The Niquet, Shirley & Dino trio was formed on the occasion of Purcell’s King Arthur, a show that marked the lyric stage and the world of the DVD. Five years later, their complicity has been further reinforced, and they present a work close to Hervé Niquet’s heart: Boismortier’s Don Quichotte chez la Duchesse.
Distribution: François Nicolas Geslot, Marc Labonnette, Chantal Santon-Jeffery
Virgil Ancely, Charles Barbier, Marie-Pierre Wattiez, Agathe Boudet
And Gilles and Corinne Benizio
This opera-ballet, written for Carnival and first performed in Paris in 1743, occupies a particular place in Hervé Niquet’s career since it was the first work played by Le Concert Spirituel 30 years ago: ‘In addition to being composed by a genius of the Enlightenment, this comic opera is a gem of music, wit and humour,’ says he. The wit of the famous Benizio couple is felicitously expressed in this story of which they have rewritten the comedy scenes, which had disappeared: ‘From this succession of episodes, one more incongruous than the next, from this incredible accumulation of remarkably constructed gags (Niquet as Don Quichotte, Corinne Benizio/Shirley in a hilarious cantadora number, accompanied by Hervé Niquet with castanets, Gilles/Dino singing - not too badly! - a courtly air with harpsichord whilst the hysterical Duchess bellows in the wings), ensues a perfectly mad show’ (ResMusica). The whole thing with all the necessary strictness in reproducing the music...
Worth noting: the performance of the singer-actors and the splendid costumes and sets.
A total spectacle filmed at the Royal Opera of the Château de Versailles.
Bonus track: a 52-minute documentary about the process and backstage of the show.
It is an immersion with Hervé Niquet, Corinne and Gilles Benizio, and all their team, in the hard work of creating an opera of this importance. The spectator will be able to follow step by step all the stages, from the writing of the parts played between the sung scenes, to the final rehearsals, through the creation of sets, costumes, and all the choreographic and scenographic work.
Filmed in the conditions of a reportage, the camera accompanies the team before, during and after the performances.
