Rare treat as French opera set in Sri Lanka opens in India
 

by Tripti Lahiri

Atrtists perform during a dress rehearsal for the opera “The Pearl Fishers”, which is set on neighbouring island Sri Lanka, by French composer Georges Bizet in New Delhi, 30 August 2005. The 19th century composer Bizet may never have imagined that his first opera, “The Pearl Fishers,” would ever be performed in the land in which it was set, but it comes closer than it ever has before. When the opera opens in India on August 31 — and if it tours in Sri Lanka as its producers hope — it will be the first time it plays in front of an audience familiar with the world the opera is supposed to depict. AFP

French composer Georges Bizet may never have imagined that his first opera, "The Pearl Fishers", would ever be performed in the land in which it was set but on Wednesday it comes closer to Sri Lanka than ever before.

The 19th century composer better known for "Carmen", which was made into a hugely popular film in 1954, set his story about the forbidden love between a pearl diver and a virgin priestess on the "arid and wild beach of an island in Ceylon", with some bamboo huts and a "Hindu pagoda" thrown in for good measure.

The exotic locale of the opera, first performed in Paris in 1863, was typical of the French interest in the East in the late 1800s and reflected in the arts of the time.

When the opera opens in New Delhi Wednesday - and if it tours in Sri Lanka as its producers hope - it will be the first time it plays in front of an audience familiar with the world "The Pearl Fishers" is supposed to depict.

And, understandably, they might be flummoxed to see the actors invoke "Brahma" and "Shiva" against a painted backdrop of the temple at Sri Lanka's central town of Kandy, in real life a shrine said to house the upper left canine of the Buddha.

"This is a work of 100 years ago, of an epoch when the Orient was a dream for the Europeans," said Patrice Berger, a French baritone who plays the role of Zurga, the leader of fishermen. "It is more imagination than history."

So, where possible, the production has been tweaked to become more true to its setting. "You have to be a little more authentic," said Francis Wacziarg, founder of the Neemrana Music Foundation, which is producing the opera. The foundation was set up in 2004 to promote Western classical music, especially opera, in India.

Funding for this opera has come from a number of sources, including the government of Delhi, the French embassy and Indian businesses.

Wacziarg, originally from France, has lived in India for 35 years and hopes one day to bring a National Opera into existence. He produced "The Fakir of Benares", another French opera with an Indian theme, in Delhi in 2002 and in Bombay in 2003.

Before that, he says, the last opera performed in India was "The Barber of Seville" in 1984. Although most of the major roles in "The Pearl Fishers" are filled by opera singers from other countries, much of the orchestra and chorus is Indian, as are the dancers.

"Instead of having a completely Western ballet, we have a ballet with elements of Indian dance," Wacziarg told AFP, explaining that the dancers use movements borrowed from South Indian dances like Kathakali and Bharat Natyam.

"The Indians are doing everything themselves," said French director Patricia Panton as she darted around during a dress rehearsal this week, telling the make-up artist to give the Korean tenor a "tanned look" and assuring a fisherwoman her skirt was not too short.

Born in South Africa, Panton is director of production at the Monte Carlo opera.

The costumes, designed by Meera and Muzaffar Ali, attempt to recreate the dress worn in Sri Lanka in the 1870s. Whether or not they are really representative of the era, the puffed sleeves, pleated skirts and embroidered waistcoats in purples, reds, pinks and yellows are certainly striking.

While there was no question of altering the French score, Italian conductor Marco Balderi has probably had one of the harder roles of the production. Some of the Indians had little experience playing in an ensemble orchestra or from sheet music.

"But I pardon them anything," said Balderi. "When they play well, I smile, when they play okay, I cry."

According to Balderi, Bizet's music has certain refrains that may have been inspired by Indian music.

"The contact between France and India has always been very active," Balderi told AFP as he directed an oboist to play a lilting melody, vaguely reminiscent of a snakecharmer's tune.

"These references are based on Indian music, not invented."

(AFP)