In a unique collaboration, an opera was performed with five Indian dances of Yakshagana, Purulia Chhau, Odissi, Manipuri and Kathak. Italian barihunk Mattia Olivieri floored the audience as Ram, reports Shrabasti Mallik
Ram and laxman performed their roles in Italian opera while Sita graced the stage with her delicate and graceful Odissi movements. Raavan and Surpanakha were depicted by the Yakshaganas of Karnataka whereas the frisky and agile Hanuman and his sena were performed by the Chhau of Purulia, West Bengal. Accompanied by a live orchestra and Indian musicians from the south, this was how theatre aficionados witnessed the fusion of different art forms through Ramleela in Opera.
The performance enacted major parts of the epic like marriage of Ram and Sita, their subsequent banishment from the kingdom, Sita’s abduction, Raavan injuring Jatayu, Hanuman meeting Ram and the way he destroyed lanka, the battle scene where Raavan was killed, the return of Ram to Ayodhya and his coronation. Every act and every situation was accompanied by dramatic music. The transformation of Raavan from a sadhu to his original form was accompanied by drumbeats which sounded like thunder while the coronation scene of Ram was enacted in a beautiful musical blend of Indian beats and the piano.
The opera music was composed by maestro Antonio Cocomazi while the Indian musical score was given by Pandit Rajan Mishra and Swaraansh Mishra. “While we presented pure Italian lyric opera, the biggest challenge was to work in parts with Indian musicians,” Antonio said and added that he owed the success of the show to his musicians and thanked Fabrio da Ros who was instrumental in conducting the 28-member orchestra.
Ramleela in Opera was conceptualised by noted Odissi danseuse Bijoylaxmi Hota. For Italian opera artiste Mattia Olivieri (who played Ram) collaborating with Indian artistes was something that baffled him. Mattia (who sang in baritone) had to study a lot for his role of Ram. “I had prepared for the role for the last few months because I did not want anything to go wrong while I portrayed Ram. The reason is because I had come to know that in India Ram is an image of a perfect human — an epitome of patience and calmness who shows how pure love can be. For that, I had to read a lot of texts and had also consulted experts,” said the 30-year-old artiste who made his debut in as the Imperial Commissioner in Giacomo Puccini’s Madama Butterfly in 2008 and had also played the role of Fiorello in Gioacchino Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville).
The first time experience of adapting European opera into the Indian was also exciting to both Federico Benetti (who played the dual roles of King Janak and Hanuman) and Raffaele Abetti (who played laxman). Raffaele who sings in tenor said, “I had a little difficulty because in Italy ‘j’ is pronounced as ‘y’, otherwise the entire experience was wonderful. I realise how important and strong family bonds are in India.” Bass singer Fedrico found the Indian costumes interesting and comfortable and said, “What attracted us about Ramleela is the fact that it narrates how gods, humans and animals come together in one story.”
For the director of the operatic parts of Ramleela in Opera, Marco PuCatena, working on the epic had been “an interesting challenge.” “I had a copy of the Ramayana but I only studied it carefully after my involvement with the project. And it was when I was supervising the scene where Ram looks at Sita and is mesmerised with her beauty that I realised how beautifully opera blends with this Indian text,” he said and added that he presented the opera keeping in mind the Indian sentiments.
photos Sanjeev Kumar