Back-to-back 'Boheme' in Bangkok and Singapore let the fans compare notes and dream of what might be
The Singapore Lyric Opera unveiled a high-profile production earlier this month of the world's most popular opera, "La Boheme", just a month after Bangkok Opera's energetic version and starring the same diva, Nancy Yuen.
It was a unique chance to compare the two cities' flagship opera companies - and to assess how the arts are perceived there.
In fact, Bangkok fans were in attendance at several of the five sold-out shows in Singapore.
Singapore's expensive production, using a largely Asian cast, had a stunning look and feel to it.
Andrew Sinclair of Covent Garden was directed its rendition of "Boheme", giving it psychological depth, a post-modern feel and a subtly layered emotional complexity.
Puccini's music, however, seemed to take a back seat.
The Bangkok Opera's production featured a far more idiomatic reading of the music and a stronger sense of musical ensemble. Its cast was international, and both of its leads can credibly be called world-class.
This version, conceived by choreographer Darren Royston, was brightly coloured, busy and kaleidoscopic, but at times lacked an overall psychological vision.
Singapore invested heavily in publicity, lining the streets with banners. Bangkok's promotional budget seems to have been minimal, and many on opening night wondered why a show of this artistic level wasn't sold out.
Singapore's spending on the opera itself led to a handsome production, although some costume elements - like Schaunard's lumberjack shirts - seemed to have missed the director's point.
Bangkok's staging relied less on huge sets and more on dramatic lighting, but its costumes and sets seemed more of a conceptual whole.
Perhaps the lead actress' performance was most indicative of the difference. In Singapore Nancy Yuen achieved subtleties of dramatic expression, especially in her death scene, whereas in Bangkok, from a dramatic viewpoint, was more "by the book".
Yet she seemed a lot more exciting in Bangkok, perhaps because she and conductor Somtow Sucharikul seemed far more on the same page, and because the chemistry between her and tenor Israel Lozano was much more real.
In Singapore she and the conductor seemed to be performing two completely different versions of the opera in the first act, though by the third act they had come together in a tense compromise, and this was by far the most successful segment.
There were two opera companies, then, with strengths and weaknesses that seemed almost precisely to complement each other. Wouldn't it be nice if, some time in the future, they could do a production together?
Singapore's concentration on production values and promotion, with Bangkok's emphasis on core musicianship and superb singing, ought to be a winning combination.
