Théâtre Impérial de Compiègne have been responsible for reviving rarely performed French opera. A lot of these productions can be found on DVD, and almost all of them range from enjoyable to outstanding. A lot of the operas revived are quite lovely and one does wonder as to why they are not better known, well mostly, there are exceptions about.
Le Toréador, ou l'accord parfait joins the list of well worth listening to operas, with a decent if slight story and quite beautiful memorable tunes with effortless melodic flow as can be expected from Adolphe Adam, the standout being the French take on "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star". This is a very enjoyable production of the opera, there are better productions available of Théâtre Impérial de Compiegne's revivals but there is plenty to enjoy.
It's not perfect mind. The subtitles are pretty awful and unintentionally hilarious, not flowing well at all. There is some unbalanced sound quality with the orchestra being favoured over the singers. Franck Cassard doesn't quite command the stage as the other two principals Ghyslaine Raphanel and Matthieu Lecroart and is a touch too mature, he is also a little more confident in the ensembles than he is in the ensembles, but he displays a good voice, nice musicianship and is not a bad actor at all.
However, the costumes and sets are suitable sumptuous, but match the simplicity of the opera well. Piere Jourdan always make the action engaging and entertaining, never once falling into irrelevance, distaste, gratuity or static. Everything is involving and good use is made of the stage.
Nothing to complain about it musically. The orchestra sparkle with energy and have a shimmering beauty, while the conducting is buoyant yet sympathetic. Ghyslaine Raphanel has a beautiful voice, the best musicality of the principals and attacks the role dramatically with gusto and sincerity. She also has a long scene alone on stage, and it's completely riveting. Matthieu Lecroart has fun with his role and has an attractive enough voice.
All in all, very enjoyable. 8/10 Bethany Cox
Le Toréador, ou l'accord parfait joins the list of well worth listening to operas, with a decent if slight story and quite beautiful memorable tunes with effortless melodic flow as can be expected from Adolphe Adam, the standout being the French take on "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star". This is a very enjoyable production of the opera, there are better productions available of Théâtre Impérial de Compiegne's revivals but there is plenty to enjoy.
It's not perfect mind. The subtitles are pretty awful and unintentionally hilarious, not flowing well at all. There is some unbalanced sound quality with the orchestra being favoured over the singers. Franck Cassard doesn't quite command the stage as the other two principals Ghyslaine Raphanel and Matthieu Lecroart and is a touch too mature, he is also a little more confident in the ensembles than he is in the ensembles, but he displays a good voice, nice musicianship and is not a bad actor at all.
However, the costumes and sets are suitable sumptuous, but match the simplicity of the opera well. Piere Jourdan always make the action engaging and entertaining, never once falling into irrelevance, distaste, gratuity or static. Everything is involving and good use is made of the stage.
Nothing to complain about it musically. The orchestra sparkle with energy and have a shimmering beauty, while the conducting is buoyant yet sympathetic. Ghyslaine Raphanel has a beautiful voice, the best musicality of the principals and attacks the role dramatically with gusto and sincerity. She also has a long scene alone on stage, and it's completely riveting. Matthieu Lecroart has fun with his role and has an attractive enough voice.
All in all, very enjoyable. 8/10 Bethany Cox
