La bohème 2023 Programme

A LONG AND WINDING
ROAD
FERGUS SHEIL
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Four years ago this month Irish National Opera produced Rossini’s La
Cenerentola here at the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre with Tara Erraught
in the title role. It was a truly captivating production directed by Orpha
Phelan and designed by Nicky Shaw. It opened to rave reviews, and later
became the first opera production to be nominated in the wider best
production category in The Irish Times Irish Theatre Awards. Within a
few days of the opening, I asked Orpha and Nicky to work their magic
on Puccini’s La bohème, for a production to open in March 2021.
It has been a long and winding road since then, and I’m excited that
we can finally bring this production to the stage. During the dark
days of lockdowns, we managed to give a live streamed concert
performance from the the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre stage. We also
made a CD recording for Signum Classics, which you can purchase
in the foyer tonight, or listen to and download online.
We even explored the possibility of making a film of the opera. But
the circumstances were too unpredictable and risky. Instead, we
resolved to bring the production to the opera stage as soon as we
possibly could. So, here we are! And we are excited about having
added a new co-production partner, Opéra Orchestre National
Montpellier, who will present this production in 2024; and we also
hope to see it go on to other companies in Europe.
The Russian writer Anton Chekhov is said to have repeatedly
advised young playwrights not to put a gun on stage unless you
are prepared to use it. The same can be said of coughs in opera.
A single cough in an opera production can be enough to lead
to a fatal outcome. We have not one, but two doomed sopranos
in our 2023–24 season, both from extraordinary Italian operas
(La bohème and Verdi’s La traviata) which are set in Paris. The
two leading ladies suffer from tuberculosis, and each is in a
complicated relationship with a tenor.
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