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Castor et Pollux at Opéra de Paris (Photo: Vincent Pontet)

Rameau’s opera fits the Palais Garnier well, once over the surprise of walking into the dizzyingly ornate auditorium to see a sofa, kitchenette and shower cubicle onstage. But did anyone expect director Peter Sellars to fall back on tradition for his staging of the original 1737 version of the opera? Sellars opted for this (over the 1754 revision) as he wanted to stage the Prologue, with its call to Venus to persuade Mars to end war and enable the arts, which he does. Sellars speaks persuasively about this in a video on the Opéra’s website: ‘I would like everybody to see a small opera from 1737...take the chains off the arts and put them on to the military establishment’. To achieve this, he sets the action in a contemporary world, I assume the Parisian banlieues, where people struggle against the odds for everyday survival. ‘You have desperate people trying to reinvent love’. Sellars’ direction is meticulous, no gesture wasted. Alongside his cast of superb singing actors he employs a dance group of fourteen men and women, who work their way through the whole opera, using an ingenious blend of movement developed from hip hop, breaking, popping, locking, even voguing. Their precision and control were extraordinary and packed a great emotional punch, working in tandem with the musicians to create an exquisite amalgamation of visual and aural effect.

Castor et Pollux at Opéra de Paris (Photo: Vincent Pontet)

Teodor Currentzis conducted the Utopia Orchestra and Chorus with precision, no baton, his hands moulding each phrase and coaxing the most elegant sounds. The dynamic control of the opening chorus would have been worth the price of admission alone, not least when Laurence Kilsby then sang as l’Amour, the purest sound not belied by his Merchant Ivory hero looks. Castor and Pollux were in the experienced hands of Reinoud Van Mechelen and Marc Mauillon, the former’s tenor strong, the latter’s baritenor of a lower placement. They are both fabulous actors and Mauillon particularly bit into his character’s moral dilemmas. Stephanie d’Oustrac was on the receiving end of his indecision as Phébé, but with her vibrant mezzo she brought character and gusto to the role. Télaïre, the princess that both Castor and Pollux love, was performed by Jeanine De Bique in a most fascinating portrayal. She has a vibrant and resonant soprano when she decides to let rip, but that’s not often. De Bique has that rare ability to draw an audience in, to make them hang on the merest whisper, the softest tone. This she did particularly stunningly in her ‘Tristes apprêts’, working with one dancer to mesmerising effect.  It was a pity that she appeared furious at her curtain call. Why, I do not know, as she received a great ovation.