A magnificent Offenbach staging delights in Lyon
In celebration of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Jacques Offenbach, Laurent Pelly's new production of Offenbach's lesser-known Barbe Bleue has opened at Opera de Lyon to much delight, enthusiasm and acclaim. His eleventh Offenbach title, Laurent Pelly proved once again that he is the master of this genre, creating - together with his regular collaborators Agathe Mélinand (dialogues), Chantal Thomas (sets), Joel Adam (lights), Christian Räth (stage) and Jean-Jacques Delmotte (costumes) - a "celebration of the craziness of Offenbach" Diapason
Performances until 5 July, and streamed live as part of Les Nuits de Fourvière Festival in Lyon and in 12 other towns in the region. Not to be missed!!
"Another Offenbach triumph for Laurent Pelly. After so many memorable shows, this Blue Beard confirms the director's special skills that bind him to the great musician and his librettists, the inexhaustible Meilhac and Halévy." Diapason
Une salle qui rit à gorge déployée pendant une soirée entière, tel est le dé relevé par l’Opéra de Lyon avec Barbe-Bleue d’Offenbach : le public de la première accueille le spectacle désopilant de Laurent Pelly par des salves d’applaudissements !
"the work is directed with a real respect for the original music and text. Agathe Mélinand has not completely rewritten the text; rather reshaped and cut some of the longer sections. It thus proves that without any need for any "dusting" of the texts, the spectators still laugh at the original texts when the burlesque, the hero-comedy and the absurd are handled with so much skill. Laurent Pelly's staging is formidable and efficacious. With a constant sense of rhythm, the gags flow without ever breaking the dramatic continuity. He gives us pictures that are attractive to the eye, but also respectful of the setting and atmosphere desired by the authors, despite a transposition (clever and not over-egged) to the contemporary world. Despite a rather naughty subject, Pelly never succumbs to the temptation of vulgarity: this increases the laughter tenfold, implication being infinitely more effective (and more in tune with the spirit of Offenbach and his librettists)." Olyrix
