Thaïs

For me, Massenet's masterpiece overall is Manon, which is more plausible in the story I feel. However that is not to dismiss Thais, it is a very sensual opera with beautiful music and one of the most affecting final scenes in all of opera. Other than this production, there is also the Met production with Fleming and Hampson, which I just prefer especially for Fleming and slightly more nuanced account of the final scene. On record there is the Beverly Sills and Sherrill Milnes recording, Sills is not at her best vocally but she is still moving, and Milnes is outstanding.

That is not to dispute this 2004 Thais though, as it is very good. Visually it is just as sensual as the opera itself, perhaps overly reliant on the symbolism especially in Act 3 with the crosses but the colour palette is striking, the sparse stage is still used to stunning effect and with the minimal clothing this production is perhaps more erotic than the Met production. The camera work is good and the picture and sound quality are also fine.

Musically, it's wonderful. The orchestral playing is very lush and sensitive, and the late Marcello Viotti conducts with passion and nuance. The final scene is every bit as moving as it should be. The staging is always interesting and involving, with the roses especially in the Meditation serving their purpose well. The choreography is skillfully choreographed and passionately danced, the choreography of the Meditation mayn't be for all tastes, I didn't mind it but personally would've preferred for it to be still.

Eva Mei is a truly affecting Thais. The acting is intelligent and brave(with the nudity) with her final scene done absolutely beautifully, however her vocal production is uneven, with some wonderful pianissimo and soaring high register singing but also moments of uncertainty and unpleasantness. I personally do prefer the warmer, creamier tone of Fleming's voice. Michele Pertusi is just as good as Athanael, the voice is resonant and huge and although there is some pushed intonation I didn't get the sense that the role was too heavy for him. As for the acting, Pertusi really is a master of commanding the stage with everything he does meaning something.

Nicias is a thankless and rather brief role, but thanks to William Joyner's suitably effete manner and ringing tone the role is memorable here. The rest of the cast are fine, with only the Albine of Trizania Carraro lacking with a rather wobbly tone. In conclusion, a very effective, sensual and moving Thais, and one of the better opera DVDs in the 6-DVD Teatro La Fenice collection. 8/10 Bethany Cox

I have always loved this opera and have never quite figured out why it never really catches on.

Pier Luigi Pizzo's production for La Fenice production is absolutely gorgeous with incredible care shown down to the smallest detail, yet always fresh and never fussy. Roses seem to be a central theme in this production and Pizzi gives us have tons of them, a virtual moving wall of roses. Thais (and later, Athanael's) bed is made of huge ropey vines of roses (which transforms during the meditation - as Thais lies on it, the roses all fall off at once leaving only a bed of giant thorny vines!).

Eva Mei is a moving Thais and while the voice lacks some "plushness" her piano and sustained high register singing is pure and lovely. She's an affecting actress and her transformation from courtesan to saint is not only believable but poignant, she seems to radiate. The Mirror Aria is well sung, but it is in her duets with Pertusi, especially the opening and closing ones of Act III where she shines. Her death scene is absolutely beautiful.

Those who have nudity issues be forewarned a lot of flesh is on display here, the entire female corps de ballet is topless, save for necklace chains, and Thais has a topless doppleganger who gives a radiant performance of the Meditation (Though Mei's own costume leaves little to the imagination at one point exposing one of her own breasts).

Everyone is barefoot but with stunning, ornate ankle ornaments by a company called Pompei 2000. (The Venetian pedicurists must have been working overtime during this production!).

Everybody has great legs here too, not just Thais and the girls, but also Athanael and Nicias! Both men here show a lot more skin than most male principals (and in their "mini skirted" tunics one might be almost fearful of seeing something(s) revealed that needn't be seen . . . but it doesn't happen).

William Joyner's bright tenor rings nicely and in Nicias's brief time on stage, Joyner creates a vain but imminently likable fellow. I haven't seen this singer in about a decade and it's nice to hear (and see) him looking and sounding so fit!

While the opera is called Thais – and as terrific as Mei is in the role – it is Michele Pertusi as Athanael who just about walks away with the show. His is a presence that is never less than magnificent. He is a complete master of "the pose"; his hands, feet, face, his every gesture is weighted with meaning and he seems as though an El Greco painting has come to life. Vocally, Pertusi wraps his himself around the role with a seemingly instinctual madness and burns with an intensity that never lets up (even after the final curtain – you'll see what I mean!)

While costumes are "traditional" in their representation of early A.D. Egypt, the physical production is more representational and sparse but with stunning use of the stage (though the literally dozens and dozens of crosses in Act III – another heavy symbol here i- initially had me thinking "overkill" – it still worked well and is visually arresting.)

Marcello Viotti leads the Fenice forces - orchestra and chorus in a moving and theatrical reading. This is one of the most exciting DVDs I've purchased.