A night at the opera
A group of giggling teenage girls run down the small stairs in their dance costumes, while two delivery men discuss an order with the receptionist in the new and impersonal-looking administrative building of the Liceu opera house, which leans onto the original 1847 façade.
A few flights up, away from the neon-lit elevator and metallic, Nineties-style corridors is an office where, amidst walls of CDs, Liceu Art Director Christina Scheppelman greets us with a handshake that means business.
“Our programme is about creating a balance between the productions, so we look at the season as a whole,” Scheppelman explained, referring to roughly 11 opera productions that count for around 60 performances, the vast majority of which were sold out last season.
Scheppelman believes that audiences need to be exposed to new trends, yet while some opera houses, like the Teatro Real in Madrid, have made this the centre of their repertoire, her opinion is that experimenting too far might put some people off coming.
“I need people to come and see shows because I don’t receive 80 percent subsidies like other big European houses.” In fact the Liceu is one of the least subsidised houses, with roughly 45 percent of its annual income provided by public funds. The rest comes from private donations and ticket sales. Prices range from as little as €12 for the fifth balcony with little or no visibility, to almost €300 for a seat in the stalls. “This is why I look for powerful productions in which everything comes together musically, vocally and theatrically, to make a strong impact on the audience.”
Asked if there is anything that makes the Barcelona audience different, Scheppelman, a veteran of several music institutions in Europe and the US, said, “Yes, their taste for voices. This city likes big voices.” Indeed, Enrico Caruso, Feodor Chaliapin, Renata Tebaldi, Joan Sutherland, Montserrat Caballé, Plácido Domingo, Mirella Freni and José Carreras are just some of the names on a long list of past Liceu performers.
In recent years, the theatre has overcome annual losses to the tune of four million euros, with the negative figures now in tens of thousands. One of the key people behind this turnaround is Roger Guasch, who has been Director of the Liceu for the past three years. “We are recuperating economic viability without causing the artistic quality to suffer. The credo of the Liceu is artistic excellence, economic sustainability and social engagement,” he emphasised. “The Liceu’s roots are in society, not in power, as is the case with many other major European opera houses. By making the opera accessible to its members, it both transforms, and is transformed by, society. Barcelona and the Liceu are inseparable notions.”
The Liceu has burnt down twice in its history, most recently in 1994. The resulting renovation has dramatically increased technical capacities and increased the technical zone to 70 percent, with 30 percent of the space left for the audience. At the same time, it tries, but fails, to be reminiscent of the original house. The seats are simply too new, the acoustics are nearly perfect and the woodwork doesn’t show the age of the place. No, the Liceu is not the most charming or the most romantically authentic opera house, but it is one of the very few places where new and old work together in harmony, providing a seamless backdrop for performance excellence that makes the Liceu one of the top five opera houses in the world. One place in the theatre where little has changed over the last century or so is the Cercle del Liceu, a private space for benefactors and members, which displays paintings from the late 19th and early 20th century in several heavily ornamented rooms.
After 20 years, major technical changes are necessary. The coming summer we will invest one million euros in updating machinery and lighting equipment.
The Liceu has another ace up its sleeve—the choir. Its 57 members, led by Conxita Garcia, are outstanding. Their sound is crisp, strong and full of emotion, reaching the highest octaves. Asked about the secret behind the choir’s success, Garcia said, “There is no secret. I show kindness and respect for each piece of music, as well as for the musicians I have in front of me, and I know very well where I want to get to at each moment and with each work.”
This year the restored Liceu will be turning 18. “After 20 years, major technical changes are necessary. The coming summer we will invest one million euros in updating machinery and lighting equipment,” said technical director Xavier Sagrera. Asked why more could not be done to reduce the number of seats with low or no visibility he said that once the decision was made to keep the original horseshoe form of the seating area, it was clear that they would have to put an audio-visual system in some seats to give some visual information to those sitting in places that do not have a good or practically any view of the stage.
Barcelona is fortunate to have an opera house that values quality, understands its strengths and does the best it can to manage its financial structure. The Liceu’s audience, whose international character is growing steadily, recognises the house's high calibre and, in some part at least, does its best not to rush out to catch the metro at the end of the performance without showing due respect to the performers. In times when the rules of opera behaviour are becoming looser, things like this not only count, but make an opera house truly great.
ON THIS SEASON
Treat yourself to an evening of opera at one of the Liceu’s 2017 productions.
Tickets are available online.
Quartett. Luca Francesconi. From February 22nd to March 3rd
This is the first performance in Spain of this production by Alex Ollé (of theatrical group La Fura dels Baus). Composed by Luca Francesconi, Quartett is a re-reading of Heiner Müller's play based on the novel Les Liaisons dangereuses (1782), which reflects on the decadence of certain classes of French society in the 18th century. The production is set to be a unique audiovisual experience. The action takes place in a box suspended above the stage, and the music is a combination of the live Liceu orchestra and pre-recorded, electronically-manipulated music.
Rigoletto. Giuseppe Verdi. From March 21st to April 6th
Based on a play by Victor Hugo, Rigoletto was censored before its premiere for criticising the monarchy of the period. In this minimalist but striking production by Monique Wagemaker, Javier Camarena and Antonino Siragusa debut as the Duke of Mantua. Seduction, rage and revenge are all part of the fiery plot.
The Flying Dutchman. Richard Wagner. From May 2nd to the 28th
Redemption through love is the central theme of The Flying Dutchman, which Wagner finished in 1841. Set in Norway, a young Dutchman is condemned to roam the seas till he finds a woman who is faithful. He finds true love in Senta but falls into despair when she is reclaimed by her previous suitor. Stage and cinema director Philipp Stölzl reinterprets the tale by transferring it to the Daland mansion, where Senta is reading the legend of the Flying Dutchman. Fact and fiction intertwine as she imagines the events unfolding.
Don Giovanni. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. From June 19th to July 2nd
Kasper Holten’s high-tech production of one of Mozart’s most popular operas is set amid a complex staging of platforms and stairs, and features striking special effects and projected images. It tells the story of an arrogant and promiscuous nobleman who, with the help of his servant Leporello, leads an unrepentant life of seduction and lying.
Il Trovatore. Giuseppe Verdi. From July 17th to the 29th
Joan Anton Rechi has updated the Liceu’s version of Il trovatore. Set in Zaragoza, Manrico, a troubadour, and Leonora are in love, but Count di Luna is also wooing Leonora. The count captures and tortures Azucena, a gypsy who is supposedly Manrico's mother, and when he tries to rescue her, he too is taken. Leonora intercedes by offering to marry the count, but ultimately commits suicide. Count di Luna then kills Manrico and it's the dying Azucena who reveals that the troubadour was the count's long-lost brother.