While Il Trovatore mayn't have the easiest of stories to follow, some of Verdi's best and melodically rich music is in this opera so it's a work that I'm really quite fond of. Not every Trovatore on DVD has been entirely successful, though most are solid(1957, 1978 and 1988 productions especially). Before now, the Trovatore that Robert Carsen directed and the one with Dimitra Theodossiou as Leonora were the ones that came off least in the DVD competition. Sadly, this Trovatore takes that bottom spot, and it is a real shame because there is some good talent here. There are of course good things, even when there are productions that don't come off well there is always a redeeming quality to try and look out for. The orchestra do make a lovely sound, not wow-factor quality but it is at least competently performed. The chorus manage a rousing Anvil Chorus and a haunting Miserere so it was a good job on their part too. Marcelo Alvarez mayn't be much great shakes as an actor as Manrico, but his singing with ringing high notes and beautiful Italianate phrasing is first rate. Claudio Sgura is a commanding Di Luna, and his dark, powerful baritone is just right for Verdi. His Il Balen is not among the great renditions of the aria, but it hardly disgraces it either. The video directing is also quite good, one of Tiziano Mancini's better efforts actually, and the sound is superb.
It is really unfortunate though that everything else doesn't really work. Actually, Deyan Vatchkov has a good voice, he sings well and is communicative. His problem is that the voice is too small, consequently there isn't that much of a sense that Ferrando's story is a dark one so it makes us care less about the drama to come. The two female principal singers are both let downs. Teresa Romano's middle register is actually very appealing and rich, but there are some real issues with her top, which in contrast was shrill and almost forced-sounding. Tu Vedrai is a disaster sadly because of this. Dramatically, there isn't that much acting ability going on. Mzia Nioradze's best attribute in the role of Azucena is a generously sized middle register, but the rest of her voice consists of a wiry top and an underpowered and overly-darkened bottom and she is rather stand-there-and-sing for the role of a vengeful gypsy. Visually, the omnipresent moon and the stage floor looking like a lunar landscape was striking but everything looks bare, especially the final scene. You'd expect this somewhat minimalist approach to work in something like Act 4 of Manon Lescaut for example, but it's not appealing at all here. The costumes are dull and lacking in nobility, while the staging is painfully static with little to no dramatic tension. People will like that this Trovatore is a traditional production, they may just not like it is one that holds of very little interest value. Yuri Temirkanov's conducting has some solid tempos but at the same time comes across too academic and emotionally cold.
Overall, uneven and disappointingly unmoving. 4/10 Bethany Cox
