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Prokofiev - War and Peace / Gergiev, Othotnikov, Kirov Opera | 
 enlarge | Actors: Yuri Marusin, Olga Borodina, Nicolai Othotnikov, Alexander Gergalov, Yelena Prochina
Studio: Kultur
Category: DVD
List Price: CDN$ 29.99
Buy New: CDN$ 23.05
You Save: CDN$ 6.94 (23%)
New (17) Used (1) from CDN$ 23.05
Rating:  10 reviews
Sales Rank: 16976
Format: Classical, Ntsc
Languages: Russian (Original Language), English (Subtitled)
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6
MPN: 2903
ISBN: 0769729037
UPC: 032031290396
EAN: 9780769729039
ASIN: B00009PY2V
Theatrical Release Date: 1991
Release Date: June 10, 2003
Availability: Usually ships within 1 - 2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: BRAND NEW - Shipped within 24 hrs via Airmail from the USA - Average 5 to 10 workdays delivery time. Excellent customer service. NEUF - Envoy? par avion des USA sous 24 hrs - Livraison en moyenne de 5 a 10 jours ouvres. Service clientele en francais.
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From Amazon.com
The ostensible subject of Prokofiev's surrealistic comedy The Love for Three Oranges is a fairy tale similar to Mozart's The Magic Flute: a prince on a quest for a beautiful princess with whom he has fallen in love from a distance; villains of horrifying (though comic) nastiness; magic charms and enchantments (for example, the princess is turned into a rat); and a titanic struggle between the forces of good and evil. But in its subtext, it is an opera about opera, beginning with a near-riot. The chorus is divided into two groups--opera patrons in tuxedos demanding a serious drama and stage hands in working clothes who insist on a comedy. In one dimension, this work is a discussion of operatic styles and conventions, and this is the level on which the Opera de Lyon production triumphs most decisively. Its style is self-consciously brilliant, as it should be. The performers' acting style is as important as their voices, and they have refined every verbal nuance, every gesture, to perfection, including a lot of pure slapstick. This opera, in this production, will appeal particularly to two types of audience: sophisticates who will relish its subtexts, parodies, insider jokes, and chic staging, and children who will be attracted by the story of a prince (son of the King of Clubs) who angers a witch and suffers a terrible curse: he will fall hopelessly in love with three oranges. --Joe McLellan
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| Customer Reviews: Read 5 more reviews...
As good as we're likely to get February 12, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
It's probable that no performance of so vast a work as this could meet all expectations in all aspects, but this is as good a try as we're likely to get. I bought it after finding I just couldn't live with the Paris dvd version, and find it far preferable for the following reasons.
The production: it seems obvious to me that Zambello in the Paris version has tried to forklift the sets from the Bondarchuk movie into her opera conception, and it just does not work. Too much confusion, too many failed attempts at realism. In the Kirov production Graham Vick takes a minimalist approach and ironically his economical gestures manage to convey far more of the work's epic scale. More importantly, Vick seems to have worked from Tolstoy's book and conveys the author's intentions far more accurately than Zambello, whose attempts to pass on Bondarchuk's interpretation frequently fall well short. The result, with Zambello, is a series of loosely-connected tableau whereas Vick gives us a cohesive story. He plainly understands what Tolstoy was trying to say.
For me, many of the Zambello crowd scenes, so important in this work, fall flat as if the singers/actors were over-rehearsed or just did not understand their roles within the structure of the plot. Perhaps because Vick is working with a Russian cast who have this work in their blood, participants in crowd scenes move around with a purpose and provide momentum to the story. Perhaps the most extreme example is in the ballroom scene. Zambello's dancers are lead-footed, the whole scene somewhat turgid, and you're left wondering what it was supposed to tell you. Yes, Vick has the advantage of using Kirov dancers but whatever, the whole scene is vibrant, purposeful and an integral part of the story.
Pierre in the Zambello production, Robert Brubaker, is laughable. He's a million miles from what Tolstoy (or Bondarchuk for that matter) gave us, both in appearance and mannerisms. It's a spectacular misfiring. Gregoriam isn't quite up to the specified physical stature (Heppner would be ideal) but at least he understands the role and sings as well as acts magnificently. As they would say in boxing circles, he punches two classes above his weight.
Borodina gives us an accurate and beautifully-sung cameo as Helene Bezhukova, far closer to what Tolstoy had in mind than the Paris Helene. I also prefer the Kirov Kuragin and Napoleon.
On the other side of the coin Paris has a far better Andrei Bolkonsky (Nathan Gunn) and Zambello gives him a beautifully moving death scene. Other winners in the Paris production are Natasha and Kutuzov. I find the Kirov Kutuzov (Othotnikov) rather lacklustre and its Natasha far too mature.
Over many years of listening to Prokofiev interpreted by conductors world-wide, I think I've detected a typically-Russian and non-Russian approach to the composer. Non-Russians tend to smooth out the jaggedness so that he sounds Hollywoodized. Not totally invalid, since Prokofiev was one of the first film composers of any stature and a source of inspiration for generations of movie composers since. The Russian approach is completely opposite, with braying brass sections, dynamics and dissonance underlined. I much prefer the Russian approach and find Gergiev's Kirov conducting distinguishes inner voices in the big choral scenes far more effectively than does Bertini in Paris, where the choruses tend to sound like shouting matches. However it may be a matter of personal taste.
It should be noted that the Kirov performance is complete whereas Paris makes cuts. You may or may not consider the 80 minutes of extras in the Paris version some kind of compensation, depending on how much of Francesca Zambello you can take.
Incidentally, as I write this Amazon.ca appears to have confused this page with the Love of Three Oranges page. Hopefully that will be corrected.
complete but... November 11, 2004
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
less brilliant than the French version, Gergev is not always a great deal.Martin
subtitles missing March 23, 2004
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
There is no way to turn the subtitles on and I have bought 2 DVDs at this point and neither of them have working subtitles. Outside of that is a suberb performance. No company is better than Opera Lyon's at this type of production.
 Thanks , Kultur August 5, 2003
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Many thanks to Kultur for finally making this magnificent opera available years after the VHS release was cut from the Philips Classics catalog. The Kirov production is fine ensemble work and is performed with sprit and conviction. DVD sound and picture quality are very good (this is a two-disk set, although the description does not indicate that). My only minor compaint is that I find the sets a bit too minimalistic for such a sweeping work, but that's just niggling. This is a must-see for anyone who loves Russian opera, particularly since few of us will ever get a chance to see this one live. I hope Kultur will next bring out the wonderful Kirov production of Rimsky-Korsakov's "Sadko," which was part of the original Philips Kirov series and is also out-of-print.
Outstanding and great fun January 21, 2002
This Opera National de Lyon production is simply delightful. The singing is excellent and the audio quality of the DVD is as good. The video is of an equal quality.The staging is unusual but comes off brilliantly. The use of the minimalist sets works very well and I wouldn't have expected it to do so. It is slightly surreal but this is a slightly (?) surreal opera. The sets work with the opera and never detract from the opera or become intrusive. The singers seem to be enjoying themselves and inviting you to enjoy it with them. In fact, joy might be a good one-word description of the entire opera. There is some slapstick in it but never at the cost of the opera. Instead, it seems to enhance it. The scene with the cook and her "deadly" ladle is delightful but only slightly better than the other scenes. This is my first experience with an Opera National de Lyon production and I throughly enjoyed it. I got the opera several months ago and find I watch it about once a month.
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