Monumental opera earns standing ovations in Innsbruck

Pietro Antonio Cesti’s monumental opera Il pomo d’oro received standing ovations at its premiere at the Tyrolean State Theatre in Innsbruck, ORF reported. The production, directed by Fabio Ceresa and conducted by Ottavio Dantone, was staged on Friday and Saturday evenings at the theatre’s main auditorium.

The Innsbruck Festival of Early Music production presented the epic tale of a golden apple as an expansive and surprisingly contemporary story that moved between history and the present.

The opera, which runs for a total of seven hours, had been effectively absent from the stage since its premiere at the Viennese imperial court in 1668. The production’s elaborate sets, frequent scene changes, large cast and numerous roles never became an end in themselves, ORF said.

Ceresa’s direction, combined with set design by Nikolaus Webern, used the scale of the work to create an unexpectedly fast-paced and entertaining performance. The lavish visuals and constant changes served the rhythm of the production rather than turning it into a mere display of theatrical resources.

The story begins when the goddess Discordia throws a golden apple inscribed “To the fairest” into a gathering of goddesses, intending to sow discord. The opening was presented with deliberately extravagant humour and placed closer to the age of drag queens and casting shows than to the imperial world of the 17th century. It established a world in which unity and peace were impossible because beauty, rivalry and vanity dominated everything.

The dispute over the apple drives the main plot. Jupiter appoints the supposedly pure Trojan prince Paride to decide which goddess deserves it. But Giunone, Pallade and Venere prove too calculating. Venere ultimately tempts Paride with the promise of Helen of Sparta in exchange for awarding her the apple.

The quarrel has far-reaching consequences, eventually leading to the Trojan War after Pallade’s wounded honour is defended through war. At the end, the personification of Europe appears and receives the apple by unanimous agreement, bringing the promise of peace, community and a golden age.

The opera’s original role as a commissioned work was also apparent. Cesti sought, among other things, to glorify the paymaster, Emperor Leopold I, and his unifying rule. In Innsbruck, the production did not mock the work’s high pathos but counterbalanced it through costumes, dance and contemporary references.

These included an explicit allusion to US President Donald Trump’s intervention during the football World Cup, as well as LGBTQ references that brought the opera into the present without reducing it to a single contemporary trend.

Dantone’s orchestra, the Accademia Bizantina, was another highlight. Its refined sound and subtle yet compelling playing provided the foundation for a vocal ensemble whose performances ranged from good to outstanding.