APART from a few popular excerpts like the Méditation from Thaïs, opportunities to become acquainted with Massenet's operas are rare. Three years ago there was an excellent presentation of his Cendrillion (Cinderella] by students of the Royal Scotti
sh Academy of Music and Drama. Following on from that, the directors of Scottish Opera have chosen to give us a very creditable Manon – the most successful of his stage works.
Based on a 1731 novel by the Abbé Prévost, an earlier Manon by the French composer Auber was already around at the time of Massenet's setting. Puccini's Manon Lescaut came about a decade later.
Jules Massenet straddled the lives of the more famous Germans Wagner and Strauss – and also those of Italians Verdi and Puccini. The most important French operatic composer around the turn of the 20th century, his musical idiom is less progressive than that of Strauss (in Elektra] or Puccini (in Tosca]. It might well be seen to reflect his reportedly agreeable and pleasant personality.
The story centres on the love life of Manon Lescaut who first appears as a self-declared innocent from the country. At that moment she is being escorted by her cousin to a convent school, but a rapid onset of maturity somehow or other comes in the way. Her fatal attraction to the lure of riches climaxes in a casino. After accusations of cheating, she and her partner are arrested. Declared a prostitute, she is sentenced to deportation. In Massenet's final act, she dies on the way to Le Havre.
André Barbe's costumes are more effective than his stage sets. The large mirror surfaces work well in certain situations, but in others, not least because of stage lighting, they tend to distract. Apart from its effectiveness in the final scene, use of a large picture frame was unconvincing elsewhere in the action. Richard Doucet's handling of the chorus and principals in crowd scenes worked to good effect overall. The Cours de la Reine (Act III, Scene 1] was particularly successful.
Benjamin Bevan's Lescaut – Manon's cousin – was adequate. As the Compte des Grieux, Alan Fairs gave a more rounded portrayal. The role of Guillot de Morfontaine has more inherent comedy than Harry Nicoll was able to achieve.
Vocally and histrionically, Paul Charles Clarke gave a mixed performance as the Chevalier des Grieux. At times he struggled to make himself heard above a rampant orchestra, and at others he achieved a better balance of sound with the pit than any other singer on stage. In the title role Anne Sophie Duprels reached all too often beyond the levels of projection that were needed to make herself audible.
The Scottish Opera orchestra played with precision and some measure of sensitivity. Conductor Francesco Corti held things together well enough, but he should give closer attention to moderating the over-enthusiasm of his timpanist and trio of trombones.
He handled the choral sections and ensembles with admirable aplomb. The Act II quartet of Lescaut, de Brétigny, Manon and des Grieux was a highlight.
