Bela Bartok – Bluebeard’s Castle (2008)

This is the only DVD of Bluebeard’s Castle I know of, so I wanted to have it at all costs.

Reviews I read about this filmed opera were not unanimously positive. Now, I won’t take any critic’s opinions as a guideline and besides, I find tearing down a production which has no competitors a bit tasteless. Yet, I have to be honest, there’s some truth in the observations of one or two critics.

Let there be no doubt about the excellence of the Grammy-winning performance of Solti and the LPO; nor are the vocal qualities of Sylvia Sass and Kolos Kovats substandard. On the contrary, I’ve seldom heard a richer alto do Judith, or a finer bass sing Keksakallu’s part. The deep, cavernous sounds the two of them produce together suit the piece perfectly.

So, what’s wrong then?
I’ve seen the piece twice now. Although counterpart Sass definitely has dramatic qualities, I can only conclude Kovats’s singing is inversely proportional to his acting. In other words, his bass sends the shivers down your spine, it’s tremendous - but on stage, his demeanour is less scary than Pinoccio’s. The little puppet succesfully deceives you into believing his existence transcends the material he is made of – wood; whereas poor Kovats utterly fails to convince he is made of flesh and blood, and remains wooden. A Wooden Duke, then? (Somebody will shout, “No! A Wooden Prince!” )
One may wonder what’s holding Kovats back. Is he afraid his huge, fake eyebrows will fall off if he were to cast a malevolent glance a la Eisenstein’s Ivan? For that is the least we may expect from the misogenous killer around whom myriads of legends have been built.
One dirty look! A streak of mad paranoia in those features! A volcanic eye revealing a glimpse of the dark soul beneath! Please, Kovats, not even a glimmer of gritted teeth….?.…nothing whatsoever.
Perhaps it’s the man’s personal interpretation of how to appear enigmatic. “I won’t give away anything, I’m Bluebeard. I have my secrets”. And indeed, he doesn’t give away anything.
Well, there may be a perfectly reasonable explanation for all this. The performers didn’t sing the piece when the movie was shot. The voices were dubbed in. Who knows – may be Kovats just can’t act when he’s not supposed to sing – only mimick the sounds with his lips. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt.

Alright, I got carried away trying to poke fun at the bass. Let it not dissuade you to enjoy this opera, for it’s well worth seeing.
Hungarian Sylvia Sass, fortunately, makes a great Judith. She is exactly the kind of mysterious Balkan beauty you would have pictured for this role. Huge, blazing dark eyes, very long, black hairs – and again, that voice. She’s perfectly capable of conveying deep emotions. Her appearance does particularly well in the Torture Chamber, where she dwells like Carry among the flames. Or in the Chamber of Tears, the one but last, where she rests, lonely and afraid, her lilac dress forming a striking contrast with the frozen scenery. Frankenstein’s daughter on the North Pole
Huge and various sets, an enormous castle, this production must have been a pretty expensive one for a non-Hollywood movie. It was shot in 1981, and only recently released on DVD.

Performers:

London Philharmonic Orchestra – Sir Georg Solti

Sylvia Sass – Judith
Kolos Kovats – Bluebeard

Miklos Szinetar – director; libretto by Bela Balazs