La Traviata at the Opéra de Nantes: Resilient Beauty

Angers Nantes Opéra starts 2025 with energy despite difficult circumstances, presenting Verdi’s La Traviata, directed by Silvia Paoli. This ambitious co-production with Rennes, Tours, Montpellier, and Nice will reach audiences across the country with approximately thirty performances.

Amidst political tensions and the alarming decline of cultural funding, live art shines through, uniting and moving audiences with large-scale, impactful projects.

The Powerful and the Powerless

The production sets its tone from the start: a lone dancer in a nightgown faces a group of men in black suits and top hats. Her fragility starkly contrasts with the oppressive dominance of the men, who trample her without pity. This opening act introduces Silvia Paoli’s central theme: the societal rejection of Violetta, framed by Lisetta Buccellato’s set design as a theater stage where the world watches her demise.

Act 1 unfolds in this theater, portraying Violetta as a fin-de-siècle stage star, reminiscent of Sarah Bernhardt. Violetta clutches a doll in her likeness as she sings Sempre libera, inviting reflection on whether she is truly free or merely a puppet for the men around her. The audience’s applause for this aria becomes a memorable moment of the evening.

In Act 2, Violetta and Alfredo enjoy a fragile happiness in their bourgeois retreat, symbolized by a picturesque home. Alfredo’s pursuits—hunting, cigars, and whiskey—highlight lingering masculine dominance. The arrival of Germont, a calculating and oppressive patriarch, disrupts this balance. His cruelty culminates in handing Violetta a nightgown, a scathing symbol of her diminished role. As the walls of their home are stripped away, so are Violetta’s dreams. In a final act of despair, she tears down the last piece herself, shattering her fragile world before succumbing to Germont’s demands.

The final scenes return to the theater, where Flora hosts a gender-bending masquerade. Violetta, progressively dehumanized, is stripped of her dignity as she descends into isolation. The chorus, under Xavier Ribes, delivers precise and vibrant performances in the gypsy and matador scenes, bringing energy to this poignant act.

A Poignant Finale

In a striking directorial choice, Silvia Paoli leaves Violetta alone on stage in her final moments. She imagines Alfredo’s voice but dies unnoticed by the society that crushed her. This haunting conclusion reframes Violetta not as a victim of illness but as a casualty of societal judgment.

Outstanding Performances

Under Laurent Campellone’s dynamic direction, the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire delivers a richly nuanced performance, from tender moments to dramatic peaks. Maria Novella Malfatti’s Violetta is passionate and powerful, with vibrant lower and middle registers, though some high notes feel delicate. Giulio Pelligra’s Alfredo struggles with projection but conveys touching sincerity. Dionysios Sourbis excels as the cold and calculating Germont.

Supporting roles shine, with Aurore Ugolin’s Flora bringing vibrant energy, and strong performances from Gagik Vardanyan as Baron Douphol and Jean-Vincent Blot as Doctor Grenvil. The six dancers, choreographed by Emanuele Rosa, add depth to the gender dynamics explored in the production.

A Testament to Resilience

This Traviata at Théâtre Graslin is an act of resistance, showcasing the enduring strength of art amidst adversity. It reminds audiences of the transformative power of live performance in spaces rich with history and emotion.