JOHN ADAMS (b.1947): Doctor Atomic.
Catalogue Number: 10K082
Label: Opus Arte
Reference: OA 0998 D
Format: DVD
Price: $39.98
Description: Adams' most recent operatic essay in archetypal history takes on the creation of the atomic bomb by Robert Oppenheimer and his team. This is one of the most 'filmed for DVD' operatic productions to have appeared so far. The action is presented in constant, rapidly intercut close-ups, always tracking the soloist or group of characters at the center of the action at any given moment. Sellars' characteristically dramatic, stylized production and TV direction are highly effective, and with the emphasis on iconic set pieces, especially well suited to video presentation. Overall the video is produced to a very high standard, avoiding entirely the impression that the video production is the poor relation of the theatrical performance, and the high definition video quality is excellent. In terms of conventional action, almost nothing happens - inevitably, as the actual actions of a group of scientists solving equations and assembling mechanisms would hardly make for riveting theater. Tensions between the characters, variously aware of their roles in the creation of a new and terrifying world, are at the heart of this dialogue-driven work. The texts are taken from found documentary sources; Oppenheimer is given quotations from poets - Baudelaire, Donne - known to have been favorites of the historical character, to illustrate his inner drama at key points in the narrative. Musically, this is easily one of Adams' most effective and sophisticated scores. The pounding minimalistic rhythms destabilized by off-beat accents and abrupt modulations that characterized the ground-breaking works such as Harmonium, that first led to Adams' widespread popularity are still in evidence, but have been thoroughly absorbed into a larger vocabulary, though brought to the fore to great effect in scenes of high dramatic tension, like the one in which preparations for the test of the bomb proceed against the backdrop of an electrical tempest. The storm episode from Peter Grimes seems to be referenced as the storm intensifies, and throughout the music exudes a bracing, full-blooded epic romanticism. You won't soon forget the end of Act 1, Oppenheimer's tormented soliloquy in the looming presence of the completed bomb. In many places a Stravinskyan influence is very apparent, though with a continuous emphasis on melodious and eloquent vocal writing which is far closer to Britten. The terrifying stillness that follows the brutally factual description of the effects of plutonium poisoning, an eerie calm punctuated by bells, is a moment of which Busoni might have been proud - and as one of the most explicit references to the Faustian bargain about to be signed between man and the new technology, this is especially appropriate and telling. The work and this presentation of it are both spectacular successes, an obvious recommendation to Adams' admirers, but also to anyone who believes that art can be both emotionally engaging and thematically relevant in our time. Four interesting little documentary sketches are included; an extended interview with the librettist/director is detailed and thought-provoking. 2 DVDs. Gerald Finley (baritone), Jessica Rivera (soprano), Eric Owens (bass-baritone), Richard Paul Fink (baritone), Chorus of De Nederlands Opera, Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra; Lawrence Renes. 16:9 anamorphic widescreen. LPCM stereo or 5/1 DTS digital surround. NTSC. Region 0. 230 min.