David McVicar’s 2004 Royal Opera staging of Gounod’s Faust is now on its fifth revival, tautly reworked by Bruno Ravella, and handsomely cast with Michael Fabiano in the title role and Erwin Schrott as Méphistophélès. The first night, however, will also be remembered for the house debut of German soprano Mandy Fredrich as Marguerite, pitched into the production at the shortest of notice, when Irina Lungu, herself a replacement for the indisposed Diana Damrau, also succumbed to a throat infection.
Arriving in London two hours before curtain up, Fredrich sang the role with no rehearsal with cast, conductor Dan Ettinger or director, but gave a performance that would be considered exemplary under any circumstances. Her voice is bright and silvery, flexible enough for the coloratura of the Jewel Song, but also possessing reserves of weight and power to carry her through the greater drama and intensity of the final scenes. A fine actor, she responded rapturously to Fabiano’s ardour in their love duet, and was at her most poignant when venomously harried by Schrott in the church scene. This was a most accomplished debut.
Schrott and Fabiano work wonderfully well together. Schrott is all seductive wit, elegance and swagger at the start, but we soon realise just how malign and lethal his charm and bonhomie can be. Fabiano’s fecklessness masks calculation and arrogance, bringing his sincerity into question, even in moments of grand passion. Vocally, both men are on fine form, and Schrott’s velvety tone complements the touch of metal in Fabiano’s voice, with its big sound and easy ring at the top.
Elsewhere, things are comparably strong. Stéphane Degout makes an exceptional Valentin; Avant de Quitter Ces Lieux is a real high point. Marta Fontanals-Simmons is the touching Siébel. Ettinger conducts with considerable urgency and without a trace of sentimentality. McVicar’s staging, transposing the opera to Second Empire Paris on the eve of the Franco-Prussian war and exposing the moral and sexual hypocrisies of a society on the skids, remains a thing of wonder.
At the Royal Opera House, London, until 6 May.
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