Why The Royal Opera love performing Faust

Gounod s most popular opera returns in David McVicar s stunning Parisian production. Revival director Bruno Ravella, cast Michael Fabiano, Erwin Schrott, Irina Lungu, and conductor Dan Ettinger describe their experience of rehearsing and performing in this spectacular production of decadence and elegance in 1870s Paris. Find out more https://www.roh.org.uk/productions/faust-by-david-mcvicar Gounod s Faust (1859) was one of the world s most popular operas from the 1860s to World War II, and remains a core repertory work. The story, adapted by Gounod s librettists Jules Barbier and Michel Carré from Carré s play Faust et Marguerite, is based on Part I of Goethe s epic poem Faust, which was a major inspiration for many composers during the 19th century and beyond. Gounod added a ballet to Act V when Faust received its first Paris Opéra staging in 1869. David McVicar s wonderfully theatrical production draws insightful parallels between Faust and Gounod, a composer torn between piety and worldly and romantic success. Sets and costumes by Charles Edwards and Brigitte Reiffenstuel pay tribute to the art and architecture of 1870s Paris, and include a colourful Cabaret d Enfer, a run-down tenement block and re-creations of a box from the Paris Opéra and the organ loft of Notre-Dame. The variety of settings mirrors the variety in Gounod s score, highlights of which include Méphistophélès s demonic aria Le veau d or , Marguerite s dazzling coloratura Jewel Song, the Act IV Soldiers Chorus and Act V s impassioned trio as Marguerite struggles to achieve salvation.