Heldentenor. It’s an operatic term that literally means “heroic tenor,” and it refers to those massive-voiced tenors who specialize in the challenging operas of Richard Wagner, which demand singers with large voices and tireless stamina. Musically speaking, Roberto Alagna is in no way, shape, or form a heldentenor. But when it comes to operatic heroism, he fully deserves the designation after what he managed achieve on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera over the last several weeks.
One of the most exciting new productions of the current season was to be a brand new staging of Giacomo Puccini’s Manon Lescaut, featuring soprano Kristine Opolais and tenor Jonas Kaufmann- an extraordinarily charismatic pair who had scored tremendous success in several previous operas. This production promised to be one of their most exciting collaborations yet.
And then came the dispiriting news that Kaufmann was withdrawing from the production due to an undisclosed illness – the second consecutive season that Kaufmann has had to withdraw from his Met contract and leave scores of disappointed fans wondering about all of the glorious performances that should have been.
It is never good to lose a huge star from a high-profile production – but when the cancellation comes two and a half weeks before opening night, it’s close to a catastrophe. The Met found itself in just such a predicament, and general manager Peter Gelb was left with the frustrating dilemma of what to do about this unexpected void at the top of his cast. Part of the problem is that the role of di Grieux is every bit as important as that of the title character – and in some ways even more so – and whoever was the understudy, they weren’t likely to be able to supply the kind of excitement one would want for such an occasion. But the engagement calendars of top-rank tenors tend to be packed, and the likelihood of the Met finding a notable artist on such short notice was slim to none.
But Mr. Gelb was not about to settle for just any run-of-the-mill singer for such a grand occasion- and he decided to approach one of the biggest names on the Met’s tenor roster, Roberto Alagna, who was already on hand singing the demanding role of Canio in Leoncavallo’s I Pagliacci. (That’s the famous opera about clowns. Think “No more Rice Krispies!”) Gelb’s question: would Mr. Alagna be willing to relinquish the remainder of his performances as Canio in order to assume the role of di Grieux. Such an opportunity would normally be a reason for joy- except that he had never performed the role before ….. and opening night was 16 days away!
But when one is talking about the Metropolitan Opera, one says Yes if one possibly can.
And that’s exactly what he did.
But what a courageous, even heroic thing to do. Most singers – if they’re wise – try out brand new roles in small opera houses where the stakes aren’t quite so high. Alagna not only took on this role on what is arguably the greatest opera stage in the world- but also took on a performance in the Met’s HD simulcast season that would be beamed to over a thousand movie theaters around the world. One cannot imagine a situation more fraught with pressure. First of all, he had to learn this role in essentially two weeks- which meant working morning, noon and night – day after day. It had to be exhausting and terrifying. And once opening night came, if he had cracked or in any other way stumbled it would have been the most public of failures. Instead, it was a triumph. Not that it looked or sounded easy. Alagna is in his fifties and his voice is not quite as fresh as it once was. And there were more than a few moments when one could sense some tentativeness on his part. But when it came to delivering the role’s passion, Alagna was beyond reproach. And as the opera ended with Manon dying in di Grieux’s arms, as he wept, I was weeping too ….. not just for the moving story and the stunning performance – but also in exhausted relief and gratitude that Alagna – by all reports one of opera’s sweetest singers offstage – managed to score such a tremendous success.
His has not been a life and career without unhappiness and turbulence. The world first fell in love with him when he sang a superb and moving Romeo at Covent Garden shortly after losing his young wife to cancer. That heartbreak gave way to new joy when he married one of the world’s leading sopranos, Angela Gheorghiu – a marriage that began in happiness but ultimately ended in bitter divorce. As for his singing career, he has scored many tremendous successes but also suffered through rough patches- including a now-infamous disaster at La Scala when he was booed during a performance of Aida that prompted him to stomp off of the stage- and other instances when he was not unable to live up to his fullest potential. On the other hand, his career is a clear reminder that opera at the highest level represents one of the toughest gauntlets that an artist can face – which makes the triumphs all the sweeter.
And a triumph it was. And by the way, it’s not the first time Alagna has come riding to the rescue in an HD Simulcast. Nine years ago, a major tenor named Roland Villazon was forced by throat difficulties to withdraw from a production of Gounod’s Romeo and Juliet. Alagna was the artist they tapped to step in – opposite the stunning Juliet of Anna Netrebko – and the performance he delivered was absolutely stunning. Since then, he has sung performances in Aida and La Rondine that were satisfactory and not much more – as well as a Carmen performance that was exemplary. But I can say that the performance that Alagna delivered in Manon Lescaut was one of the most deeply moving I think I have ever experienced- and his stunning stage partner, Kristine Opolais, surely had something to do with that. And during the curtain calls, Alagna was careful to give credit to the prompter- Joan Dornemann – without whose assistance he never would have succeeded as he did in a role he learned in two weeks time. When Alagna came out for his solo bow, he walked right to the prompter’s box to shake JD’s hand, a gesture that says a lot about how gracious and appreciative he is.
May many more such sweet triumphs be in Alagna’s future.