Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.For half a century, Giorgio Strehler created some of the best-remembered opera productions of the 20th century at La Scala. Dreamy sets, clarity of gesture and meticulously calibrated lighting were trademarks of the director’s poetic, profound style. Strehler died in 1997. Now, near the start of a season packed with new productions, the Milan theatre has revived his 1980 staging of Falstaff, Verdi’s last opera and a crowning achievement of the comic genre.Inspired by Shakespeare, the libretto recounts the portly knight’s efforts to seduce two married women, Alice Ford and Meg Page, in order to access their husbands’ wealth. La Scala last presented Strehler’s vision in 2004 and has since replaced it with two new productions — by Robert Carsen and Damiano Michieletto — that would both merit more years of service. In returning to the earlier staging, it has now had to recreate Ezio Frigerio’s original scenes by consulting photographs and sketches. That the theatre has also invested in a first-rate cast indicates how seriously it takes tending the flame of Strehler’s heritage.The staging displaces the action from Windsor to the flatlands of the lower Po Valley, the territory where Verdi was born and to which he had returned by the time he wrote Falstaff for its 1893 La Scala premiere. In director Marina Bianchi’s hands, it remains an effective vehicle for choreographed pandemonium. Ford’s home, here a country house, is a whirlwind of activity, Falstaff’s pursuers frantically bursting onstage as the whimpering knight is bundled into a laundry basket by merry wives.The opera’s intimate moments resonate most powerfully. In the secrecy of the Garter Inn, a shaded stable where sunlight streams through gaps in the brickwork to illuminate large wine barrels, Falstaff gives vent to his desires. Ford’s daughter, Nannetta, and her suitor, Fenton, profess their love while canoodling on a hay cart set against a golden dusk — an enchanting visual accompaniment to the balmy wistfulness of Verdi’s score.Since the towering baritone Ambrogio Maestri debuted as Falstaff at La Scala 24 years ago, he has become many opera houses’ go-to singer for the role. On this occasion, the 55-year-old sounded past his prime, his leathery voice sometimes hard to hear over busy orchestral textures. Even so, much in Maestri’s performance — his weary gait, nonchalant delivery of patter and sense of gleeful mischief — demonstrated that he still possesses the role like few others.With his large, burnished voice and astute comic timing, Luca Micheletti’s blustering Ford was a fine counterpoint to Maestri’s quick-witted Falstaff. Rosa Feola sang radiantly as Alice but sometimes lacked vim. There was winning chemistry between Juan Francisco Gatell’s seductive Fenton and Rosalia Cid’s coy Nannetta. Marianna Pizzolato’s formidable Mistress Quickly raised hearty chuckles from the audience.Conductor Daniele Gatti drew subtle, elastic playing that was rich with detail, though greater abandon might have allowed the effervescent brilliance that underpins the comedy in Verdi’s score to shine through. Still, the orchestra hung off the conductor’s every gesture, a clear vote of confidence for the man whom many back to replace Riccardo Chailly as La Scala’s music director from next year.★★★★☆To February 7, teatroallascala.org
