There are those who railed at New Zealand Opera's conservative offerings this year. However, in defence of this current, magnificent La Traviata, one must point out that Auckland last experienced this work nine years ago and that, in the final count, Verdi's opera is a verifiable masterpiece.
Director Kate Cherry, designer Christina Smith and lighting man Matt Scott have created a spectacular staging. Each lift of the curtain introduces a new theatrical coup, yet the essential humanity of the characters locked into this world is never overwhelmed.
During Verdi's poignant orchestral prelude, Cherry hints at tragedies to come - a wraith-like Violetta, awaking in a deserted ballroom, circles around her radiant former self, groomed and gowned for the opening party.
In the second act, Cherry goes for stark immediacy. Violetta, Alfredo and his father Germont play their intense emotional games against a huge cyclorama of flowers that shift inexorably from a warm pinkish red to much cooler hues. The masked ball that follows is stunning. Set and costumes are an ingenious weave of black, russet and gold.
Alfredo's bitter and very public attack on Violetta shocks and the haunting image of the singer, vulnerable in a harsh, white spotlight, was still with me the next morning.
