From the Score to the Stage
An Illustrated History of Continental Opera Production and Staging
464 pages
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189 color plates, 2 tables
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10 x 12
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© 2013
Without scenery, costumes, and stage action, an opera would be little more than a concert. But in the audience, we know little (and think less) about the enormous efforts of those involved in bringing an opera to life—by the stagehands who shift scenery, the scenic artists who create beautiful backdrops, the electricians who focus the spotlights, and the stage manager who calls them and the singers to their places during the performance. The first comprehensive history of the behind-the-scenes world of opera production and staging, From the Score to the Stage follows the evolution of visual style and set design in continental Europe from its birth in the seventeenth century up to today.
In clear, witty prose, Evan Baker covers all the major players and pieces involved in getting an opera onto the stage, from the stage director who creates the artistic concept for the production and guides the singers’ interpretation of their roles to the blocking of singers and placement of scenery. He concentrates on the people—composers, librettists, designers, and technicians—as well as the theaters and events that generated developments in opera production. Additional topics include the many difficulties in performing an opera, the functions of impresarios, and the business of music publishing. Delving into the absorbing and often neglected history of stage directing, theater architecture and technology, and scenic and lighting design, Baker nimbly links these technical aspects of opera to actual performances and performers, and the social context in which they appeared. Out of these details arise illuminating discussions of individual productions that cast new light on the operas of Wagner, Verdi, and others.
Packed with nearly two hundred color illustrations, From the Score to the Stage is a revealing, always entertaining look at what happens before the curtain goes up on opening night at the opera house.
Dominique Meyer, Director, Vienna State Opera
“Numerous books dedicated to different opera-related topics are published each year. This work by Evan Baker, however, fills a gap by covering the history of scenic interpretation. How did the very idea of staged productions appear in the first place, and how did it develop; what was the evolution of lyric imagery, stagings, and costumes; in what ways have operas been put on, and how have they been perceived by spectators; what has been the role of great personalities such as Jacques Salomé, Alfred Roller, Adolphe Appia, Wieland Wagner, Walter Felsenstein, or Patrice Chéreau; and what is the meaning of Regietheater? These are just some of the questions that this absorbingly written and extremely well-illustrated book tries to answer.”
Patrick Summers, Artistic Director, Houston Grand Opera
“I took deep enjoyment and enrichment from Evan Baker’s rigorous and intensive history of opera production. This important view of what we do every day in the serious work of our companies is often lost in a haze of trifle about diva fits, egos, and other dull social clichés about the arts. I admire how aligned this book is with what is lasting and true about these great works we are so privileged to perform: their lasting ability to be interpreted, reinterpreted, and loved.”
Herbert Lindenberger, author of Situating Opera: Period, Genre, Reception
“Evan Baker retells the history of opera from a most unusual angle—not, like earlier histories, from the point of view of the music or the libretto, but rather as the evolving story of how operas have been staged from the form’s beginnings to the current vogue of Regieoper. This new history is also the story of how new technologies—for example, the introduction of gaslight and, soon after, of electricity—enabled new ways of creating theatrical illusion. Presenting his considerable learning in a thoroughly readable style, Baker has shaped a book that will appeal to scholars and opera fans alike.”
Phillip Gossett, author of Divas and Scholars: Performing Italian Opera
“There can be few people in the world capable of writing a book such as the present one, which deals with the staging of opera from its beginnings until the present day. Not only must one know the repertory well, but even more one needs to understand from a personal perspective, as well as from a historical one, the extraordinary work of so many persons involved backstage in making an operatic spectacle function. For the history of directing, stagecraft, and lighting in particular, Baker is superb. He understands the profound changes that have accompanied operatic spectacles in modern times as nonmusical influences have been increasingly felt, and treats them sympathetically, although not unreservedly so. For anyone wishing to learn more about how operas function onstage, there is no better place to start than with Evan Baker's book.”
Contents
List of Illustrations
Preface
Acknowledgments
Overture
Preface
Acknowledgments
Overture
Chapter One / 1637–1700: The Beginnings
Competition among Theaters
The First Public Opera House and Andromeda
An Early Theater Technician’s Handbook
A Revolution in Opera Production: Giacomo Torelli, grand sorcier
A Treatise on Stage Machinery
The Opera Impresario: Marco Faustini and Theatrical Competition
German Lands
Lodovico Burnacini: Il Pomo d’oro
France: Jean-Baptiste Lully and the Establishment of the Académie royale de musique
Competition among Theaters
The First Public Opera House and Andromeda
An Early Theater Technician’s Handbook
A Revolution in Opera Production: Giacomo Torelli, grand sorcier
A Treatise on Stage Machinery
The Opera Impresario: Marco Faustini and Theatrical Competition
German Lands
Lodovico Burnacini: Il Pomo d’oro
France: Jean-Baptiste Lully and the Establishment of the Académie royale de musique
Chapter Two / 1700–1750: Perspectives with a New View
Opera seria: Its Rules and Reforms
Pietro Metastasio, Librettist and Stage Director
New Theaters and Audiences
Stage Design and Production Practices before Galli-Bibiena
The Vanishing Point
Ferdinando Galli-Bibiena, the “Paul Veronese of the Theater”
A New Method of “Viewing Theatrical Scenes at an Angle”
The Spectacle Builds: Jean-Philippe Rameau, Giovanni Niccolò Servandoni, and the Paris Opéra
Lighting the Stage
Gestures and Acting
Directing the Singers
Opera seria: Its Rules and Reforms
Pietro Metastasio, Librettist and Stage Director
New Theaters and Audiences
Stage Design and Production Practices before Galli-Bibiena
The Vanishing Point
Ferdinando Galli-Bibiena, the “Paul Veronese of the Theater”
A New Method of “Viewing Theatrical Scenes at an Angle”
The Spectacle Builds: Jean-Philippe Rameau, Giovanni Niccolò Servandoni, and the Paris Opéra
Lighting the Stage
Gestures and Acting
Directing the Singers
Chapter Three / 1750–1800: Theater for the Greater Public
The Great Reform Operas of Christoph Willibald von Gluck: Orfeo ed Euridice and Alceste
Directing and Rehearsing the Opera
Idomeneo, re di Creta
Onstage Movements
Spectacle and New Technology
Stage Lighting
Revolutionary New Light
National Theater in Vienna: The Burgtheater
Private, For-Profit Theaters in Suburban Vienna: The “Freihaus” Theater
The Great Reform Operas of Christoph Willibald von Gluck: Orfeo ed Euridice and Alceste
Directing and Rehearsing the Opera
Idomeneo, re di Creta
Onstage Movements
Spectacle and New Technology
Stage Lighting
Revolutionary New Light
National Theater in Vienna: The Burgtheater
Private, For-Profit Theaters in Suburban Vienna: The “Freihaus” Theater
Chapter Four / 1800–1850: Romanticism in Germany
German Romanticism
German Theaters: Construction, Personnel, and Production Styles
Performance Conditions
Count Karl von Brühl and Karl Friedrich Schinkel: “Make This the Best Theater in Germany!”
Brühl’s Designer: Schinkel and Die Zauberflöte
Publication of German Stage Designs
Schinkel’s New Theater: A Lost Opportunity
Carl Maria von Weber: “I Won’t Stand for That Schnickschnack!”
The Greatest Romantic Opera: Der Freischütz
Continuing the Change in Theater Architecture: Gottfried Semper and the Dresden Opera House
Chapter Five / 1800–1850: French Grand Opera
L’état, C’est Grand Opéra
The Temple of French Grand Opera
“Coup de Théâtre”: The Boulevard Theaters and Popular Entertainments Challenge the Opéra
Aladin, ou la Lampe merveilleuse: The Opéra and New Technology
The First True Opera Stage Director: Jacques Solomé
The livret de mise-en-scène
A Volcanic Explosion: La Muette de Portici
The Middle-Class Ascendant at the Opéra
The Claque
Romanticism, Robert le Diable, and Grand Opera: “These Are Impossible Things; One Has to See It to Believe It. It’s Prodigious! It’s Prodigious!”
“Nonnes, M’entendez-Vous?” / “Nuns, Do You Hear Me?”
The Phenomenon of Robert le Diable
German Romanticism
German Theaters: Construction, Personnel, and Production Styles
Performance Conditions
Count Karl von Brühl and Karl Friedrich Schinkel: “Make This the Best Theater in Germany!”
Brühl’s Designer: Schinkel and Die Zauberflöte
Publication of German Stage Designs
Schinkel’s New Theater: A Lost Opportunity
Carl Maria von Weber: “I Won’t Stand for That Schnickschnack!”
The Greatest Romantic Opera: Der Freischütz
Continuing the Change in Theater Architecture: Gottfried Semper and the Dresden Opera House
Chapter Five / 1800–1850: French Grand Opera
L’état, C’est Grand Opéra
The Temple of French Grand Opera
“Coup de Théâtre”: The Boulevard Theaters and Popular Entertainments Challenge the Opéra
Aladin, ou la Lampe merveilleuse: The Opéra and New Technology
The First True Opera Stage Director: Jacques Solomé
The livret de mise-en-scène
A Volcanic Explosion: La Muette de Portici
The Middle-Class Ascendant at the Opéra
The Claque
Romanticism, Robert le Diable, and Grand Opera: “These Are Impossible Things; One Has to See It to Believe It. It’s Prodigious! It’s Prodigious!”
“Nonnes, M’entendez-Vous?” / “Nuns, Do You Hear Me?”
The Phenomenon of Robert le Diable
Chapter Six / 1800–1850: Italy
The Italian Operagoing Public
The Opera House: Center of the Community
Music Publishing in Italy
The Evolution of the Italian Stage Director
Stage Design and Theater Architecture: Polemics and Theory
Alessandro Sanquirico
The Impresarios: “This Infamous Profession”
Domenico Barbaja: “The Prince of Impresarios”
Bartolomeo Merelli: The “Napoleon” of Impresarios
Alessandro Lanari: “Dedicated to Serving the Public”
Lanari, Verdi, and Macbeth
“For God’s Sake, We’ve Already Rehearsed It a Hundred and Fifty Times!”
The Italian Operagoing Public
The Opera House: Center of the Community
Music Publishing in Italy
The Evolution of the Italian Stage Director
Stage Design and Theater Architecture: Polemics and Theory
Alessandro Sanquirico
The Impresarios: “This Infamous Profession”
Domenico Barbaja: “The Prince of Impresarios”
Bartolomeo Merelli: The “Napoleon” of Impresarios
Alessandro Lanari: “Dedicated to Serving the Public”
Lanari, Verdi, and Macbeth
“For God’s Sake, We’ve Already Rehearsed It a Hundred and Fifty Times!”
Chapter Seven / 1850–1900: Two Giants, a Devil, and a Gypsy
The Growth of Music Publishing
Grand Opera Houses and New Theater Technology
A New Position: The Technical Director
The Search for Quality: Richard Wagner and Giuseppe Verdi
Wagner and Polemics of the Theater
Staging an Opera from Afar: Lohengrin
Wagner’s Ideal Theatrical Space
Wagner and the Bayreuth Festspielhaus
The First Production in the Festspielhaus: Der Ring des Nibelungen
Icons of Opera Production: Faust and Carmen
Staging Act 1 of Carmen: The Habañera
Verdi and the Fight for Artistic Integrity
The Italian Stage Director and the disposizione scenica
Verdi Stages Aida
The Grand March: “The March Is Very, Very, Very Long. . . . But Don’t Be Terrified”
The Growth of Music Publishing
Grand Opera Houses and New Theater Technology
A New Position: The Technical Director
The Search for Quality: Richard Wagner and Giuseppe Verdi
Wagner and Polemics of the Theater
Staging an Opera from Afar: Lohengrin
Wagner’s Ideal Theatrical Space
Wagner and the Bayreuth Festspielhaus
The First Production in the Festspielhaus: Der Ring des Nibelungen
Icons of Opera Production: Faust and Carmen
Staging Act 1 of Carmen: The Habañera
Verdi and the Fight for Artistic Integrity
The Italian Stage Director and the disposizione scenica
Verdi Stages Aida
The Grand March: “The March Is Very, Very, Very Long. . . . But Don’t Be Terrified”
Chapter Eight / 1900–1945: Clearing the Stage
Theater Architecture and Technology
The Visionary: Adolphe Appia and the Aesthetics of Stage Lighting
Gustav Mahler at the Vienna Hofoper: “For God’s Sake, Why Haven’t the Sets Crashed?”
Mahler and the “Old Order”: The Struggle for Quality
A New Iconoclasm: The Secession and the Theatrical Arts
Mahler’s Artistic Soul Mate: Alfred Roller and Tristan und Isolde
Tristan und Isolde: Public Reaction
A Break in the Scenic Traditions: Don Giovanni and the “Roller Towers”
The Premiere and a Tumultuous Reception of Roller’s Don Giovanni: “They Insult the Eyes”
Giacomo Puccini: “Incidents Clear and Brilliant to the Eye Rather Than the Ear”
The Russians Arrive in Paris: Sergei Diaghilev and Boris Godunov
Fyodor Chaliapin: “He Communicates the Life of the Character He Portrays through Singing”
Boris Godunov and Chaliapin’s Techniques
“Also Rosenkavalier! The Devil Take Him!”
The Weimar Republic: A Volatile Mixture of Opera and Politics
A New Style of Production: Die neue Sachlichkeit
Wozzeck: The Staging of a Masterpiece
The Final Iconoclasms before the Deluge
“Kulturbolschevismus”: The Krolloper
Theater Architecture and Technology
The Visionary: Adolphe Appia and the Aesthetics of Stage Lighting
Gustav Mahler at the Vienna Hofoper: “For God’s Sake, Why Haven’t the Sets Crashed?”
Mahler and the “Old Order”: The Struggle for Quality
A New Iconoclasm: The Secession and the Theatrical Arts
Mahler’s Artistic Soul Mate: Alfred Roller and Tristan und Isolde
Tristan und Isolde: Public Reaction
A Break in the Scenic Traditions: Don Giovanni and the “Roller Towers”
The Premiere and a Tumultuous Reception of Roller’s Don Giovanni: “They Insult the Eyes”
Giacomo Puccini: “Incidents Clear and Brilliant to the Eye Rather Than the Ear”
The Russians Arrive in Paris: Sergei Diaghilev and Boris Godunov
Fyodor Chaliapin: “He Communicates the Life of the Character He Portrays through Singing”
Boris Godunov and Chaliapin’s Techniques
“Also Rosenkavalier! The Devil Take Him!”
The Weimar Republic: A Volatile Mixture of Opera and Politics
A New Style of Production: Die neue Sachlichkeit
Wozzeck: The Staging of a Masterpiece
The Final Iconoclasms before the Deluge
“Kulturbolschevismus”: The Krolloper
Chapter Nine / 1945–1976: Postwar Revolution
Postwar Reconstruction and Politics in Opera Production
New Figures of Influence: The Technical Consultant and the Lighting Designer
The Return of the Festivals: Salzburg and Bayreuth
The Stage Director as a New Star: Innovation or Detriment?
Operatic Acting: Maria Callas
Walter Felsenstein and the Komische Oper
Werkstatt Bayreuth and the Richard Wagner Festival
The 1970s: The Advent of Regietheater
Postwar Reconstruction and Politics in Opera Production
New Figures of Influence: The Technical Consultant and the Lighting Designer
The Return of the Festivals: Salzburg and Bayreuth
The Stage Director as a New Star: Innovation or Detriment?
Operatic Acting: Maria Callas
Walter Felsenstein and the Komische Oper
Werkstatt Bayreuth and the Richard Wagner Festival
The 1970s: The Advent of Regietheater
Epilogue / Whither the Future?
Supertitles: A Better Understanding
New Ideas, New Challenges: Innovative Regietheater, or Eurotrash?
Whither the Future?
Supertitles: A Better Understanding
New Ideas, New Challenges: Innovative Regietheater, or Eurotrash?
Whither the Future?
Bibliography
Index
Index
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