There’s really only one topic I can choose to blog about this week, and it’s one that has been reverberating through the classical music world and implicating critic and performer alike. Glyndebourne mezzo soprano Tara Erraught was criticised in a series of reviews of Der Rosenkavalier, in which she made her debut this weekend. Not for her singing, however, but for her appearance. Criticisms included the attestation by Andrew Clark of the Financial Times that she is “a chubby bundle of puppy-fat”, while Richard Morrison of the Times called her "unbelievable, unsightly and unappealing".
Many singers have responded; noting that all these critics were male, Jennifer Johnston suggested that “clearly overt sexism is rife” while mezzo soprano Alice Coote wrote an open letter to opera critics, in which she said that "we cannot people our operatic stages with singers that above all are believable visually or sexually attractive to our critics. That way lies the death of opera. It is not about lights, it is not about costumes, it's not about sets, it's not even about sex or stature. It is ALL about the human voice. Critics, I beg you: Be kind to young singers - you may change the trajectory of their lives and career if you wound them with your words."
It goes without saying that, as a member of the fairer sex just a year younger than Miss Erraught, I find any suggestion of casual sexism appalling. I recognize the value of the movement against it, entitled “Everyday Sexism”, and I feel saddened that such occasions are still present in the modern day. However, I cannot go so far as to agree with Alice Coote wholeheartedly.
"Have we arrived at a point where opera is no longer about singing but about the physiques and looks of the singers, specifically the female singers?" Jennifer Johnston wrote in an opinion column for the Guardian. This would be a tragedy; the notion of image and ‘the way things appear’ permeate every aspect of the media increasingly, and all art forms are affected. Some for the better; the cinema transmission of opera and the flexibility of technology are opening up the world of classical music to new audiences, but some, as here, for the worse. However, does Alice Coote go too far, when she suggests that opera is “ALL about the human voice”? Given the substantial budget of Glyndebourne and comparable companies, and the wonderful effects the sets, lights and costumes have on the audience, I would suggest that the effectiveness of opera as a medium goes beyond merely the sound of the voice. Even concert performance, a field with which we at Southern Sinfonia are even more familiar, is subject to this; our rehearsals sound lovely, but there’s a reason we wear white tie and long black dresses for most of our bookings, and that some of our most stunning performances take place in the most beautiful cathedrals in the world.
I visit Glyndebourne every year (they do a wonderful under 30’s £30 ticket offer) and year before last I was bowled over by a production of Ravel’s L’Enfant et les Sortileges. An opera I knew well thanks to a university production, I was transported into a magical world where everything was scaled up to emphasise the small, overwhelmed nature of the little boy (another mezzo in a ‘male’ role). It goes without saying that the singing was wonderful, but the enormous chair and the oversized squirrels undoubtedly contributed tremendously to the overall spectacle. Without the production, I could have listened to the music in the comfort of my own home.
There is a huge disparity between ‘believability’ and ‘sexual attractiveness’, and it could be said that Coote is unfair to suggest that critics are starting to look before they hear. Believability is relevant to any performer, and most from the acting profession would agree that it is crucial to the success of a production. However, for me it is an expressive face, a sense that the performer has immersed themselves into the role, and an emotional connection – in opera, these come from a wonderful voice, yes, but also a commitment to acting the role, both visually and orally. Most would agree that, today, it is not enough to stand on a stage and sing the notes, and I applaud this development, particularly as opera is arguably the most multidimensional art form, involving singing, acting, dancing, poetry and staging.
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| Credit: Christian Kaufmann |
Retuning to this week, however, perhaps by being more specific Rupert Christiansen’s comment in the Telegraph is slightly more helpful. "There is no doubt of the talent of this young Irish mezzo, but she is dumpy of stature and... her costuming makes her resemble something between Heidi and Just William." It already asks a certain amount of a modern audience, used to the best CGI and computer-aided transformations, to remember that a woman with long hair and a skirt is actually meant to be a man in period dress. A woman diminutive in height (and I speak from experience, although I would prefer not to be termed ‘dumpy’) probably doesn’t make a very convincing man. Surely, then, a more suitable critique would be of the production, and the costuming, as Rupert Christiansen has (almost) done, rather than the singer? It appears to me that Tara Erraught has merely arrived in Sussex and delivered an “outstanding” performance. Above all, this is what must be applauded – as it undoubtedly was, and will be for the rest of the season.
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