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  • Persée, and: Les Indes galantes
  • Rob Haskins
Jean-Baptiste Lully. Persée. DVD. Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir / Hervé Niquet. Recorded live at the Elgin Theatre, Toronto, 2804 2004. With Cyril Auvity, Marie Lenormand, Stephanie Novacek, Monica Whicher, Olivier Laquerre, Alain Coulombe, Colin Ainsworth. [Stuttgart]: EuroArts Music International, 2005. 2054178. $34.99.
Jean-Philippe Rameau. Les Indes galantes. DVD. Les Arts Florissants / William Christie. Recorded live at the Opéra National de Paris on 22, 24, and 2509 2003. With Danielle de Niese, João Fernandes, Valérie Gabail, Nicolas Cavallier, Anna Maria Panzarella, Paul Agnew, Nathan Berg, Jaël Azzaretti, François Piolino, Richard Croft, Gaële Le Roi, Malin Hartelius, Nicholas Rivenq, Christoph Strehl, Christophe Fel, Patricia Petibon. Waldron, Heathfield, East Sussex: Opus Arte, 2005. OA 0923 D. $44.99.

Although one can readily enjoy the music of opera on its own, the genre makes little sense as a whole without its visual elements: décor, costumes, and, above all, singing actors who make audiences care about the characters they portray and the emotions that their characters experience. When listeners enjoy a new compact disc of, say, Verdi's Rigoletto, they can draw on their memories of countless stagings in the theater or on video to supplement their experience. The situation is not as fortunate for baroque opera: with the exception of a few singular works (for instance, Handel's Giulio Cesareor Monteverdi's Orfeoand L'incoronazione di Poppea), there are far too few productions—especially on video—to help guide audiences who savor the many fine recordings currently available. The problem is compounded since the dramaturgy of baroque opera as it was originally conceived continues to elude many. Stage directors too often present these works either in a manner more suitable to the faster-paced comic operas of Mozart, or in modish overhauls that quickly wear out their welcome. (Remember Peter Sellars's recasting of Cesareas Nixon in Egypt?) There remain, then, a number of opportunities to explore this repertory. Two recent releases of French operas go some way in demonstrating both the possibilities and continuing challenges.

The production of Lully's Perséeoriginated with an Opera Atelier production in 2000 and the video records one of the theatrical performances of a 2004 revival; it runs just over two hours and certainly includes some cuts, most notably and most unfortunately the prologue. Although the work is less familiar than Armide, there are many fine materials available to help audiences develop an acquaintance with it. Lois Rosow edited a special volume on the opera for the Journal of Seventeenth-Century Musicat http://sscm-jscm.press.uiuc.edu/ jscm/v10no1.html. This issue includes a synopsis, a complete text and translation, discussions of the Opera Atelier performance, and four articles that examine specific scenes from a variety of perspectives. One can quickly view a facsimile of the original score by visiting the Web site maintained by the University of North Texas at http://www.library.unt.edu/music/lully/Persee1722/Persee.pdf. [End Page 166]

The plot of the opera revolves around a quartet of unrequited lovers. Persée, the son of Jupiter, loves Andromède, the daughter of Céphée and Cassiope (king and queen of Ethiopia). Andromède returns his love but is determined to honor her betrothal to the king's brother, Phinée. Meanwhile, the queen's sister, Mérope, loves Persée. As the opera opens, Céphée bemoans the presence of the gorgon Méduse, sent by Juno to ravage the Ethiopians because his queen has dared to compare herself to the goddess. Cassiope attempts to appease Juno by holding athletic games in her honor, while Céphée appeals to Jupiter with Persée's help. The games are unsuccessful, so Persée sets out to destroy Méduse in promise of marriage to Andromède. He receives assistance from Mercure, who brings him a magical shield, sword, and helmet. (Mercure also lulls Méduse to sleep, thus assuring Persée's success.) Juno remains unmoved; a sailor announces her decree to sacrifice Andromède to a sea monster. Persée...

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