A couple of years ago Opera Holland Park offered, as they do every year, a relatively unknown piece. In 2022, it was Le Villi, Puccini’s first opera. This year, it’s his second, Edgar – and what a difference between them. Le Villi was an impressive success, a much-deserved revival of an early Puccini. Edgar was probably best left unexhumed.
This is almost entirely the fault of the libretto. Based on a play by Alfred de Musset, Puccini’s librettist Ferdinando Fontana created a story so stilted and unbelievable that the composer would never work with him again and recognised the piece as the worst he ever wrote. This, despite many revisions, the ultimate of which is now used by Opera Holland Park, with mercifully three rather than four acts.
Julien Van Mellaerts as Frank in Edgar, Opera Holland Park (2024)
So, let’s get the plot over with first. Edgar, a man with no redeeming characteristics whatsoever, is loved by two women: Fidelia, as pure as the driven snow and with a Pollyanna complex, and Tigrana, a sex worker who drives men wild with lust. In Act I, Edgar burns his own house down, shoots his friend, Frank, and runs off with Tigrana. In Act II, he regrets everything, joins the army with Frank and dies a war hero.
In Act III, it’s his funeral. The Curate taking the funeral first wants Tigrana to stop weeping and run off with him instead then tempts her with jewels if she will denounce Edgar as a traitor. But, wait! The coffin is bare. Edgar is alive and, indeed, he is the Curate because, of course, no one recognises their lover if he’s wearing a hat and a pair of glasses. Edgar declares he’s only ever loved Fidelia, Tigrana shoots her and the mob turns on Tigrana. The End.
Now, you can play that game with many an operatic plot because, pared down, they can be ludicrous but they can also be redeemed by a combination of music and characterisation. It is easy, caught up in the magic of a composer like Puccini, to suspend disbelief. Unfortunately, in this case, there is no characterisation – all the main actors are ciphers.
The music is another matter, though. The City of London Sinfonia (here for their 20thyear), under the reliable baton of Naomi Woo, play with verve and there are, naturally, signs of Puccini’s greatness yet to come, especially in the big moments when the always dependable Opera Holland Park Chorus join with the principals.
Peter Auty as Edgar and Julien Van Mellaerts as Frank
Peter Auty as Edgar wrestles with his deplorable character but has some fine tenor arias. As Fidelia and Tigrana, Anne Sophie Duprels and Gweneth Ann Rand also make the most of some moments of musical beauty especially in the second half. Interestingly, it is Frank, Julian Van Mellaerts, who impresses most, his excellent baritone managing to forge a character from the barest bones.
Director Ruth Knight has made this a semi-staged production with no scenery or props other than a few chairs, though there are Victorian costumes (not medieval as in the original version) for the main characters, while the chorus dress in black. It’s a valiant effort but wasted on such material. Though, there again, if you forget the story, close your eyes and just listen, you will hear a touch of early Puccini magic…
Edgar has one remaining performance, on 6th July. For more information, and for tickets, please visit www.operahollandpark.com.
Photos by Ali Wright
