Theatre Royal, Glasgow
Intermezzo is one of a handful of Strauss operas that are hardly ever staged, and though Scottish Opera's new production has some fine singing and stylish designs, I can still basically see why. The characters are Strauss and his feisty wife, the plot is based on their real-life spats, and the hyperactive score quotes bits of his own music, a lot. It all begins to feel like one big inside joke.
Any potential depth is in the orchestra, whose between-scene intermezzos provide running emotional commentary on the action, so it's problematic that it is the weak link in this production. Francesco Corti, SO's music director, conducts as if oblivious to the needs of the pit and, worse, the singers, whose best efforts were drowned by careless handling of the surging instrumentals. This orchestra sounded fine in their last outing with a visiting conductor; maybe it's worth wondering out loud what Corti brings to the party.
The central character, Christine, is demanding role, and Anita Bader deserves much credit for staying on top of the role. But her soprano doesn't have the decibels needed, and she sounded tired; her personality was best in spoken passages, spat out with wit and venom (the German libretto benefits from her native touch). Roland Wood (Storch) was more willing to demand space from Corti, and filled it with a warm, hefty baritone. Scottish tenor Nicky Spence made an overdue company debut as Christine's smarmy, prettily sung flirt. Manfred Kaderk's sets accommodate the multiple scene-changes and look good in mock 1920s deco; Wolfgang Quetes's directing is unostentatious, which is exactly what's needed for the slice-of-life approach.
On the way out, several couples were muttering: "Did that seem a bit too familiar, dear?" This show manages a decent bicker; whether it's any more than that, I'm not sure.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/mar/28/intermezzo-review
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