By the end, Elisabeth and Venus appear in tandem, dressed alike and shadowing each other in soft, dreamy movements. The miracle of Tannhäuser’s redemption translates as the acceptance of his previously rejected portrait of Elisabeth, as, in a final coup de theatre, the back wall lifts to reveal a gallery of great nude portraiture.Ĭarson’s master stroke is to soften the libretto’s misogyny by exploring the tension between the erotic and the spiritual as a source of artistic inspiration. Act Three returns to the atelier the canvases are gone, and the returning pilgrims, all dressed like Tannhäuser, carry bare stretcher frames. Tannhäuser, stained and scruffy among the trendily-attired young artists, ignores the procedings to sketch his beloved Elisabeth, but has lost his mojo in this stuffy setting. The Warburg song hall appears as an art gallery, with velvet ropes removed for the well-attended vernissage of a group show on the theme of love. ![]() ![]() Tannhäuser is a painter, Venus is his inspiration, and his studo, Venusberg, overflows with the fruits of his creativity–the stage is empty but for a bed, which sees plenty of action, an easel, and dozens of canvases leaning against the walls. The revival of Robert Carsen’s production of Tannhäuser currently playing at Opera de Paris is that rare beast: an updating which reveals new meaning without being ridiculous. My intention for this season was to move away from straight reviews, but finally I’ve seen a production that inspires a few words.
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