2015.05.31

New production of Mozart Le Nozze di Figaro, “What The Gardener Saw”

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Sun, 31 May 2015, 2:00PM at Festival Hall, Osaka

Michiyoshi Inoue, Conductor
Hideki Noda, Stage Director

Natale De Carolis, as Count Almaviva
Teodora Gheorghiu, as Countess Rosina Almaviva
Sara Kobayashi, as Susanna
Daisuke Oyama, as Figaro
Maarten Engeltjes, as Cherubino
Kyoko Moriyama, as Marcellina
Masashi Mori, as Bartolo
Shuichi Makikawa, as Basilio
Taiki Miura, as Don Curzio
Erika Colon, as Barbarina
Mitsunori Hirokawa, as Antonio

Mozart: Le nozze di Figaro in 4 acts

S¥18,000- A¥12,000- B¥10,000-
C¥8,000- BOX¥20,000-
Koyukai Office TEL 072-621-9798

【Message】

Finally, I feel like writing my blog.
While fighting a disease – when my condition was so bad I wasn’t even interested in music -, two performances in Osaka were confirmed without me noticing the numerous scheduling and financial problems. So I made the organizer of the concerts Dr. Toyoyuki Hayashi of the Youkoukai Hospital Group, excessively anxious.

Our version of “Figaro” was nevertheless easy to understand and it was also full of adventure and ideas, without being influenced by any established interpretation of this opera piece. This result is due to the stage director Mr. Hideki Noda’s way of devoting his time and energies to this production. He held lots of effective work-shop-style rehearsals with a group of inventive actors supporting him. Particularly on the second day, on the 31st, I gave a thank-you speech from the stage, as I had a strong feeling that I could repay everyone with my performances. The Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa was wonderful, too.

When we step into a whole new world, we find in ourselves a lot of hesitations and struggles, for example, a narrow and unilateral view caused by our individual fixed idea on beauty. These cases could also apply to those who know “Le Nozze di Figaro” well. So naturally, the singers, myself, Dr. Hayashi, and above all, Mr. Noda had to deal with these issues.

However, “our” project in 2015 achieved a success, thanks to all the organizers of thirteen representations, public foundations and the Bunkacho (Japanese Agency for Cultural Affaires) who supported us with no small sum of money.

Actually, I have just started to rehearse with the Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra for our next concerts in Hyogo. In reality, I’m utterly worn out during the rehearsals, I can only scratch the surface like a knot-head conductor who is over the hill, I walk unsteadily, and furthermore, in my mind I sigh when I think about the fact that I have no less than ten concerts coming up.

However, I would like to persuade myself that it’s pardonable. If we don’t forgive others and ourselves, our life will be too bitter and we won’t feel the grace of God.

Just one year ago, I was in bed and I couldn’t drink water nor utter a sound. For two weeks I couldn’t sleep because of a cough, for a month I couldn’t eat anything. I lost more than ten kilograms to be literally as thin as my master Hideo Saito right before he passed away. Therefore I should appreciate the fact that, getting back six kilograms, I somehow accomplished the task of leading the orchestra and singers and inspiring Mr. Noda.

This project was “a mighty success”.
Those who love “Figaro” but feel it’s long or the plot doesn't make sense, my dear blog readers, should come to see this version with open mind.
This production is more interesting than Mr. Noda’s own works (he may be angry a little bit to hear that), and probably this version will be staged for a long time in Japan even after Mr. Noda and I pass away!

If it becomes standard for Cherubino to be sung by a countertenor then this role will be a gold mine for boyish-looking countertenors.

The character setting of Countess Almaviva having even a murderous design in the depths of her heart is indeed an incomprehensible world of jealousy for me. But as it’s a fact that there are a quite large number of women who feel this kind of emotion, it would be hereafter difficult for many stage directors to refute Mr. Noda as for the finale.

Apparently, NHK is going to film this production this coming autumn, and a French film

production company began to be interested in, too. As a “Noda admirer” for thirty years, I am simply delighted with these reactions.
Now that we’ve gotten to this point, it will be a problem of my physical strength, but I’m coming to want to improve the production even more.
Then, Mr. Noda! Why don’t we reset and take another look at our staging objectively, so that it could be called a classic production? (Wait… I’m not supposed like “classic” things. Funny…)

Message from a hotel room in Osaka.