Le domino noir

Auber's Le Domino Noir was a lovely discovery, the story is very silly and occasionally a tad confused but is a lot of fun, the characters have a lot of charm and the music from Auber is absolutely beautiful, witty and full of rhythmic vitality, making one wonder why he's not better known. This performance is very good on the whole, though not one of Théâtre Impérial de Compiègne's (interesting for their revivals of forgotten operas) best performances.

Some DVDs of Théâtre Impérial de Compiègne's productions are a little lacking technically, and while Le Domino Noir is not the worst some of the picture quality lacked sharpness and colour, those unfamiliar with the opera will find the story hard to follow without subtitles and some of the sound is not very well balanced, the chorus in the latter half of the production are sometimes hard to hear due to the orchestra being recorded too loudly. With the performance itself, there is little wrong, the only problems for me being Alain Gabriel's dry-sounding vocal production and the sloppy, underpowered male chorus ensemble in the latter half. It is however a visually attractive production, with handsome costumes, lighting that is not too drab or bright and simple but well-designed sets that set the period appropriately. The stage direction throughout is very funny and charming, and takes great care in making the story bounce along and not too complicated, the farcical moments actually do amuse and don't come over as tiresome. The large amounts of dialogue are performed with wit and real engagement with the material, accents are exaggerated but work seeing as this is opera-comique we're talking about.

Le Domino Noir (1995) is excellent musically. The orchestra have such a lovely sound and play with great buoyant style (especially in the Overture), and the chorus do a mostly good job with only some uneven balance in the male chorus letting them down, the nuns are sincere and sound great. Michel Swierczewski conducts in a way that the music has depth and intensity but also a real charm and energy, without ever getting heavy-handed. He is an accommodating conductor, but sense of drama and energy is never sacrificed. The performances are strong, with some really pleasant singing and appropriate comic acting. Sophie Fournier and Lucile Vignon sing beautifully and flexibly with very little shrillness, and their stage presence is charming and emotive. Alain Gabriel is a dashing male lead, and Pierre Catala and Gilles Dubernet are amusing. Anne Pareuil portrays Soeur Ursule's jealousy very well.

To conclude, a very good performance with a couple of shortcomings. 7.5/10 Bethany Cox