Setting a play, or in this case an opera, within a play is an expedient and popular device. Frequently used by Shakespeare, it satisfies the audience’s appetite for a glimpse into the perceived magical world backstage and provides the author a double sided canvas on which to present his work. Earliest examples of the form go back to ancient Egypt and India but is still frequently used today. Richard Strauss’s 1912 Ariadne auf Naxos is one of the few examples in opera and portraying both side of the proscenium arch is its raison d’être.
Split into two halves Ariadne auf Naxos cleverly combines opera bouffe with opera seria in an almost seamless manner and Nederlands Reisoper’s new production succeeds on both counts.
The story is pure farce. A rich Viennese gentleman is planning a lavish soirée and has invited two different opera companies to provide the entertainment – one comedy, the other the serious Ariadne auf Naxos. The dinner is running late so there is not time for both and it is decided that the two should be combined. Despite misgivings and some heated discussion the ill-matched and unlikely performance goes ahead.
The second part is the performance itself which combines the drama of Ariadne’s story with burlesque interventions from the cheeky comedienne Zerbinetta and her entourage of four very camp men.
Sofia Jupipher’s production manages to juggle to two opposing forces brilliantly. Erland Birkeland’s décor has a prerequisite of any good farce – a set, representing the backstage area – containing half a dozen doors which are used to the max. The small set for the opera itself is beautiful – an island of rock with a classic scene as backdrop sits in the middle of the stage while the other singers and stage management hover in the dimly lit wings waiting for their cues. The whole thing worked very well and the peripheral action was never distracting.
All the singing and acting was good but possibly the outstanding performance was by Juliana Zara as the coquettish Zerbinetta played à la Josephine Baker. Her four henchmen in their sequined bolero jackets were straight out of the Folies Bergère, all that was missing were a few high kicks.
But the high-spot of the show was undoubtedly the final duet between Ariadne and Bacchus beautifully sung by Annemarie Kremer and Daniel Frank. This is a duet that can proudly stand beside that of any in the operatic canon and to me, is almost Wagnerian.
I really enjoyed Nederlandse Reisopera’s Ariadne auf Naxos which achieved, for me, theatre’s Holy Grail of seamlessly combining comedy with drama. Michael Hasted at Amare in The Hague, 11th November 2025
The tour continues until 2nd March
