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San Diego Opera revives the Covid version of La Boheme
The show starts with Mimi already dead
Act II of La Boheme at San Diego Opera
Back in the dark days of the pandemic, San Diego Opera conceived of a way to present Giacomo Puccini’s La Boheme in a manner that would be consistent with Covid-19 social distancing rules. The performance was outdoors, and none of the characters interacted directly with each other. This was accomplished by setting the opera 15 years in the future and staging it as the memories of the romantic lead, Rodolfo, as he wrote his memoirs.
The concept led to some nonsensical moments, but the entire situation was nonsensical so, ironically, it made sense. Fast forward to November 2, 2024, and, for some reason, San Diego Opera decided to reprise their quarantine Boheme.
Video:
Garrett Harris and John Polhamus on La Boheme
Trajectory of opera careers
The beating human heart of La Boheme was ripped out with this conceptual production. The female romantic lead, Mimi, was a ghost the entire time. In the real La Boheme, Mimi is a fragile young woman who is full of life and hopes for springtime. In the third act, we find out that she has a serious illness, and in the fourth act she tragically succumbs to her poverty-induced poor health. It’s a moving story — unless the show starts with her already dead. Her character arc doesn’t exist at that point, and we don’t really care much when she dies because she’s already dead at the beginning.
In addition to the destruction of Puccini’s characters, at least 30 minutes of music was cut from the show. I hate to bring this up, but it’s only fair. This production is exactly what Ian Campbell was trying to avoid back in 2014 when he tried to wind the company down “with dignity.”
The second act suffered the most. It is set in a boisterous Christmas Market in the heart of Paris’s Latin Quarter. A chorus of wild children courses through the crowded street chasing an ancient toy maker. Adults hustle here and there celebrating on Christmas Eve. Amid this joyously chaotic setting, Mimi meets Rodolfo’s friends.
Unfortunately, in this production, there was no children’s chorus. There was no chorus at all on stage. The adult chorus sang a few bars from the left side of the house. They were actually in the auditorium, in the dark. At the end of the act, the chorus moved to house right and sang in the dark again. This time, they sang about a military parade that was nowhere to be seen on stage.
Is it too much to ask that the actions being carried out on stage match the words that are being sung?
Video:
La Boheme: Act II finale
Here's something you might be interested in.
San Diego Opera revives the Covid version of La Boheme
The show starts with Mimi already dead
San Diego Opera revives the Covid version of La Boheme
The show starts with Mimi already dead
Act II of La Boheme at San Diego Opera
Back in the dark days of the pandemic, San Diego Opera conceived of a way to present Giacomo Puccini’s La Boheme in a manner that would be consistent with Covid-19 social distancing rules. The performance was outdoors, and none of the characters interacted directly with each other. This was accomplished by setting the opera 15 years in the future and staging it as the memories of the romantic lead, Rodolfo, as he wrote his memoirs.
The concept led to some nonsensical moments, but the entire situation was nonsensical so, ironically, it made sense. Fast forward to November 2, 2024, and, for some reason, San Diego Opera decided to reprise their quarantine Boheme.
Video:
Garrett Harris and John Polhamus on La Boheme
Trajectory of opera careers
The beating human heart of La Boheme was ripped out with this conceptual production. The female romantic lead, Mimi, was a ghost the entire time. In the real La Boheme, Mimi is a fragile young woman who is full of life and hopes for springtime. In the third act, we find out that she has a serious illness, and in the fourth act she tragically succumbs to her poverty-induced poor health. It’s a moving story — unless the show starts with her already dead. Her character arc doesn’t exist at that point, and we don’t really care much when she dies because she’s already dead at the beginning.
In addition to the destruction of Puccini’s characters, at least 30 minutes of music was cut from the show. I hate to bring this up, but it’s only fair. This production is exactly what Ian Campbell was trying to avoid back in 2014 when he tried to wind the company down “with dignity.”
The second act suffered the most. It is set in a boisterous Christmas Market in the heart of Paris’s Latin Quarter. A chorus of wild children courses through the crowded street chasing an ancient toy maker. Adults hustle here and there celebrating on Christmas Eve. Amid this joyously chaotic setting, Mimi meets Rodolfo’s friends.
Unfortunately, in this production, there was no children’s chorus. There was no chorus at all on stage. The adult chorus sang a few bars from the left side of the house. They were actually in the auditorium, in the dark. At the end of the act, the chorus moved to house right and sang in the dark again. This time, they sang about a military parade that was nowhere to be seen on stage.
Is it too much to ask that the actions being carried out on stage match the words that are being sung?
Video:
La Boheme: Act II finale