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Opera is an art form still cherished for its magnificence. Gigantic stage sets, flamboyant costumes, and of course choruses comprised of anything between 40 to 100 singers often make it a spectacle of grandeur. And a vastly expensive one at that.

In the past, Hong Kong has understandably played it rather safe, performing well-known operas such as Verdi’s Rigoletto at the Hong Kong Arts Festival this year, or Gounod’s Romeo and Juliet at La French May in 2007. This year, however, the recurring collaboration between the French Consulate and Opera Hong Kong (OHK) has allowed Jules Massenet’s lesser known, though no lesser revered, 1892 opera Werther its premiere in the city. Compared to the heavyweights of the opera canon, this four-act tragedy is cut from a different cloth.

“It’s an incredibly intimate opera, often with only two people singing together on stage, and a chorus of seven children. It’s not grand in the same way as Mozart or Bizet. It’s almost more of a chamber opera, which fits the story beautifully,” says Warren Mok, the founder of OHK who performs the title role.

Based on Goethe’s 1774 novel The Sorrows of Young Werther, the opera charts the demise of the titular romantic, whose passion for his love Charlotte is frustrated by her marriage to another man. Werther’s outpourings of poetry eventually move Charlotte to an expression of love, but by then, this being a tragedy, Werther has succumbed to selfdestructive melancholy.

“It is an opera with a high degree of intensity and drama. Our production is deliberately non-decorative, as we want to focus on dramatic line at its simplest and strongest,” says French director Jean-Louis Pichon, whose L’Esplanade Opera Theatre de Saint-Etienne (Massenet’s home town), collaborates with OHK on the project. The production incorporates fake snow and projections, simple touches to maximise the power of the drama.

Pichon is something of a Massenet expert having directed the majority of his operas, (including the better-known Thaïs in 1996), at the annual Massenet festival, of which he has been artistic director since 1988.

“Werther is Massenet’s masterpiece”, he says, “and I am delighted to be recreating the production with such a world-class team”.

American Denyce Graves, a renowned mezzo-soprano, reprises her performance as Charlotte, singing alongside Mok. The chorus is made up of local singers from the HKO Chorus, and the Macua Orchestra collaborate with the company for the first time.

But, continues Mok, “one of the things that makes Werther so special is the story. There can be nothing more heart-wrenching than to watch someone die for love as told through Massenet’s very French melodies.” In short, it’s a world-class weepie.

As is characteristic of Massenet, “the melodies are rich and continuous, leaving no room for applause following an aria. Those big, long lines, the roaming melodies are simply wonderful. And one cannot help but be seduced by the opera’s French-ness. Anyone who enjoys French music, food, language or perfume will love the experience,” enthuses Mok.

So, a great love story set to Massenet’s melodies, with rich flavours of nineteenth century melancholy and a stellar international cast. Don’t forget your tissues.

Sam Yates

Grand Theatre, Cultural Centre, Thur 8–Sat 10. See listings for ticketing info.