Rimsky-Korsakov: Sadko
Bolshoi Opera, 11th May 2020
When it comes to ruffling feathers at the Bolshoi, Dmitri Tcherniakov has form. It was in 2006 that his radical approach to Eugene Onegin caused Galina Vishnevskaya to declare she would never set foot in the Moscow theatre again. I found it frustrating when it toured to Covent Garden a couple of years later, although there were enough moments of brilliance in it to make me want to revisit it on screen. That was my first taste of the enfant terrible Russian director, but I’ve seen a lot of his work since. Sometimes it baffles, sometimes it irks, running counter to the libretto (Carmen in Aix, Troyens in Paris, Trovatore in Brussels), mired in characters seeking therapy. But, despite that Onegin, Tcherniakov is often at his best in his native repertoire, casting new light on operas rarely seen outside Russia. He powerfully reimagined Borodin’s Prince Igor as a study in post-traumatic stress disorder, while his Tsar Saltan at La Monnaie last June – a parable about autism – was my production of the year. He is currently Rimsky-Korsakov’s greatest champion.
Yuriy Mynenko (Nezhata) and Najmiddin Mavlyanov (Sadko)
© Damir Yusupov
After nearly a decade away, Tcherniakov returned to the Bolshoi in February with a staging of Rimsky’s Sadko that met with a mixed reception from the Moscow press. On Monday, the Bolshoi marked Tcherniakov’s 50th birthday by briefly streaming the production – which was to have received three further performances last week – on its Youtube channel.
Sadko is an historical drama based on a bylina (a Russian narrative poem) which explains how the city of Novgorod came to be connected to the sea. Sadko, a minstrel, learns from Volkhova, daughter of the Tsar of the Sea, how to catch three golden fish in Lake Ilmen and secure his fortune. He sails the seas but forgets to pay tribute to Volkhova’s father and his ship is becalmed. Sadko decides to sacrifice himself, but is saved by Volkhova. Sadko plays his gusli at an underwater wedding feast until the Tsar of the Sea is ordered to allow Volkhova to join Sadko in Novgorod. The minstrel is returned to his wife – yes, he’s already married! – and Volkhova transforms into a river.
Najmiddin Mavlyanov (Sadko) and Aida Garifullina (Volkhova)
© Damir Yusupov
There are similarities to Tcherniakov’s Saltan in that most of the characters are not taken to be “real” but are dressed in cartoon-like costumes, like figures in an Ivan Bilibin illustration. Tcherniakov is not poking fun at Rimsky’s opera itself, but at the “traditional” types of production seen at houses like the Bolshoi or Mariinsky, dusty relics riddled with clichés. But hasn’t his reliance on group therapy and role play reached the level of cliché too?
Ekaterina Semenchuk (Lyubava) and Najmiddin Mavlyanov (Sadko)
© Damir Yusupov
A trio of disillusioned people struggling with their neuroses are here taking part in a virtual reality experiment where they adopt roles in an historical re-enactment. They enter a wish-fulfilment theme park and are guided from scene to scene. Come the end, when Volkhova transforms into a river, she switches back to her modern-day dress and wheels her suitcase away, but “Sadko” has problems coming out of role, wanting to recreate his happy ending, even though the cast are back in their “park” uniforms. It’s never less than entertaining – the underwater scene is full of camp glitz as jellyfish and crabs jostle with lobsters! – and it is largely successful as an exploration of how we engage with the past. It’s certainly far better than Daniel Kramer’s dismal attempt at Opera Vlaanderen in 2017.
Najmiddin Mavlyanov (Sadko) and Dmitry Ulyanov (Viking Merchant)
© Damir Yusupov
The Bolshoi cast is very strong, led by Najmiddin Mavlyanov in robust form as Sadko. It’s a punishing role, but the tenor met it head on, also conveying a sense of “the outsider” entering an alien world. Aida Garifullina is a frequent Tcherniakov collaborator. Her Snow Maiden at the Opéra de Paris was splendid and her silvery soprano is well suited here to Volkhova, floating top notes with ease and dashing around the stage in a suitably flowing gown. Ekaterina Semenchuk made much of the small role of Lyubava (Sadko’s wife). The minstrel Nezhata is traditionally a contralto role, but Tcherniakov’s casting of Yuriy Mynenko was remarkably successful, his countertenor voice sounding powerful (he was also cast in the trouser role of Lel in The Snow Maiden). Sadko is an odd opera in that the three best-known numbers are for minor characters, the merchants – Viking, Indian, Venetian – who each sing praises of their homeland. Dmitry Ulyanov’s rock solid bass was outstanding as the Viking and Alexei Neklyudov impressed in the beautiful Song of the Indian Guest, while Andrei Zhilikhovsky’s baritone made for a classy Venetian. Young conductor Timur Zangiev, who only made his Bolshoi debut last year, drew rich playing from this great orchestra, drawing out the colours in Rimsky’s kaleidoscopic score.
Najmiddin Mavlyanov (Sadko)
© Damir Yusupov
If this doesn’t quite represent Tcherniakov at his finest, it’s certainly a production worth seeing (Mezzo TV has it in its catalogue, although you’ll need a subscription). Perhaps it will turn up on DVD. A great Tcherniakov Rimsky treatment – his Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh at Dutch National Opera – streams on OperaVision from Friday.