Reviewed by Barry Lenny, Saturday 4th August 2018.
Twenty years ago I sat in the Adelaide Festival Theatre to review the State Opera of South Australia production of Wagner's Der Ring Des Nibelungen, the acclaimed production from Théâtre du Châtelet. Since then we have seen Parsifal, and a brand new production of the Ring, created here in Adelaide, as well as The Flying Dutchman in 2009. Now it is the turn of
The Mastersingers of Nuremberg (Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg). Although we only had the chance to see Act III, any Wagner is better than none at all. Then again, as the entire work runs over four and a half hours, and there is well over two hours in the five scenes in this act, we were hardly short-changed.
The work is set in Nuremberg in the mid 16th Century where there was, in fact, a Mastersinger named Hans Sachs (1494 1576), a cobbler, and best known of the Mastersingers. They treated poems and songs somewhat clinically, with a collection of rules for both composing and for singing the works. Being craftsmen, they approached the arts in the same way. Apart from using the name of Hans Sachs, everything else in the opera was created by Wagner.
Act III is where the Franconian knight, Walther Von Stolzing, assisted by the cobbler, Hans Sachs, himself a highly respected mastersinger, competes against the thoroughly unpleasant and unscrupulous town clerk and established mastersinger, Sixtus Beckmesser, for the hand of Eva, the daughter of the goldsmith Veit Pogner, the head of the Guild of Mastersingers, in the singing competition.
Walther is also competing in the hope of being admitted to the Guild as he is not yet a member, but the hand of Eva, whom he loves, and who loves him in return, is his main goal. Hans Sachs also loves Eva but has accepted that she is in love with the young knight and sees him more as an older brother, so has decided to help Walther to win.
This was billed as a semi-staged production which could, perhaps, be called minimalist. The first set, covering the first four scenes, is in the workshop of Hans Sachs and the second is at the competition. For the first, in front of a black scrim curtain, a collection of assorted freestanding bookshelves surround a couple of desks and chairs. For the second set, the fifth scene in a meadow near the town, two raised tiers of seating look down on a small rostrum. It could not be much simpler. The lighting, by Donn Byrnes, does the rest in giving the effect of solidarity and adding atmosphere. Director, Andrew Sinclair, takes advantage of this simplicity in the set to ensure that the focus is entirely on the performances and Wagner's music.
Nicholas Braithwaite was the conductor for this event and, having conducted all of Wagner's works at one time or another, including the Ring, he brought a wealth of experience and knowledge to the production. This was evident from the moment that the wonderful Adelaide Symphony Orchestra began playing the Act III Prelude (Vorspiel) and the glory of Wagner's music in their hands continued until the final notes.
The role of Hans Sachs was superbly filled by Shane Lowrencev, his performance embodying Schopenhauer's concept of the 'noble man' inherent in Wagner's construction of the character but not always so well understood and realised as it is here. Lowrencev's performance was filled with emotional depth and subtle nuance.
Heldentenor, Bradley Daley, appeared as Walther, giving a warm and thoughtful performance that is sure to enhance his already considerable popularity with Adelaide audiences. He is everything that one could wish for in a romantic lead, and perfectly complements
Kate Ladner's Eva.
Beckmesser was sung by British baritone and Wagner specialist,
Andrew Shore, presenting the town clerk as a somewhat ludicrous and rather pathetic figure of a man, rather than a real villain. One almost feels sorry for Beckmesser when presented so foolishly. Almost!
Soprano,
Kate Ladner, who now lives in France, sang the role of Eva Pogner, the love interest of all three men but with eyes only for Walther. Her sincere reading of the role leaves no doubt that, win or lose, she will always be Walther's, and will never be Beckmesser's. In an earlier act, of course, they had even planned an elopement, until prevented by Sachs. Ladner certainly ensured that her interpretation of the role was a committed one, and it had the audience wishing we could see her back here more often.
Sach's apprentice, David was sung by tenor, Samuel Sakker, passionate about his love for the woman he has just left, but restrained when singing his piece that he wishes to use to gain entry to the Guild, a piece that Wagner has written that follows the rules of the Mastersingers and, consequently, is very workmanlike, but neither inspired nor inspiring.
David has a love of his own, Eva's nurse, Magdalene, who was portrayed by mezzo-soprano, Fiona Mcardle, in yet one more fine performance in this production, endearing her character to one and all.
The State Opera Chorus, of course, cannot go without mention as they are such a major part of the fifth scene. As always, their work was impeccable, with some singing in the Lehrbuben semi-chorus, the apprentices. There are numerous other listed artists, the Guild leaders, who have a little to add during the fifth scene, but they are too many to discuss individually. Suffice to say, their efforts were notable.
All that is left to do now is to hope that we might see the entire work staged at some time in the near future, with more than a single performance. Sad to say, but, if you were not there on Saturday night, you missed a marvellous evening and a rare performance of one of the most approachable of Wagner's music dramas.
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