this production, the direction by Jonathan Miller gives its globally positive contribute to this picture, featuring a Queen iconographically Elizabethan in both dressing and makeup, and charging her character with a load of neurosis, tics and mannerisms, that strangely appear completely suited to her role. We have obviously to praise the performance of the protagonist, Alexandrina Pendatchanska, who was able to show her balanced and extended voice, very ductile in coloratura passages and knowingly veiled with bitter colors, as is in Elizabeth's character, with very good and expert acting.

On the same excellent level was the rest of the cast: Roberto Aronica as Roberto, Alessandro Corbelli as Nottingham and Enkelejda Schosa as Sara. Three singers, young but already blessed with success in their careers, in the most important opera temples. Mr. Aronica is exactly what the Count of Essex should be: a tenore di grazia, in the proper way, that is about the voice color and not the voice smallness. So it's not surprising that Aronica can sing with good results Bohéme, Elisir d'Amore and Rigoletto. Essex' rival was the baritone Alessandro Corbelli, who in the difficult role of Nottingham united an excellent technique and the natural gift of a ductile instrument, able to show vocal prowess and quality well over the simple baritone's velvet.

Also very good was the 28 years old Enkelejda Schosa, an Albanian singer who was at her debut on the Regio stage and confirmed the audience expectations. Greatly appreciated and cheered was the conductor Bruno Campanella, who as always was a refined and sensible interpreter of Donizetti; he conducted the orchestra with mastery, from the "cliche" Sinfonia, that contains also a "quotation" of God save the Queen, to the more dramatic moments in the score.

- Andrea Lai