This movie is another Ponnelle triumph - ingenious staging and a great cast combined in one great film. Unfortunately it seems to be out of print. (Why is the good stuff always out of print?) Let's hope that someday it will be released on DVD like Ponnelle's Il Barbiere di Siviglia.

Frederica von Stade performs flawlessly, really projecting the pure and innocent personality that is crucial to the title role. You feel for her sorrow when Magnifico refuses to take her to the ball, and you are touched by her innocent love at first sight for Ramiro. And her voice, of course, is incredibly beautiful. There's something about its tone that suits the role, too, although I can't really put it into words. But this is what Cenerentola should sound like.

Francisco Araiza's tender Ramiro is excellently captured here. His Prince begins as a slightly arrogant young man, disgusted by his father's decree that he marry or be disinherited. (He enters Magnifico's house, takes one look at its crumbling state, and tries to walk right out again, only being stopped by the insistent Alidoro.) But he changes gradually as the opera progresses and he learns that "trionfa la bontà." Araiza does this transition very clearly. And his voice is gorgeous, I've reviewed enough of his work that you should know that by now!

Claudio Desderi's Dandini nearly stole the show. He was incredibly funny - obviously enjoying taking full advantage of his chance to be the Prince. (He even shouts orders at Ramiro for no particular reason at one point, secure because Magnifico and his daughters are present.) Watching this performance made me wish that he had brought more of this fun to his Leporello in the La Scala Don Giovanni, because I think he could have pulled it off. He's a great actor and a wonderful singer.

Paolo Montarsolo made a good Don Magnifico, but I felt he rather overdid some of the comedic parts... comedy is often a lot funnier when it is subtle. He lacked the show-stealing brilliance of Walter Berry, but he still had his great moments - the scene where he capers around holding a pillow like a baby in his first aria had me laughing out loud. And also on the plus side, he excels vocally in this rather difficult part.

As Alidoro, Paul Plishka was surprisingly funny. Despite the rather oppressive fake beard, his facial expressions contributed to the action even when he was basically just standing around watching the other characters. Plishka has a fine voice and his one aria was quite moving. I loved the way they staged it - more on this later.

Margherita Guglielmi and Laura Zannini were fairly good as Clorinda and Tisbe - nothing special, but neither were they weak points, and that's saying a lot with a cast like this. They were quite funny if sometimes maybe a little over-the-top.

Now for Ponnelle's staging. What a treat! Ponnelle is a master at successfully suggesting a stage atmosphere while still using all the advantages he has with a real film. From the curtain that swings open at the beginning to the open-faced construction of Magnifico's home, everything evokes a stage setting but with far more elaborate detail and realism than a stage could ever get away with.

The other piece of staging I want to mention is Alidoro's aria. At first I was confused and a little annoyed when Alidoro returned without his disguise. But instead of revealing the beggar to be Alidoro, he says, "See who I am" and points to the statue of Rossini in the courtyard (the real statue stands in the hall at La Scala, and the camera repeatedly cut to it during the overture). Suddenly the statue comes to life (the transition managed beautifully with a section sung in silhouette) to reveal Paul Plishka, minus the beard, singing the rest of the as Rossini himself! I thought this was a really excellent touch. It sounds weird, I know, but trust me, it works.

The one bit of staging I didn't get was toward the end, where the whole part about a tangled knot was all sung with no lighting from the front, so that the characters all appeared only as silhouettes. I wasn't quite sure why this was done. Maybe it will make more sense upon repeated watching.

If you possibly can, see this - I know it's out of print, but I found a copy through interlibrary loan. I've never seen it on eBay or anything but you never know, it could appear. And on the off chance that there's anybody out there that has oomph, get this released on DVD!!!

Originally Reviewed:

16-Aug-03

BACK TO TOP

Canzonetta Sull'Aria was launched on July 14, 2003 by Laura.
Its predecessor, The Musical Theater CD Website, was launched on December 16, 2001.
Please do not take anything from this site without permission.
Feel free to link to this site.