It is not as if I dislike La Boheme. That couldn't be further from the truth, it is actually one of my favourite operas ever. I just didn't care for this production. It is not all disappointing though. The orchestral playing is generally lush and beautifully played, Franz Welser Most's conducting is successful in bringing out the poetry of the score and the chorus while not all that exciting dramatically are well balanced in their vocal sound. The technical values of the DVD are also great, clear sound and sharp picture quality. Of the staging which I wasn't really enthused by on the whole, the most effective was the colourful entrance of Parpignol. The transition from Act 1 and Act 2 are swift and well-done. Cristina Gollardo-Domas is a very moving Mimi, and Laszlo Polgar is the epitome of nobility as Colline.
Marcello Giordani however has been in better voice before. His middle register is lovely, but some of his top is strained. He is also a stolid actor, and for a man who is meant to be a starving Bohemian I did think that Giordani was perhaps too healthy. Elena Mosuc's Musetta was also disappointing, her voice here unlike with her Queen of the Night, Gilda and Zerbinetta is rather wobbly and flexible and she is more successful at bringing out the humble side in Act 4 rather than the flirtatious and humorous side, the latter of which is a much more prominent part of her role. Rolf Haunstein blusters a little too much as Benoit.
Michael Volle is a wonderful Beckmesser, Jokanaan and Amfortas, but while he sings strongly, acts powerfully and has a sympathetic chemistry with Giordani, his chemistry with Mosuc is not witty enough and in his scene with Gollardo Domas in Act 3 he seems more concerned at another woman's backside than her, the opposite of Marcello listening to her as he should be. The costumes never seemed sure of which period they were supposed to be set in, and some were even unflattering like Gollardo Domas when she first appears. The sets don't make much of an impression either, the Garrett setting doesn't look that cold and Cafe Momus is far too bare. The staging was dull and didn't make much sense sometimes, the ending makes me cry all the time but I was left cold here.
All in all, a disappointing La Boheme. Has redeeming qualities, but falls far short considering the talent involved.
5/10 Bethany Cox
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