ARIADNE ON NAXOS • SALZBURG OPERA FESTIVAL
★★★★★☆
Photo: Thomas Aurin
REVIEW: ARIADNE FROM NAXOS IN SALZBURG: BOOING ON MARS
German director Ersan Mondtag makes his debut at the Salzburg Festival with a festive, daring, and utterly unrestrained reinterpretation of Richard Strauss’s *Ariadne auf Naxos*. The production sparked a veritable storm of boos at its premiere, but it’s hard not to get swept up in such a lavish and imaginative theatrical spectacle.
*Ariadne auf Naxos* is a peculiar piece in and of itself. The work functions as an “opera within an opera,” in which two theater companies are tasked with providing entertainment at a private party hosted by Vienna’s wealthiest man.
At the last minute, the host decides that the two performances—a newly written opera seria and a simple, coarse comedy—must be woven together and performed simultaneously to save time for the evening’s fireworks. The artists protest loudly, but the wealthy man naturally gets his way.
The result is a clash between serious art and popular entertainment—an elegant meta-commentary on the relationship between high and low culture.
Photo: Thomas Aurin
In *Mondtag*, the action has moved to Mars. The wealthy man has become an Elon Musk-like tech trillionaire who gets his visions implemented with the snap of a finger. We find ourselves among spaceships, moon bases, and futuristic palaces in a universe that is constantly in motion. There’s simply something happening everywhere on stage all the time.
Photo: Thomas Aurin
As an extra layer, the director has added a dance troupe that continuously illustrates the characters’ inner psychology. They gesticulate, comment on the action, interfere in the scenes, and create both humor and disruption with mischievous antics and plenty of playful sex. A blowjob synchronized with the grand coloratura aria in the second act definitely takes the cake!
Photo: Thomas Aurin
The leading roles are exceptionally well cast. American mezzo-soprano Kate Lindsey delivers an outstanding performance as the Composer, with remarkable vocal power, comic precision, and a stage presence that makes her the natural focal point of the production. Lindsey also impressed last year in *Maria Stuarda*, and here she demonstrates once again why she is among the most charismatic artists on the opera stage today.
As Ariadne, Swedish soprano Christina Nilsson brings both dignity and brilliance to the role, while Ziyi Dai, as Zerbinetta, delivers the evening’s greatest vocal showstopper. Her dizzying coloratura elicits exactly the enthusiasm one would expect from the opera’s most famous aria.
Photo: Thomas Aurin
Photo: Thomas Aurin
Strauss’s music is rich in ideas, contrasts, and powerful emotional imagery. This evening, however, not everything in the orchestra pit went smoothly. The wind section, in particular, was having an off day, and several passages suffered from poor intonation that did not live up to the high standards of the Salzburg Festival.
Compared to the festival’s more substantial and ambitious productions, *Ariadne auf Naxos* comes across as a well-crafted trifle. But it is a trifle brimming with charm, humor, and imagination.
You might not go home deeply shaken or feeling existentially challenged. Instead, you’ll leave the theater with a smile on your face after an evening that’s determined to entertain. Does that matter? Five stars from Det Sku’ Du Se Se.
