Boring Abduction

Quite a lot of Chicago Lyric Opera's Abduction from the Seraglio is boring. Mozart can be. There, someone said it. Yes, the music is really sublime, but not for hours on end. "Too many notes," they said in Amadeus, and everyone remembers that because it seems true to modern ears.

When there's a lot of coughing during an aria, the director has failed. True, the singer could commit a bit more. Yet if the director has done a good job, then the singer will have an easier time of it! Standing and declaring is too much onus on the singer and sleepy-making for the audience.

As has been written of this production everywhere, the entropic approach to set design baffles. What was a charming set in the first act was reduced to a revolving astro-turf platform, which then gave way to a door. I am a big fan of minimalism (such as was seen here in the AMAZING Eugene Onegin last year), but there must be strong style or meaningful symbols.

Five of six performers were mediocre on the night I went. I wonder if because they were all young, they were obliged to the conductor?

Anyhow, it is another opera NOT for the beginner. Approaching Mozart operas daunts many, rightfully so in this case. For the neophyte, The Magic Flute is the way to go.