Last Wednesday, we saw Elixir of Love at the Met with Anna Netrebko and Matthew Polenzani.  I had heard much negative commentary about the new production but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

It was the first performance of the season in our subscription seats in Dress Circle.  The view was terrific and despite the smell of Ben Gay and menthol cough drops permeating the sea of gray hair around us, we were happy.  Anna Netrebko’s cleavage got us off to a great start and I could see the cameras filming Elixir zeroing in on her and her assets.  She has a fabulous stage presence, but we all know that.  What became distracting shortly into Act I were reverberations and odd amplifications of sound at certain places on the stage.  It sounded like the singers were mic’d.  I scanned the stage for microphones, but was unsure.  Is it possible there are certain sweet spots on the stage that one can only hear in Dress Circle?  We have sat in Orchestra, back of Grand Tier and even in Family Circle Balcony and had no bizarre amplification spikes.

During intermission, my fiancé and I discussed the vocal volume spikes over $32 sandwiches.  While salmon and dill on pumpernickel is good, it is not worth the $16.  Note to newbie operagoers: eat before the show.  On the $5 bottle of 2 oz (TSA approved) water you’re a bit stuck, though the Met does have a water fountain if you’re willing to wait on line amongst the tuxedoed set for your turn filling up a miniscule paper cone cup.

 

We were unsure whether the singers were being artificially enhanced or whether our location had an effect on sound reverberations.  As we hurried back to our seats, I posed the question on a popular opera website—were the singers mic’d?  As absurd as it may sound, the Met has allowed it for other operas such as last year’s production of Nixon in China.  Responses to my question were varied.  Some favored the sweet spot theory (in denial that the Met could possibly “cheat” the audience, obviously), while others suggested that perhaps the set was the cause for sound spikes.  This remains a mystery.

Overall, the show was fun and whimsical.  I enjoyed the use of the stage, especially when Adina (Netrebko) tossed Nemorino’s bottle of “elixir” into the prompter’s box and he was then forced to pull it out like it was in the gutter.  And Ambrogio Maestri as Doctor Dulcamara was great fun.  What a voice and what a face!  I loved his whistling through his teeth while singing.  It added to the sleaziness of the Dottore.  I hope we will see Maestri in the Falstaff Levine is returning to do next year. 

Up next: The Tempest and Un Ballo in Maschera

-Elizabeth Frayer