As an opera producer who comes from theatre, do you think opera singers are bad actors? How often do you think, ‘It’s such bad theatre’ when seeing an opera?
It can be bad theatre, but then productions of plays can be bad theatre, so why should opera be different? Equally, the ability of many actors in theatre varies considerably ... at the same time some of the most skilled actors in the world are in opera. If your question refers to somebody like Pavarotti who, everyone would argue, just stands there and wows the crowd with his voice, but could not be said to ‘act’ as such, I would dispute that because he brings something onto the stage; he reveals the emotions of the character through his voice. It may not be right that this sixty-plus-year-old man is playing a twenty-year old, good looking, handsome young chap. It’s hard for us to go with that idea but that doesn’t mean he isn’t in touch with us in the sense of the drama, in the moment. And vocally it’s all connected, which is what we are all after in opera.
You cannot just say, ‘Oh, you have a lovely voice, now we’ll try to make you act.’ As a director I am involved in the music just as much, I hope, as the musical director would be involved in the drama, in the production, because we’re all interlinked. Therefore the actor who can bring that through their voice, through themselves, must be in some way “acting”, if that is the word. What does acting mean? Surely the best acting in the world is what we give to the moment from inside ourselves, rather than people thinking, ‘I’m going to be really dramatic now’, and they are really dramatic half a mile away from their body - and it means absolutely nothing.
I suppose at the heart of your question is the fact that through time, especially the Nineteenth Century onwards, opera was turned into an elitist art form, to be viewed by the elite of society. We were encouraged to go to opera just to listen to the beautiful voice of the soprano or the wonderful tenor, and not bother about the production or drama. The Victorians have a lot to answer for. I suppose a similar thing is happening with football stars today.
Nowadays we see much more physical acting ability. I think we’re not hearing as many ‘great voices’ nowadays as such, but we are seeing a lot of people who have been trained in the colleges much more on the acting side, so we are getting a different perspective in the productions, whether we go to Covent Garden, or ENO, or any other companies. I think the director has quite a big influence over what happens in productions. It’s not that long ago when the musical director would have had all the power. Now we are exploring opera again and it’s wonderful.
There is a trend now to make singers do all sorts of acrobatics on stage. While it does look interesting, sometimes it actually distracts, like the poor Figaro at the Savoy trying to get down a gigantic ladder, backwards, and convincingly deliver his Largo at the same time, or the surely bruised Luisa, most of the time flat on the floor in Holland Park…
Exploring different ways of using one’s body physically is a good thing, in general terms, but of course we are in trouble if the person cannot communicate vocally at the same time. If the director is not taking account what is happening musically, they are not really going to be very good at opera directing, if they are only making pictures because they think it looks good… We all need to find that merging point where everything is brought together in the best way.
There can be moments that could be very effective if the singers are capable of doing it. In the ENO production of The Fairy Queen, directed by David Pountney, Thomas Randle sang well up on parallel bars for quite a long time. He did it effectively and it was part of the action, so it worked very well. He could do it, so why not.
Singers need to get fitter, don’t they?
Yes, I would say so. Everybody is expected to do a lot more nowadays. The physical exploration of the body is fantastic, and when it’s used well, it’s really good in opera. One of the major differences for the singer in opera as opposed to the actor in most realistic or naturalistic plays is that it is essential for the singer to employ the full body in the production of the voice, leading to a marvellous connection between mind, voice and body. They are in control of their physicality. It gives them a marvellous presence. All good actors are doing a similar thing, but all too often it is easier to speak a few words physically unprepared than it is to sing Grand Opera.
How would you describe your ideal opera performer?
Well, we are there to communicate. The best theatre comes from the people who can connect and communicate. Some people get up on that stage and don’t have the courage to open themselves up to the possibilities. They block the idea. ‘I am not going to communicate with you because I am too scared to do so. I just want to sing. You can clap in a minute.’ That’s not performing! Every great performer is a very brave person. Whether they are acting in theatre or opera, they open up to the possibilities, to what can happen, how their action will cause the reaction from the audience and they will respond back to that. That’s live theatre. That’s why we do it.
Your new opera production is Dido and Aeneas coupled with Il tabarro. How do they go together?
I don’t think they do! (laughing) The decision had already been made before I started. One of the operas was prompted by me, Dido and Aeneas. The Puccini wouldn’t have been a traditional choice. But now that we have this challenge, we have to acknowledge the differences and find the common ground. I suppose there are similarities within the stories, so why not explore two totally different forms of opera and find a similar theme at the heart of each opera: the relationship that cannot be and has to be stopped. The fate of the lovers is sealed, the Gods intervening in one tragedy, the jealous husband in the other. It is about the human being’s experience of falling in love and not being able to fulfil that.
Dido and Aeneas and Il tabarro may not seem ideal partners in an evening of opera but they provide a wonderful contrast both musically and dramatically. In Il Tabarro we are presented with the picture of how the ordinary society works and then we are introduced to the true love through the music. Can the pure love work? Will it come or will it go? The action is quite real, a husband and wife, one of the husband’s workers is in love with the wife, they want to be together and the husband stops them and kills him. It’s not a ‘fantastic’ story as such; it’s not beyond what could actually happen. It is quite real and gritty. Ideas such as the symbolism of the cloak, representing so much in the lives of Michele and Giorgetta, and the impressionistic score, which leads us to new places, new thoughts contrast and complement with the grittiness and realism of the drama. It is about jealousies, love and revenge. It shows human nature well.
All of this is in contrast with Dido and Aeneas, a musical gem, written according to the conventions of the time and therefore extremely stylised, but at the same time deals with the flaws of human nature in its presentation of the love story / tragedy. The gap of 200 plus years between the writing of the two operas, and how the composers deal with the similar story elements makes for a very challenging and interesting evening of opera. The cloak will feature in both operas. It is a symbol of love and protection, of different people’s individual lives, as well as death in the Puccini, while in the Purcell it will be used to represent the sinister nature of the witches. From a visual and dramatic point of view we can make lots of connections. Also, the action of the operas take place in closed Worlds. The action is on the boat in Puccini; in Purcell it takes place within the monarch’s court, and the world of the witches. We observe from the outside, but the chorus represent us in the Purcell in many ways offering their constant comments, pushing for something to happen, driving the witches on for the next part of the story. Dramatically, they question the actions of individuals all the time. It is like us always wondering what the present Royal Family are up to. I think the chorus are the gossip merchants in Dido and Aeneas.
And what are your favourite operas? What was the opera that got you interested in the genre?
I enjoy earlier opera. I am a Handel fan. The ENO production of Semele, directed by Robert Carsen, which must be approximately 10 years old now, was inspiring. Through different productions we can let opera and plays live and and live again. The attitude that opera is just about the marvellous singer is truly beginning to disappear.
Opera can be one of the most powerful art forms and equally one of the worst to watch if it’s not done well. It’s one of the hardest to get right. But the reward when you do is all worth it.
Personally, I enjoy Monteverdi, Purcell, Handel, Mozart, Rossini – and then I would probably take quite a big a jump forward to the 20th century opera, to the wonderful explorations of Britten and composers working today such as James Macmillan.
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I am tempted to ask what happened to Verdi…
It is not that I do not admire the work of Verdi or Puccini. On the contrary, some of the best drama for opera was created during this period. Verdi was a political activist of his time. However, unfortunately too much of opera related to this period is tied into being part of the elitist art form for the elite I was referring to earlier. The big romantic and grand opera symbolises for many what is ‘wrong’ with the world of opera with its rather large divas and grand opera houses. I want all of that image destroyed and for the world to begin to see opera from all centuries as accessible and interesting, even political, just as it was when Verdi first created his operas.
Why are you so fond of early and modern music?
One of the reasons is the simplicity of the structure and the economy in writing. If we’re looking at Dido and Aeneas, how simple and how effective it was to put something across dramatically. It has a great story and structure, and musically precise. The comments from the chorus, the setting of words – Dido’s lament is surely one of the best you could find, the story of the gods and supernatural forces and the way characters are presented are just some of aspects so skilful and simplistically dealt with in the opera. This small piece of theatre so precisely holds a mirror up to us and asks us so many questions of ourselves. Is it about how we all suffer from enjoying life too much perhaps - we grasp what we want and it gets taken away from us, by gods, by our own faults, own jealousies.
I like this economic and informative, and challenging style of writing. The early operas were so influenced by the dramatic forms being employed in the church. Through composers such as Monteverdi and Purcell, we can see the influence of church on opera.
How did it all begin, how did you decide to become a director?
I always had an interest in theatre; from a very early age I’ve been exposed to musical theatre a lot. My father musically directed a lot of musicals, operetta and opera in school and with amateur and semi-professional companies. I watched a lot of it. I became involved, performing as a singer, taking singing lessons, and I also began an acting course. However, I really enjoyed being part of the creative process in terms of being in the centre of developing ideas, all the different elements, from working with the actors to set and lighting designers. I came to the conclusion that there were people who were better actors than me and that I should focus more on my strengths in directing.
I love planting seeds and watching them grow. Too many people see themselves as completely in charge, they dictate what should happen in every move. I think the opposite. I’ve always seen myself at the centre of a process, trying to bring everyone into that centre point with all the shared ideas, shared creativity together. To me, in any theatre process we are, to a certain extent, all equal; we’ve just got different responsibilities. I don’t have the responsibility of having to go out and actually perform. But I do have the responsibility to help people to get to that point. I love being part of that creative process.
Is this your first opera?
No. I come from a background of having been in musicals, operetta and some opera myself as a singer, from amateur to semi-professional. One of the reasons I explore the musical, the play that’s contains music, the operetta and the opera as well as working on plays is that they all influence each other and you’re always learning. Each art form informs the other. That’s why I keep doing it and enjoy it. Maybe there will come a time when I will have to concentrate on one area in order to earn a full-time living, but at the moment I think it’s a wonderful process.
There are more things in common than there are differences, especially in the rehearsal process. We’ve got to come to terms with a set of characters, how they interact, what words they use to do it. The fact that one is sung and one is not is a definite difference but there is far more common ground than there are differences.
I have directed some musicals and some opera. I have also assisted on some operas. My first opera that I directed was Cosi fan tutte for Opera Moriarty in 2004. Cosi is an extremely hard piece to pull off. The setting of St Cyprian’s Church where Il Tabarro / Dido and Aeneas will be performed lent itself to setting Cosi in the period of when it was written. I had a marvellous time in rehearsal with the actors exploring the different mind games and comedy timing elements so enhanced by Mozart’s score.
Is opera 'the' art form?
Perhaps it is and perhaps it isn’t. It brings a lot of the other art forms together a lot of the time. But somehow, I would have to dispute what people are trying to tell me, that opera is the hardest thing to do vocally. Yes, it is the most demanding in terms of training but actually there aren’t many opera singers who could do good musical theatre work or be a good jazz singer. All the other forms are different and equally difficult in their own way. To do it well - it’s a big challenge in all of them.
What are your other plans?
Something quite different, Anorak on Fire, a one-man play about a trainspotter, going out on a national tour. It is not as much about a trainspotter’s life as the life of someone with flaws, who is a bit lonely, does some daft things. We all can see something of ourselves in this character. Every time we laugh, we may be thinking, ‘Actually, I’ve got a similar story’. Trainspotting, collecting stamps or going to opera - we’ve all got our obsessions.
I start a new contract for a year in Liverpool with a company called Black Box Merseyside Ltd. I’ve worked for them before as a freelance practitioner. Now I’m going to be a part of the team full time. Part of their work is creating a version of a Shakespeare play for three actors (Theatre-in-Education Tours), or for 11-year-olds, and workshops for schools. I’ll be one of the leaders running the theatre school as well. It will be a great experience. I think it’s also a realistic outlook on how one earns a living in the arts: having the flexibility to do different things and enjoying doing different things. It’s wonderful to work creatively with young people. By the end of the process they are just loving their William Shakespeare. I’ve been talking about putting opera back in touch with people – here we are putting Shakespeare back in touch with people, particularly youngsters. They will remember it for years. In July 2004, in Liverpool, I directed a 20-minute Hamlet performed by 11-year-olds. They loved it.
Are you tempted by another opera?
Always. I would love to have a go at a Handel opera, Alcina or Semele. Also 20th century opera, particularly Britten’s Church Parables would be excellent. It is part of my development to try different things. How do you make a good piece of Verdi really speak to people now? I want to advance to Verdi later on, given the opportunity.
What do you do in your spare time?
When I’m free, I do theatre. It’s my hobby, too. Relaxation time to me is to go out in the evening and watch a piece of theatre. I also love socialising with many different people.
View Christopher's page HERE.
View Christopher Neil's production of Dido and Aeneas and Il tabarro here.
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