Love, hope & utopia

"What is Fidelio about? About humanity, faith in love, brotherhood - that floats through the music. And there's also a lot of pathos. All together: so beautiful!" These are the words of Malin Byström, Leonore in the new production of Fidelio, which premieres on December 16. And something else that is immediately obvious: "In contrast to most of the operas I usually do, there is an incredibly ecstatic ending. Full of happiness and hope," adds David Butt Philip, the premiere Florestan. "My mother joked years ago that I practically never sing in operas with a happy ending. And then Fidelio came into my life, and now it's so exhilarating, so exciting to be on stage with this many-voiced jubilation."

But before this jubilation can take place, a lot of ground has to be covered. The opera tells the story of the unfortunate Florestan, who has been imprisoned for more than two years by his adversary Don Pizarro. He is rescued at literally the last second by his wife Leonore, who, disguised as a man and under the name Fidelio, hires herself out in search of him in this very prison. Subplots, such as Marzelline, the daughter of the prison guard Rocco, who runs with him, falling in love with the disguised Leonore, intensify the events, just as the suffering of the other prisoners turns the work into a universal indictment of unjust rule.

Finally, in the finale, the jubilation turns utopian: It is not just about two people, but about the visionary view of a possible comprehensive justice. For this is what Beethoven was concerned with in his Fidelio, the republican Beethoven, who could also be harsh with aristocrats and those higher up in society (unless he needed them for protection and financing). "In the finale, the opera is actually no longer an opera; in its place comes a great sung manifesto, comparable to the end of the 9th Symphony or the Credo of the Missa solemnis," writes Beethoven biographer Jan Caeyers. It is an "ideal music", as was once stated, in other words a connection between art and the ethical, the contemplation of art as an expression of that which transcends humanity. Beethoven's great humanistic will did not, of course, prevent political rulers from using or abusing the work for their own purposes.

But first things first. The story of Fidelio actually begins in 1798, when an opera called Léonore, ou L'amour conjugal was premiered in Paris. The composer was a politically questionable turncoat named Jean Nicolas Bouilly. The plot is based on an allegedly true story from the time of the French Revolution, Beethoven has the original French libretto adapted and translated and sets to work. His goal: to turn the material into a German opera for Vienna. Incidentally, he was not the only one who liked the material: his fellow composer Ferdinando Paër, for example, had previously published an Italian version of the opera. Fidelio & Co had been around for some time by the time Beethoven took it up, almost a little outdated.

When Beethoven's opera is finished, however, it still needs the censor's permission to be performed. They are not entirely happy with the work. It is scrutinized and banned, only to be approved in the end. And then there is this: the planned premiere is postponed because Beethoven's new work for singers and orchestra is too demanding. When the opera was finally premiered at the Theater an der Wien on November 20, 1805, it was not a success. Above all, there is a lack of interest from the audience. French soldiers had been occupying the city for a week, many locals (and aristocrats) had left Vienna, and those who remained had no desire to go to the theater. It is said that the empty rows were quickly filled with French soldiers, who in turn did not understand the German text. After only two subsequent performances, Fidelio disappears into oblivion, followed by a reworking, which also fails to bring lasting success.

Then finally. in 1814, extensive changes were made again and the third version was premiered - this time success was not long in coming. Beethoven, at the peak of his fame, was now also accepted as an opera composer. From then on, Fidelio was never to leave the international repertoire - around eight hundred performances of the opera were given in the Haus am Ring alone in 150 years.

More than 55 years after the premiere of the last new production of Fidelio (in between there was a series of performances of the original version), a new Fidelio will be staged at the Vienna State Opera in December. It will be conducted by Franz Welser-Möst, who is returning to the Haus am Ring as its premiere conductor. The current cast brings together singers with premiere experience: Christopher Maltman, the Pizarro, most recently sang Don Alfonso in the new Così fan tutte production, David Butt Philip was Walther von Stolzing in the 2022 Meistersinger premiere and Lohengrin in 2024, Malin Byström most recently sang in the premieres of Lohengrin and Tannhäuser. Despite all the Wagnerian oomph, the musical approach via Mozart plays a major role. Byström says: "My career began with a lot of Mozart and I feel that I am returning to him in Leonore. Of course, you need a dramatic quality, but the technical approach is very similar. In this respect, I am very happy about my Mozart past." For Butt Philip, on the other hand, the role of Florestan is - in view of his focus on Wagner - an astonishingly short part: "But incredibly intense!" The era is also unusual for him: "I mostly sing a repertoire from the mid-19th century onwards - in this respect, Florestan is the earliest of my roles. It's almost like early music!"

The production is directed by Nikolaus Habjan, who is making his house debut at the State Opera. Habjan, a theater jack-of-all-trades, covers an entire universe of the arts: "Director, puppet design, puppetry & art whistles" is how his website welcomes you, and in fact he is even more: actor, author, astute commentator, someone who can draw attention to the essentials with great evenings and important topics. Who doesn't know his Zawrel evening, the Karl Böhm project and many other of his programs? In any case, the stages are all over him: Volkstheater and Josefstadt, Burgtheater and Bayreuth, Salzburg and Berlin, Basel and Zurich, Semperoper and Theater an der Wien, he inspires audiences everywhere with his evenings and numerous highly acclaimed (music) theater productions. The author Paulus Hochgatterer, with whom he has realized numerous projects, has been a close confidant of his for years. Also at the State Opera, by the way: Hochgatterer has revised the dialog passages of the current Fidelio.