It is an opera that was first performed in 1643 and is based on historical events from the first century. Director Gilbert Blin and the creative team have labored assiduously to summon the look, the sound, and the spirit of Monteverdi's day, from the hand gestures down to the decorative flourishes on the footwear. And yet the frame here is never mistaken for the picture itself. The deep poignancy and human emotion at the heart of Monteverdi's strangely amoral tale is allowed to speak without mediation. As Stravinsky understood, none is required.
"Poppea" is of course a well-known, frequently staged work and that makes it something of a departure for BEMF, which has prided itself on unearthing musical gems from the distant past and presenting their first modern performances. Christoph Graupner's elaborate "Antiochus und Stratonica" was to be this year's new discovery but when the recession hit, the festival was forced to switch tacks. In staging "Poppea" the romance of terra incognita is lost, but the upside is that the festival gets to apply its distinctive approach to a work with a proven track record.
Giovanni Francesco Busenello's libretto, a tale of love and power politics, centers on the explosive affair between the Roman Emperor Nero (here Nerone) and Poppea, the noble lady who deftly manipulates everyone around her and is eventually crowned as empress. Many are swept up in the couple's wake, including Poppea's discarded husband, Ottone, consumed variously by sadness, longing, and rage; the spurned empress Ottavia, who curses her plight and tries to eliminate her rival; and the stoic philosopher Seneca, who is sentenced to death after bravely warning Nerone against succumbing to petty lust. Throughout the opera, Monteverdi's score reflects the inner turmoil of his characters with remarkable sensitivity, like some kind of seismograph of the soul. It is surely the depth and precision of his empathy that makes this work feel so resonant across the centuries.
