Bregenz Favorites

Favorite thing: In the second scene Leonora tells Ines that she is in love with a mysterious troubadour who comes to serenade her at night. This turns out to be Manrico, a gypsy who is one of Count Luna's enemies in the civil war.

(In the photo: Tatjana Serjan as Leonora, Katharina Peetz as Ines.)

Count Luna is also in love with Leonora. At the end of Act 1 he and Manrico run off to fight a duel. Later we learn that Manrico won the fight and was about to kill Luna, when a mysterious inner voice told him not to. The two fight again in a battle, and Manrico is badly wounded.

Next: Act 2 – the gypsies

Favorite thing: At the beginning the second act the 48 meter long fence rises out of the ground, to separate the castle/refinery from the "beach" in the foreground.

The two gypsy piers are extended from the grandstand across to the stage, and soon dozens of gypsies cross and gather on the beach. Flames come out of several of the oil drums -- an eerie nighttime scene that perfectly matches Verdi's music.

Next: The anvil chorus

Favorite thing: At the beginning of the second act the gypsies sing their famous anvil chorus. In the Bregenz production they don't beat on their anvils but on the fence that keeps them out of the castle/refinery, the seat of wealth and power.

As in all the choral scenes at Bregenz, the people in the on-stage chorus are trained singers and are really singing Verdi's music, but their voices aren't being amplified. What we hear over the BOA (Bregenz Open Acoustics) sound system are the voices of the Moscow Chamber Chorus and the Bregenz Festival Chorus, who are singing simultaneously down in the indoor festival hall under the grandstand.


I took this photo on my second night, from my category V seat in the upper right-hand corner of the grandstand.

Next: Azucena’s story

Favorite thing: After gazing into the flames of the campfire, Azucena starts telling her fellow gypsies how awful it was fifteen years before when her mother was burned at the stake. To revenge her mother, she grabbed for the baby she had stolen and threw it into the flames -- only to realize that she had grabbed the wrong one, and thrown her own baby into the fire.

Manrico is astounded to hear this. "Non son tuo figlio?" he asks. Am I not your son?

(In the photo: Marianne Cornetti as Azucena.)

Next: Azucena’s retraction

Favorite thing: Azucena immediately takes it all back, says of course you're my son, I was only hallucinating. And goes on to tell, in a fantastic piece of music, how she found him near death on the battlefield and nursed him back to life.

(In the photo: Larissa Diadkova as Azucena.)

Just then Manrico learns that Leonora thinks he is dead and in despair is about to take vows as a nun. He immediately rallies his men and runs off to prevent this, despite Azucena's pleas to wait until his battle wounds are healed.

Next: Count Luna

Favorite thing: In the second scene of the second act, Count Luna arrives (by boat, in this production) at the convent where he intends to abduct Leonora to prevent her from becoming a nun. His old friend and military commander Ferrando is with him.



This photo, like several others in this series, was extremely dark as it originally came out. I later did a gamma correction on it, using the free software program IrfanView.

Next: Luna’s aria at the convent

Favorite thing: Count Luna sings of how he loves Leonora and how not even God will be able to snatch her from him -- Non può rapirti a me!.

After this the nuns file in to begin the ceremony, Leonora starts to take her vows, Luna interrupts and tries to abduct her. But then Manrico's men erupt onto the scene, some of them even rappelling down using ropes from the bridge at the top of the castle/refinery.

Ferrando advises Count Luna not to fight because they are completely outnumbered. So it is Manrico who takes Leonora away, even stealing Luna's boat to do so.


In this photo you can see a video screen near the top, just right of center. This is one of two screens that show live images of the conductor and the musicians (all wearing blue shirts or blouses) of the Vienna Symphonic Orchestra throughout the performance. This is especially nice in the many parts of this opera in which one of the orchestra musicians has a beautiful solo passage, so you can see them as they play.

Next: Act 3

Favorite thing: In the first scene of Act 3 Azucena is captured by Count Luna's forces and brought as a prisoner to his castle.

In the second scene, shown here, the stage has suddenly turned blue to hint that this is a different castle now, the fortress where Manrico is under siege. Leonora is with him, and they want to get married in the castle chapel.

Next: Manrico and Leonora