Marlies'ArtBeat: Mozart's "Cosi Fan Tutte" under Levine's Magic Baton

How wonderful to have maestro James Levine in the pit for the return of the enchanting 1996 Met production of Mozart’s mostly underrated Cosi Fan Tutte.

Luckily the opera was chosen as one of the Live-at-the-Met-in-Hd, so movie audiences in 66 countries could become more acquainted with this, less often performed masterwork by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791.)

Frankly I used to concur, that Cosi was a lesser work because the arias and ensemble pieces, simply don’t fall into the ear as easily as those of the great Mozart offerings like the Don, Figaro, Abduction or Magic Flute. But more frequent exposure to Cosi  persuaded me of their absolute beauty.

Mozart, who was in financial trouble in 1789, was in no position to refuse a commission for a new comic opera  from Emperor Joseph II. (You may recall him as the monarch depicted as supercilious and downright silly in the play and movie Amadeus.)

Mozart, who accepted of course, immediately went to work with the Italian librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte (1749-1838), with whom he had collaborated so successfully for the Don and Figaro. Mozart completed his musical end in merely four months.

Da Ponte has a checkered history although he remains much admired for his lovely yet insightful libretti, which he supplied also for other composers besides Mozart. He is said to have been a convert from Judaism who took Holy Orders in the Catholic Church but was expelled for adultery. He emigrated to the US, supposedly to escape voluminous gambling debts. Arriving in 1805 he soon was given the leading chair to teach Italian at Columbia, and is credited with creating an audience for Italian opera in this country. He is buried in Manhattan.

When Mozart and Da Ponte started working on the commissioned  “opera buffa,” the French Revolution had taken hold. Thus the gestation period for the opera bridged the end of the Age of Enlightenment and the brewing of Romanticism. This may account for the cynicism of the plot, that some think trivial and slight, yet others criticize as sardonic and too immoral.

The intricate plot spins the story of two young Neopolitan officers who make a bet with an elderly roué, that their fiancées will be faithful even after the officers claim to be called off to fight a war, but return in disguise, to seduce each other’s betrothed.

The roué enlists the help of the girls’ maid and much hanky-panky ensues, with the consummation taking place off stage. Everything eventually straightens out with the moral (or in this case “im-moral”) “Happy is the man who can accept the bad with the good.”

Mozart and Da Ponte certainly dealt with infidelity in their plots before, but it was always male infidelity. Here it was the female sex that was accused. Maybe it was because of this, that so many objected to the opera as being immoral…

Many operas have gone through name changes, but I believe none as often as Cosi fan tutte, because its name is difficult to start with. According to Cori Ellison’s clever Met program notes, the title, when literally translated, means “All Women Act Like That.”  Seems the originally planned name was The School for Lovers.

In Germany it has been staged under Mädchen sind Mädchen (Girls will be Girls) and So Sind Sie Alle (They are all like that). In various countries it has appeared as Tit for Tat, Who won the Bet, Flight from the Convent, even for some inexplicable reason, as The Chinese Laborer. When it appeared as Love’s Labours Lost, they discarded the entire libretto, and used the Shakespearean text with Mozart’s score.

The opera premiered in Vienna’s Court Theater in 1790. It took the Met to premiere it until 1922, but it has since staged it 180 times, with some of the most illustrious Met luminaries. One notable production was in 1951, in  English, staged by the famous actor/director Alfred Lunt and sung by Steber and Tucker.

The current production by Leslie Koenig, with Michael Yeargan’s sets and costumes, first hit the Met’s boards in 1996. It is perfectly delightful, now peopled with an exceptionally young and very able cast. 

The tenor Matthew Polenzani was first in appearance here.  The accomplished American has sung almost 300 performances in 32 roles at the Met. He was a splendid Ferrando. Next we heard the Russian baritone Rodion Pogossov, who aquitted himself equally well as the other young officer, Guglielmo. Italy’s Bass-Baritone Maurizio Muraro, as the buffo roué Don Alfonso, completed the stellar roster of the conspiring bettors.

Susanna Phillips, the American soprano (whom we just heard/saw in the last HD transmission in one of her signature roles as the lively Musetta) made an absolutely charming Fiordiligi. The part of her sister, Dorabella, fell to Isabel Leonard, the beauteous, and beauteous-sounding Mezzo-soprano, who comes from NY, NY.  Last, the part of the clever maid Despina (the buffo part I think every young Mozart soprano wants to tackle) fell to the delicious Australian Danielle de Niese.

The result was probably the best ensemble Cosi fan Tutte, I can remember. Every note was beautifully delivered, on key, with the astonishing demanding tempi maestro Levine frequently demanded for the sextette sections. The acting matched the sonorous effort, with the camera helping us to see every gesture, indeed every raised eyebrow.

My only complaint was that these rich, spoiled sisters did not live in surroundings befitting their privileged status.

During intermission, Renee Fleming hosted captivating interviews with the singers, and an enlightening discussion between Peter Gelb and Maestro Levine seemed to be of great interest to the sold out HD audience.

I still don’t consider Cosi, the highpoint of Mozart’s glorious output. But I certainly am glad it exists, and think you will enjoy the encore that will take place on Wednesday, April 30th, at 6:30 PM, at WHCity Center 15 and NewRoc16.

Here are some remarks about the opera from some of your neighbors:

Norma Roberts of Scarsdale, an incredibly well informed opera aficionada (with lots of musical training that gave her a job in musical management) called this “a remarkable production – a treat.” A veteran of many a Cosi fan Tutte, she considers it a unique masterful work. She thought the acting here was “wonderful with no detail missed” and called the women’s performances the highlight of the afternoon.”

 “James Levine has the respect that enables him to command perfect ensemble work,” she continued. “Nobody was a primadonna here. Nothing took away from Mozart’s music.”

Eileen Gliboff of Hartsdale, thought the opera was a bit long. “Had the farce come to an earlier conclusion, it might have missed the feeling that they ‘worked it’ just too long. I say this,” she told me, “even though I adored it!”

Sheri Shabot of Hartsdale, had not seen it before. She thought the music was absolutely beautiful, found the whole performance “ very entertaining – fun.” She recommended her niece catch the encore.

Ruth Stein of Scarsdale liked the music, but thought the opera was too long. "It could have been shortened by at least a half hour. I found it so repetitious that it was almost annoying."