Bellini - Norma (Paolo Arrivabeni, Dimitra Theodossiou, Daniela Barcellona) [2007]

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Bellini - Norma (Paolo Arrivabeni, Dimitra Theodossiou, Daniela Barcellona) [2007]

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This Norma is a total disaster on every front. All the singers sound terrible and the staging is an impressive fiasco. Theodossiou and Ventre were in much better voice in the previous Norma Dynamic DVD, but the staging there was even worse. I can't believe that both Theodossiou's and Ventre's voices deteriorated so bad in just 2 years - I think the problem with this production is the huge flat outdoor space with dead acoustic. I think that explains why everyone, including the chorus sounds bad and strained. I heard Simon Orfila in Barcelona 2 years before this production and he did not sound so thin. I also heard Barcellona live 2 years earlier and she did not sound so bad. The chorus does not have an impact because they are spread in one line a mile left and right. I don't understand how anyone can perform in such a space without electronic amplification. The staging looks impressive on photos but it is no more than a series of static symmetrical postures inspired by Delacroix's or David's paintings with no dramatic force. For once I agree with the "Gramophone" magazine's reviewer John Steane who trashed this DVD from every angle ("Unfortunately, on almost every count, this Norma is a definite no-no."). By Noam Eitan

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Bellini - Norma (Paolo Arrivabeni, Dimitra Theodossiou, Daniela Barcellona) [2007]

Close