'Faust' review — this dramatic and beautifully sung opera revival is sinfully seductive

Read our review of Gounod's Faust, starring Stefan Pop, Carolina López Moren and Adam Palka, now in performances at the Royal Opera House to 10 June.

Gounod’s opera Faust had its premiere in Paris in 1859 and could be said to be the epitome of French Grand Opera. This is the sixth outing of David McVicar’s extravagant 2004 staging for the Royal Opera, last seen in 2019. Its soaring melodies, elaborate sets and spectacular Victorian melodrama make it a spectacular and highly entertaining revival.

In a centuries-old tale, Faust makes a pact with the devil in exchange for youth, wealth and the beautiful Marguerite, only to find himself trapped and eventually damned. Set in Paris, with the Franco-Prussian War on the horizon, the story explores the vagaries of the human condition, while exposing the moral and sexual hypocrisies of a society in flux.

Romanian tenor Stefan Pop gives the title role of Faust an arrogant fecklessness, but with some moments of sensitivity beneath. Initially, his excellent acting is accompanied by a voice a little too robust for such old age, but then bursts into youthful vigour, delivering a sensitive “Salut, demeure chaste et pure”.

Bolivian-Albanian soprano Carolina López Moren makes an assured Royal Opera debut. She is hypnotic as Marguerite, with beautiful coloratura, control and sparkle, particularly in a rapturous “Jewel Song”. Her acting is impressive too, especially during the intense final scenes.

As Méphistophélès, Adam Palka conveys elegant wit and seductive swagger, along with the very real nastiness bubbling just under the surface of the character's charm. He uses his rich bass with magnetism and his rendition of “Le veau d'or” is both playful and mocking.

Baritone Boris Pinkhasovich displays a rich tonal quality in the smaller role of Valentin, with a beautiful “Avant de quitter ces lieux” that is one of the standout vocal performances in a captivating production.

Maurizio Benini conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House with poise and grace, bringing out the romance and tragedy of the score, although the pacing of Act III is a little uneven. In turn, the excellent chorus embraces the heightened drama.

The production still looks fantastic. Charles Edwards’s set is lavish and full of intricate detail including a colourful Cabaret L'Enfer, a replica Palais Garnier, a run-down tenement block, a foreboding forest, and an eerie graveyard. Paule Constable’s lighting is considered and atmospheric, particularly in the nighttime scenes.

Brigitte Reiffenstuel’s costumes are sumptuous, full of colour and texture. Méphistophélès appears kitted out in a dazzling red-sequinned number, with sparkling gold brocade and a grand shoulder cape, and the cabaret dancers sport gorgeous glittery knickerbockers and ra-ra skirts.

McVicar’s production (directed in this revival by Peter Relton) is full of sweeping and highly camp Gothic theatricality with demonic dancing, acrobatics and a hulking stone crucifix which weeps wine. Michael Keegan-Dolan’s choreography remains razor-sharp, with manically erotic can-can dancing at the Cabaret L'Enfer and the ghoulish ballet where a pregnant ballerina has her child ripped from her and placed in a coffin.

This revival of Faust is a dramatic and beautifully sung production. Wickedly good and sinfully seductive.

Faust is at the Royal Opera House to 10 June. Book Faust tickets on LondonTheatre.co.uk.

Photo credit: Faust (Photos by Marc Brenner)