One people freed, a torn family: Nabucco at the Teatro Real, Madrid.

Madrid, July 9, 2022.

Nabucco is part of the classic repertoire mostly because of its well-known chorus "Va, Pensiero", sung by the Hebrew slaves who are captive in Babylon. In its 1842 premiere, this chorus became a nationalist symbol for those Italians who were under the Austrian Empire dominion. However, it has been absent from the Teatro Real repertoire for 151 years. The reason? Maybe the changing tastes of the audience soon to discover Wagner, or the Verismo. Or maybe the extreme difficulty for singing such a terrible score, specially for the soprano. Maria Callas herself sang it only in few occasions, being the best Abigaille ever recorded. Fortunately for the Madrid audience, it has been seen outside the Teatro Real stage: in 2003 a private company set it on a stadium, in 2017 another private company set it in a theatre of the centre of the city, or some touring Eastern European companies have performed it in small theatres the outskirts, in cities like Alcobendas, Pozuelo or Boadilla del Monte. However, the last important production took place in the Teatro de la Zarzuela in 1971, with Cornell MacNeil and Elena Suliotis.  So, we can only celebrate the return of such a classic in the most appropriate venue for it.

It does in a production by Andreas Homoki, coming from the Zurich Opera. Homoki sets this opera in the time it was performed, the Risorgimento, when Italy's unification was still a project but soon to begin. In addition, he focuses on Nabucco's family: two sisters rivalising for the throne and their father's affection. The only set is a jaded, green emerald wall who is constantly turning. Wolfgang Gussmann's costumes identify the Babilonians with the Austrians, with military and luxurious costumes and the Jews with the Italians, in a working class aesthetic (similar to Bertolucci's Novecento?). Kimsun Chan's coreography tends to portray the supernatural element, specially when Nabucco self-proclamates himself as a god. However, it fails when Abigaille usurpates the throne in her Act 2 cabaletta, as the chorus makes a strange dance. Two interesting details could be mentioned:

After the duet of Abigaille and Nabucco, the chorus appears lying in the ground, and they begin their chorus while starting to sing Va, Pensiero, and they rise slowly until the epic verse "o mia patria, si bella e perduta", when they stood firmly, looking to their missed homeland, and the majestic trumpet joining them. At the end, Abigaille aims with a gun everyone, and after struggling with Fenena, she shots herself accidentally. After her death everyone leaves, even Ismaele, leaving Nabucco and Fenena alone to mourn Abigaille, completely abandoned and devastated. The triumph of the exiled people means the destruction of Nabucco's family.

The Teatro Real Orchestra has sounded beautifully under Nicola Luisotti's baton. His rendition has been vivid, agile, with a passionate sense of Verdi's dramatic style, despite sounding sometimes a bit loud for my taste. In this opera, Verdi starts to develop his genius, conveying the drama, as no one in Italian school in his day, going beyond the virtuosism intended in those days. Brasses shone in all their majesty during the prelude, and strings had beautiful moments during acts 2 and 4. Flutes were also moving during the Va, Pensiero.

Since the premiere, the Teatro Real Chorus, mastered by Andrés Máspero, is always giving an encore of the Va, Pensiero, becoming the true protagonist of this run of performances. During the piece, they sang with true devotion, moving the complete audience, specially singing at their complete power from "o mia patria, si bella e perduta". The final, enlargened "u" in a beautiful pianissimo, of the verse "al patire virtù" is always more than a tear-eye moment. These people are missing their country, they suffer. Everyone can be in their shoes: inmigrants, refugees from Ukraine, Syria or Afghanistan. That is why emotions flourish after this piece, and it is encored in Italy, New York or in Madrid these days. Last Saturday, it also happened: the audience broke into an outstanding ovation and shouting "Viva Verdi". After a long applause, the maestro Luisotti raised his thumb, and the encore began. The male section shone during the complete performance, showing the accomplished baritone and bass voices of this chorus. The female one sounded also sweet, tender, during the second part of the first chorus opening Act 1.

Madrid was a complete party, because of the LGBTIQ+ Pride, crowding the streets outside the theatre. The Teatro Real audience had its own part with a vocal feast from the second cast.

George Gagnidze was a  Nabucco which gained more and more presence and vocal authority as the performance was taking place. From the second act, he conveyed his weakness in front of his wicked daughter, specially during the duet with Abigaille in Act 3.

Saioa Hernández establishes herself as the most important spinto, dramatic soprano in Spain with her Abigaille, who deserved the great ovation she received. She passed the performance with flying colours, thanks to her amazing low register, her beautiful, solid high notes, and her technique able to cope with the difficulty of a role which is avoided by many sopranos, specially in the Act 3 duet, a complete acid test. 

Alexander Vinogradov in the role of Zaccaria was probably the most successful singer in the night, because of his massive, strong, deep voice. This bass dominated the scene every time he appeared.

Michael Fabiano plays Ismaele. In this opera the tenor does not have the prominence it will have in other works by Verdi, but the American tenor gives this character the charisma necessary to stand out. Vigorous, heroic, virile is the timbre of Fabiano's voice, and in the first act, where his character shines, he stood out for his drama, as well as in the third act when he asks for mercy for himself before the people he has betrayed by falling in love with Fenena, the daughter of the oppressive king.

Elena Maximova as Fenena has a dark, sometimes nasal voice, but still able to sing nicely her Act 4 aria. 

The supporting cast maintains the high level: Simon Lin's Great Priest of Baal surprised by his big volume, Fabián Lara's Abdallo was nicely sung and Maribel Ortega's Anna needs to be mentioned because of her powerful voice, with a beautiful dark tone (she sang Brünnhilde in Siegfried in 2017 in Oviedo). 

The audience welcomed warmly the performance and the artists, showing how much they wanted to see Nabucco on stage, and probably doing so for the first time in many cases.  In addition, today begins the Teatro Real opera week, held every summer, and this year with two live screenings in the Plaza de Isabel II for thousands of people. The performance of Friday, July 15th, will be also telecasted in more than 100 cultural centers, squares and museums all over Spain, with this same cast singing. Nabucco is winning Madrid over, isn't that great? This confirms that there is no reason to leave this work unperformed in the Teatro Real stage in the next decades.

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