Lully Atys (DVD) Emmanuelle de Negri, Bernard Richter, Stéphanie d’Oustrac, Nicolas Rivenq; Les Arts Florissants/William Christie; dir. Jean-Marie Villégier (Paris, 2011) Naxos DVD: 2.110694-95; Blu-ray: NBD 0132 V 196 mins
Known as ‘the King’s opera’ because Louis XIV not only chose its subject but also sang whole passages of it, Lully’s tragédie en musique, Atys, which premiered in 1676, ran on and off for a century before sinking into oblivion until the Baroque revival two centuries later. That we now have this superbly filmed account is thanks to a meeting between the period-performance theatre director Jean-Marie Villégier and William Christie (with his Les Arts Florissants company), plus added expertise contributed by the dance historian Francine Lancelot. Toured internationally in the ’80s, this definitive production by the Opéra Comique was filmed ten years ago, but the DVD has been worth the wait.
The story from Ovid concerns prince Attis, whose punishments for having resisted the goddess Cybele’s love begin with being induced to murder his lover Sangaride, and end with him being turned into a pine tree. Bernard Richter’s subtly characterised Atys starts out as a fop, complacently pleased with himself for having hidden his secret passion; Emmanuelle de Negri’s pulsating Sangaride is bursting with frustration at having to keep their affair clandestine. Stéphanie d’Oustrac’s magnificently imperious Cybèle triggers the action in which a sedate world turns into a cauldron of rage, pain and violence. Under Villégier’s elegantly restrained direction, these excellent singer-actors tread a fine line between sincerity and send-up; the extended dances – delicately pointed toes, battements and little jumps – are like engravings come to life; the close-up camera work is powerfully expressive and Les Arts Florissants excel themselves. The sumptuous realm of le roi soleil is here brilliantly evoked.
Michael Church