Antonio In Linda's House In Paris

Linda Di Chamounix

In the initial opening scene, the lighting is incredibly interesting and sparse; the entirety of the chorus is in silhouette as Maddalena sings her opening line. The vocal color of Maria Jose Suarez is extremely appropriate for the role; the richness of her tone has an inherent motherly quality that blends well with the Antonio. However, it would seem that Antonio’s tone could use a little more resonant brilliance because he is occasionally lost beneath sounds, especially when the higher voices sing along with him.

When the Marquis de Boisfleury arrives seeking Linda, the entire chorus is standing around his vehicle - no action is occurring at all for a good long while as they exchange melodic dialogue, and it is really a little bit too drab thanks to the lack of color on the stage. It seems a bit like a sepia tone painting with sound, and it would be very easy to overlook the acting and simply listen to the chorus sing, but the Marquis de Boisfleury (depicted by Bruno de Simone) adds a little bit of physical action that makes it a bit more of a fascinating watch, almost behaving in a comical manner as he chases his chauffeur who has begun driving his car off the stage.

The chorus disperses
It has more vibrance, but the minimalism is still present. Linda’s duet with Pierotto is delicate and lovely, and Diana Damrau seems to bring her vocal weight down quite a bit for their intimate discussion. She also very impressively produces clear tone while laying on her side. There are many moments during this duet that one could freeze and turn into a lovely painting, much like the beginning, but it works much better with only two characters because they are moving and being more dynamic than much of the chorus was