{"id":358693,"date":"2018-04-09T14:47:47","date_gmt":"2018-04-09T18:47:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/myscena.org\/evelyne-ridyard\/hockey-noir-opera\/"},"modified":"2018-04-09T14:47:47","modified_gmt":"2018-04-09T18:47:47","slug":"hockey-noir-opera","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/fr\/evelyne-ridyard\/hockey-noir-opera\/","title":{"rendered":"HOCKEY NOIR: THE OPERA"},"content":{"rendered":"

As part of its 30th<\/sup> anniversary, the Ensemble contemporain de Montr\u00e9al will delve into its second staged opera production. Hockey noir<\/em> is a chamber opera built on film noir<\/em>, where dark atmospheres, conspiracies, investigations and seduction prevail. The action takes place in 1950s Montreal, in the heart of hockey playoffs that see the Montreal Quabs facing the Toronto Pine Needles.<\/p>\n

ECM+ artistic director V\u00e9ronique Lacroix has asked Cecil Castellucci to write the libretto and Andr\u00e9 Ristic to compose the music. This creative duo produced the comic book opera Les aventures de Madame Merveille<\/em> in 2010.<\/p>\n

\u201cMadame Merveille<\/em> was memorable,\u201d Lacroix said. \u201cIts performance led to many other large-screen productions.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom this first innovative and illustrated opera, the crucial visual aspect has turned into a unique expertise. It was only logical to celebrate 30\u00a0years with Cecil and Andr\u00e9, two individuals who have left their mark on our company.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hockey and Investigation<\/h6>\n

A string quartet, keyboardist, percussionist, and four solo singers will perform on a skating rink-like stage. Musicians wear hockey shirts and the conductor, dressed as a referee, will be part of the action. Illustrations by Kimberlyn Porter are projected on a large screen in form of the letter H at the back of the stage.<\/p>\n

As the concert trailer makes clear, projection designer Serge Maheu occasionally animates images to make them livelier.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis gives the images more immediacy,\u201d Lacroix explained. \u201cThe old-fashioned, mechanical, and hand-crafted aspect underscores the period and magnifies the characters\u2019 features.\u201d<\/p>\n

Characters are caricatures in nature. Baritone Pierre-\u00c9tienne Bergeron plays Romanov, a mafioso who menaces the hockey scene. Mezzo-soprano Marie-Annick B\u00e9liveau plays the colourful Madame Lasalle, a double-game femme fatale<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Soprano Pascale Beaudin has an unusual role, Bigowsky, a star player who gets in trouble because of gambling. She must fake her own death and take on her female disguise at the end. Lastly, tenor Michiel Schrey is Lafeuille, a veteran wishing to win the Cup in what will be his last series.<\/p>\n

Voice-over character Detective Loiseau oversees an investigation. He unravels the action and progressively tells a story to the audience. All characters, in their own way, are searching for power and love.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy the time the story ends, it is easy to see that every performer has tried to solve their own mysteries,\u201d Lacroix said with a smile.<\/p>\n

Dark Style<\/h6>\n

Librettist Castellucci is a film noir<\/em> and detective novel enthusiast. \u201cShadow and light are used to increase dramatic effect,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s really interesting. In this story, I have made use of key elements, namely, a mystery, detective, femme fatale<\/em>, and robber.\u201d<\/p>\n

The concept behind Hockey noir<\/em> came to life when the composer recounted an anecdote to Castellucci. This was the story of former Toronto Maple Leafs player William \u201cBashin\u2019 Bill\u201d Barilko.<\/p>\n

During the 1950\u20131951 season, his overtime goal in Game 5 of the finals won the Stanley Cup for the Leafs. Barilko went missing during the summer; his body was found only a decade later. He died in an air crash as he embarked on a hunting trip.<\/p>\n

Originally a cartoonist and novelist, Castellucci is not a traditional librettist. \u201cI write stories as if they were scenarios, and I do the same with my comic strips. I am always prepared to delete texts \u2013 words, in this case \u2013 to improve the overall picture.\u201d<\/p>\n

This bilingual libretto is a testament to its American roots. Castellucci was born in the United States, and lives there today, even though she lived in Montreal for many years.<\/p>\n

\u201cMontreal is a cosmopolitan and bilingual city, making it crucial to have a bilingual libretto.\u201d she said. \u201cThe text is mostly in French, but I have scattered English here and there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Contemporary Opera<\/h6>\n

Andr\u00e9 Ristic has collaborated with ECM+ since 1996. \u201cHe has been truly inspired,\u201d said Lacroix. \u201cHis rhythm-filled and dancelike vocal music reflects his parents\u2019 Slavic origins.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe did not deprive himself of harmonic knowledge of the piano to create music that is modern, melodic, and harmonic through various tensions. When we hear the characters sing, it is easy to tell what their psychological profile is.\u201d<\/p>\n

The composer has loved classical and romantic operas since his childhood. From a musical perspective, this work deliberately nods at Mozart operas and the tradition of male roles played by a woman.<\/p>\n

This will not be a challenging \u201cmodern\u201d opera. \u201cWe are working with restraints of the human voice,\u201d Ristic said. \u201cI believe that experimental contemporary music restricts modern opera and leaves audiences puzzled. It was important for me to create an accessible work, not an artistic manifesto.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hockey and a string quartet were the two starting points. \u201cI wanted to create a skating rink atmosphere, so I used the keyboard to simulate a sound bank and a period electronic organ,\u201d Ristic explained. \u201cThe percussion depicts Montreal\u2019s urban side, and the string players serve as a reminder of films during this period, like those by Hitchcock.\u201d<\/p>\n

This opera will be performed in two rival cities. Montreal will be the first stop, followed by Toronto. The tour ends in Belgium, the composer\u2019s adoptive country.<\/p>\n

He will take advantage of this travel agenda to be overtly political. \u201cWe are broaching a subject and language dear to the heart of Quebecers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Expect a 75-minute, bustling investigation without intermission, punctuated with dramatic, light and comic scenes. \u201cIt is possible to find a thread of poetry in the story\u2019s unexpected conclusion,\u201d Lacroix confided.<\/p>\n

Hockey noir<\/em>, May 3 and 4, 7:30\u00a0p.m., Monument-National.
\nwww.ecm.qc.ca<\/p>\n

See the trailer.<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Translated by Dwain Richardson<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As part of its 30th anniversary, the Ensemble contemporain de Montr\u00e9al will delve into its second staged opera production. Hockey noir is a chamber opera built on film noir, where dark atmospheres, conspiracies, investigations and seduction prevail. The action takes place in 1950s Montreal, in the heart of hockey playoffs that see the Montreal Quabs<\/p>\n

Continuer<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":3583,"featured_media":358691,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"rating_form_position":"","rating_results_position":"","mr_structured_data_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17265,394,17251,399],"tags":[2805,30117,35329,35327],"class_list":{"0":"post-358693","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-contemporaine","8":"category-musique-classique","9":"category-musique-vocale","10":"category-opera-fr","11":"tag-ecm","12":"tag-ensemble-contemporain-de-montreal-fr-2","13":"tag-hockey-noir-fr","14":"tag-veronique-lacroix-fr","15":"type-article-fr","16":"type-evenements-prochains","17":"volume-volume-23","18":"issue-vol-23-issue-6-fr","19":"section-articles-de-fond","20":"section-voix"},"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Promo-TheFans-CMYK.jpg","blog_images":{"medium":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Promo-TheFans-CMYK.jpg","large":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Promo-TheFans-CMYK.jpg"},"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"ams_acf":[{"key":"volume","label":"Volume","value":[]},{"key":"number","label":"Number","value":[]},{"key":"group_select","label":"Group","value":"null"},{"key":"performer_1","label":"Performer 1","value":""},{"key":"performer_2","label":"Performer 2","value":""},{"key":"other_info","label":"Other info","value":""},{"key":"ink_amazon","label":"Ink Amazon","value":""},{"key":"archambault","label":"archambault link","value":""},{"key":"price","label":"Price","value":""},{"key":"source_url","label":"Source URL","value":""},{"key":"author_name","label":"Author","value":""},{"key":"editchoice","label":"Editor\u2019s Choice","value":[]},{"key":"is_cover_story","label":"Is Cover Story","value":[]}],"multi-rating":{"mr_rating_results":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/358693"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3583"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=358693"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/358693\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/358691"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=358693"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=358693"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myscena.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=358693"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}