The Metropolitan Opera’s season opener this past weekend has caused a stir, and not just because of the music. The Met opened its 2013-2014 season with a solid performance of Tchaikovsky ‘s Eugene Onegin under the baton of Valery Gergiev. Russian soprano Anna Netrebko sang the role of Tatiana, while baritone Mariusz Kwiecien sang the title role. As per the tradition, fans packed the opera house as well as the outdoor screens at Lincoln Center and Times Square, where the public could watch a live stream of the performance. However, some say the Met gala was a missed opportunity. In light of recent events in Russia, where President Vladimir Putin signed anti-gay legislation, some felt the Met should have dedicated the gala to the LGBTQ community.
A Gala That Couldn’t Be More Russian
You could argue that the gala was the perfect platform for a response to the Russian policy, as signs of Russia were everywhere in the opener. Conductor Valery Gergiev and soprano Anna Netrebko hail from Russia. In fact, Gergiev and Netrebko have been supporters of Putin in the past. Moreover, the opera was written by Tchaikovsky, a Russian composer who was actually gay. Many thought that between Tchaikovsky, Gergiev and Netrebko, the Met had a unique opportunity to show its support of Russian homosexuals. Considering just how Russian the Gala was, dedicating the performance to LGBTQs would have served as a stand against the recent Russian policy.
Is Music Bigger Than Politics?
General Manager Peter Gelb has stated that the Met is adamantly against using its performances as political platforms, no matter how just the cause. In its 129 years, the Met has never dedicated a performance to any social of political cause. Mr. Gelb says that of course the Met supports its LGBTQ musicians and fans — it just doesn’t feel it’s appropriate for performances to be fronts for activism. In the beginning of the program, Mr. Gelb issued a statement saying that while the conditions in Russia are certainly deplorable, there are many reasons why the Met cannot and should not dedicate the gala to outside causes.
At the same time, you can’t deny that music is fraught with social and political issues. Dmitri Shostakovich, another Russian composer, is famous for having used his music to comment on the totalitarian society in which he lived. Mr. Gelb is not denying that art has can be used to influence the politics — rather he feels it is up to the musicians to make a statement through their interpretation of the music. At what political point does music become okay and not okay to use? Writing about someone’s sexuality and writing about Marcellus shale are different issues but both political. Where’s the cut off?
A Production that Raised the Standards
The 1997 production of Eugene Onegin was widely considered to be too abstract and ostentatious. The set did not have walls, which not only looked strange but also made it difficult for the singers to project. For the gala, however, the staff did everything it could to make the opening scene look like one from a 19th-century country estate. It feels like you’ve stepped into a real rural workplace, and although some found this realism to be a little tiring after a while, you have to admit the Met was doing its best to raise the standards in opera. The performance went on more or less without a hitch, despite a few booing protesters near the beginning.