Among the conflicts that drive Shakespeare’s “Othello” and Verdi’s opera, “Otello,” race is key. The central character is the governor of Cyprus and heroic general of the Venetian fleet. He’s also black, a Moor, an outsider.
In the new production at the Metropolitan Opera, which will be transmitted live in HD Saturday, Oct. 24 at Fort Lewis College, the Met has finally dispensed with blackface. This outdated convention of using darkening makeup to suggest a character’s race has always been insensitive. Now it’s obsolete.
Aleksandrs Antonenko will sing the title role without blackface makeup and maybe come closer to the psychological core of the story – otherness.
Verdi originally set the conflict in the late 15th century, but the Met has updated it to late-19th century Cyprus. “Otello” begins with a roiling storm pummeling the island. The governor-general returns with his triumphant fleet having defeated the hated Turks. Life looks good.
Conceived by the Tony Award-winning Broadway director Bartlett Sher, the Met’s new production probes the psychological dimensions of the tale. Set designer Es Devlin employs stately translucent walls and arches as scenes shift from court to street to bedroom.
When things turn sour, Otello’s ensign, Iago (the powerful baritone Zeljko Lucic), drives the action. Having expected advancement, he loses a promotion to a younger, less intelligent man, Cassio (Dimitri Pittas). So Iago plots Otello’s demise by falsely accusing Cassio of an affair with the general’s wife, Desdemona (the Bulgarian soprano Sonya Yoncheva).
Thanks to Shakespeare’s device of direct address, Iago reveals his malevolent plans as they unfold. Consequently, the audience becomes a co-conspirator. In compelling productions, it’s downright uncomfortable.
By the end of Act II, Otello believes Iago’s lies, and the great general tragically turns on his wife. By Act IV the tragedy runs its course, including murder, suicide and Otello’s bitter awareness that he was duped.
It’s said that Verdi debated titling the opera “Iago.” Apparently, he decided against it due to the fame of Shakespeare’s play.
jreynolds@durangoherald.com. Judith Reynolds is a Durango writer, art historian and arts journalist.
If you go
The MET: Live in HD will present Giuseppe Verdi’s “Otello,” at 10:55 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 24 in the Vallecito Room of the Fort Lewis College Student Union. Tickets $23 ($21 seniors over 65) with surcharge at Durango Welcome Center, 802 Main Ave. 247-7567, or at durangoconcerts.com. Sung in Italian with English subtitles. Running time: 3 hours, 30 minutes.
