5 things to know

1. Based on the life of a famous goldsmith and sculptor

Standing before a cathedral, painting, statue or other awe-inspiring work of art that has endured through time, have you ever caught yourself, after some oohing and ahing, and perhaps a selfie or two, imagining the lives of the creators behind these works? In 1838 the authors Léon de Wailly and Auguste Barbier drew inspiration from the autobiography of the Florentine sculptor and goldsmith Benvenuto Cellini to write an opera libretto fictionalizing the creation of his most famous statue, Perseus with the Head of Medusa, located in the Piazza della Signoria in Florence.

This Renaissance artist had, it is true, a rather fascinating personality. While his prodigious talents, particularly as a goldsmith, earned him the favour of not only several popes, but also the Duke of Mantua, King Francis I of France and the House of Medici, Cellini was also renowned for his hot-tempered nature, which led him behind bars several times. Banished from Florence at the age of 16 for fighting and breaching the peace, he is also said to have committed no fewer than four murders during his lifetime, crimes motivated by revenge or professional rivalry.

Pope Clement VII has tasked the sculptor Benvenuto Cellini with creating a bronze statue of Perseus before the end of carnival. Seeking fame and fortune, the latter accepts the commission, even though his workshop is short on both time and metal. On top of that, Cellini is head over heels in love with Teresa, the daughter of the Pope’s treasurer, Balducci, who for his part is intent on marrying his daughter to Fieramosca, Cellini’s rival in love and art.

2. A Brussels premiere for Berlioz

‘In short, the opera was performed. The overture was inordinately acclaimed, while all the rest was booed with admirable unity of voice and energy’, wrote Berlioz in his Memoirs about Benvenuto Cellini. Indeed, the work had all the elements to unsettle the audience: an extravagant libretto, far removed from the traditional medieval themes of French grand opera; a morally ambiguous yet endearing craftsman as the lead; and a visionary structure linking the pieces together with fluid and daring sequences … Despite its qualities, the work failed to enter the repertoire and has until now never been performed at La Monnaie – an injustice to the Brussels audience which it is time to correct. As was customary in the XIXth century, there was no definitive score, but several versions written by the composer: the original, known as Paris 1, the censored version performed at the premiere, called Paris 2, and the most interesting musically, the Weimar version, enriched with changes suggested by Liszt in the 1850s. For this occasion, Alain Altinoglu will present a version of the opera that will follow the structure of Paris 2, with an added pantomime from Paris 1 and transitions drawn from the Weimar version.

3. An exhilarating score

Berlioz is one of those composers whose character is identifiable from the very first notes. As a symbol of the French Romantic avant-garde in opera, like Victor Hugo in literature and theatre, his music is highly original. Benevenuto Cellini perfectly illustrates his penchant for imposing, even immense formations, his love of orchestrations rich in timbres and colours, and his rigorous writing, free from any academicism and giving way to a very personal and exalted expression of feelings. The result? Uniquely inspired melodies, an orchestra so involved that it drives the plot alongside the voices, virtuoso passages for soloists who have to show their true mettle – the title role, for example, is a real test of endurance – and several massive choral scenes that are sure to fill La Monnaie’s Grand Hall with exhilarating waves of sound.

4. Exuberant first steps

One of the objectives of La Monnaie’s new general and artistic director, Christina Scheppelmann, in selecting Benvenuto Cellini was to introduce the Brussels audience to a key transitional work in the history of French opera. It will mark the first official production of her tenure, which will also feature Thaddeus Strassberger’s Brussels debut. To tackle such a grandiose piece, it was necessary to seek out a director who wouldn’t be intimidated by exuberance, since half measures here simply won’t do. Known for his taste for extravagance, Thaddeus Strassberger has taken Berlioz’s work and its carnivalesque world and turned it into a veritable celebration where the only motto is: Anything goes.

5. The Herculean efforts of the La Monnaie Workshops

Thaddeus Strassberger’s vision will showcase all the richness and expertise of the La Monnaie Workshops. The main structure, set up on a revolving stage, fills the entire volume of our stage and comes with a huge cyclorama, printed and illuminated, in the background. The set as a whole was digitally previsualized using 3D architectural software developed for the building industry. The main model was then rendered into different parts, each then treated separately to allow for extremely precise digital cutting. Busts, a gigantic foot, a chariot, a replica of the Colosseum: our sculpture workshop has been in full swing for several months. Most of these elements will then be given a marble-like patina in our painting workshop. Elements to be lowered from the flies will include, in turn, an SPQR sign (each letter nearly two metres wide), palm trees and clouds with luminous outlines, and golden aerial silks from which three extras will hang.

The set design for Benvenuto Cellini requires a very close collaboration between our different teams. For the carnival scene, for example, several costumes will be enhanced with special effects created by our prop masters, such as confetti explosions, prosthetics from which litres of wine gush forth, and the body of a centaur attached to a chariot. Costume designer Giuseppe Palella has created more than 60 colourful models, reproducing in detail each silhouette in the production. To this we must add pyrotechnic effects and extensive video mapping covering the entire surface of the set, designed to represent smoke, flames and clouds. To carry out this ambitious project, our sound and video team digitally simplified the volume of the imposing, broken down into several segments that can be animated individually by no fewer than five projectors.

The Workshops of La Monnaie have been working on this Herculean project for the best part of a year – proof, once again, that craftsmanship is the beating heart of our opera house!