Berlioz himself wrote the libretto for Les Troyens, basing it on Virgil’s Aeneid, a work he loved and could recite from memory. He completed the libretto in 1858. In his Memoires, he states that it was Princess zu Sayn-Wittgenstein (of Liszt fame) who encouraged him in the strongest words to create the work:

‘Listen,’ she said, ‘if you shrink from the difficulties this work can and must bring you, if you are so feeble as to be afraid to face everything for Dido and Cassandra, then never come back here – I refuse to see you again.’

Les Troyens. Michèle Losier (Ascagne), Brandon Jovanovich (Énée), Stéphanie d'Oustrac (Cassandre), Véronique Gens (Hécube), Stéphanie Degout (Chorèbe) (photograph by Vincent Pontet/OnP)

The problem for Berlioz was getting the new work performed. In 1858 he wrote a letter to Emperor Napoleon III, petitioning him for support, but he was persuaded not to send it. He even tried to persuade the emperor to read the libretto at a reception, eliciting what Berlioz described as Napoleon’s ‘25 degrees below zero look’. Later, much to Berlioz’s chagrin, the emperor did not even attend a performance.

Les Troyens à Carthage, the second part, comprising acts three to five, was first performed at the Théâtre Lyrique in 1863 (not at the Opéra, the composer’s preference). Subsquently during that opening season of twenty-one performances, it was trimmed due to the complexity of the scene changes; ten cuts were made. Overall, it was well received and reviewed. The royalties enabled Berlioz to abandon his music journalism and to devote himself to composition full time.

The first complete version of Les Troyens was performed at Karlsruhe in 1890. Shortened versions appeared in Paris from 1921. Covent Garden performed it in 1957 and again in the centennial year 1969, while the Metropolitan Opera has performed it since 1973. (There is a phenomenal performance on DVD, with Plácido Domingo, Jessye Norman, and Tatiana Troyanos.) Closer to home, the Australian Opera and Sydney Dance Company performed Part I in Sydney in 1994. Earlier, Richard Divall, in Melbourne, conducted a memorable concert performance (sung in English) of the complete work over two nights in 1984, with some of Australia’s greatest singers of that era, including Margreta Elkins, Robert Allman, Alberto Remedios, Lauris Elms, and Heather Begg.

Les Troyens. Cyrille Dubois (Iopas), Christian Van Horn (Narbal), Ekaterina Semenchuk (Didon), Aude Extrémo (Anna) (photograph by Vincent Pontet/OnP)

Les Troyens, a grand opera in five acts, deals with the siege and sacking of Troy in Part I, and Dido and Aeneas at Carthage in Part II. In addition to the considerable vocal demands, there are ballets, processions, and pantomimes. Despite the grandeur on stage and in the score, much of the vocal music is restrained. It is worth remembering that while Berlioz’s literary heroes were Shakespeare and Virgil, his musical ones were Beethoven and Gluck. On finishing Les Troyens Berlioz commented: ‘I believe that if Gluck were to return to the earth and hear the work, he would say: “This is my son”.’

Part I belongs to Cassandre; Part II to Didon and Énée. The Opéra assembled a fine cast. Stéphanie d’Oustrac, singing her first Cassandre, was in splendid form. Unfortunately, Elīna Garanča withdrew as Didon (citing health reasons) a few weeks before opening night; the Russian mezzo Ekaterina Semenchuk replaced her. Brandon Jovanovich sang the immensely demanding role of Énée. Bryan Hymel, who made his role début at the Met in 2012 (replacing Marcello Giordani, who abandoned the role after one performance), was to have sung the final three performances, but he was another late casualty. (Hymmel’s spectacular performance in New York is captured on Live in HD.)

The impressive set for Part I, La Prise de Troie, was in two sections of the vast Bastille stage: on the left-hand side, bleak concrete modernist city buildings; on the right, like a gilded cage, a panelled room in Priam’s palace, with Louis Quinze armchairs. Projected texts introduced the work, then Priam’s family entered for a photo shoot, in silence.

Les Troyens (photograph by Vincent Pontet/OnP)

Incomprehensibly, the upbeat prelude had to compete with a character laughing onstage. There were some effective devices, such as Cassandre singing Les Grecs ont disparu into a reporter’s microphone. Less successful were the repeated images of Priam molesting Cassandre as a child. These did nothing to explain her role as prophetess. During Act Two the set revolved to reveal, most dramatically, the immense depth of the Bastille stage. The ghost of Hector crossed the stage in flames, which was followed by Cassandre’s self-immolation – authentic coups de théâtre.

Stéphanie d'Oustrach was in wonderful voice, with great control and beauty throughout the register. Her dramatic duet with her fiancé, Chorèbe (Christian Helmer), when she urges him to save his life by leaving Troy, was thrilling. D'Oustrach’s acting and performance made her a most convincing and affecting Cassandre.

The Russian director and set designer Dmitri Tcherniakov relates the opera as family drama rather than as a mythic narrative. Sadly, he does not understand music nor its dramatic power. Instead of letting the singers tell the story, he must always embellish. In Part I it was mildly irritating having bilingual news flashes projected onto the set throughout. In Part II, Anna (Didon’s, sister, Aude Extrémo) and Narbal (her minister, Christian Van Horn) had to sing their wonderful Act Four duet while playing table tennis; the Tyrian poet Iopas’ (Cyrille Dubois) exquisite aria (‘O blonde Cérès’), was accompanied by an onstage harp – and a yoga class. Fortunately, Tcherniakov had run out these silly ideas by the time we got to ‘La nuit d’ivresse’. Didon and Enée were left alone on the stage for this most ravishing of all love duets. They sang it superbly – in the canteen. Jovanovich (such a fine Siegmund in the San Fracisco Ring in 2011) was in wonderful voice as Enée, powerful and capable of great tenderness and beauty. As an actor, he was completely believable as the swashbuckling hero of Troy following his destiny to Italy.

Carthage was set in a war rehabilitation centre, complete with amputees. The mise en scène for Part II was not successful. During a break between acts, a shouting match erupted in the audience. Philippe Jordan, in an elegant gesture, subdued it by raising a baton covered in cloth. Didon’s costume, a lemon-coloured long shirt and trousers occasionally teamed with a gold cardboard crown, was a challenging outfit for any singer playing a queen. (Did Didon’s hospital wardrobe have something to do with Ms Garanča’s indisposition?)

Ekaterina Semenchuk was vocally marvellous in the role, combining a rich middle voice, splendid high notes, and superb pianissimi. Again the director could not trust Didon and her sister to hold the stage when singing the pivotal Act Three duet as to whether the widowed Didon should love again. People walked aimlessly around the set throughout. The Royal Hunt was set as a therapy group. But why go on?

After the dramatic immolation in Part I, Didon’s suicide by overdose (admittedly a nicer way to end one’s life, but dull on the stage) was an anti-climax, not aided by an unnecessary black out between the two brief final scenes.

The orchestra and chorus of the l’Opera National de Paris were magnificent throughout. Philippe Jordan was a most supportive conductor for the voices, giving great clarity to the score, and never overwhelming the singers. Despite its length, this performance of Les Troyens never dragged. It is a credit to Jordan and his musicians that Berlioz’s masterpiece triumphed.

Meanwhile, at the Palais Garnier, there is a welcome new production of Domenico Scarlatti’s 1707 oratorio Il Primo Omicidio, ovvero Caino (The First Murder, or Cain) under the reassuring musical direction of René Jacobs – an attractive, thoughtful production by Romeo Castellucci.

Les Troyens, presented by Opéra National de Paris, continues at the Opéra Bastille until 12 February 2019. Performance attended: January 28.

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