One
act opera in seven scenes
Libretto by the composer
New reduced version (1951)
Reduced orchestration by Garth Sunderland (2009)
Edition: Boosey and Hawkes Music Publishers Ltd., London
TROUBLE IN TAHITI
Leonard Bernstein
March 3rd to 13th 2022
Teatre Martín i Soler
TROUBLE IN TAHITI
Leonard Bernstein
March 2022 |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| 03 | Thursday | 20:00 | |
| 09 | Wednesday | 20:00 | |
| 13 | Sunday | 18:00 | |
Creative Team
Conductor
Jordi Francés
Stage director
Ted Huffmann
Set designer
Elena Zamparutti
Costume designer
Gisella Cappelli
Lighting designer
Alex Brok
Video
Pierre Martin Oriol
Choreography
Sam Pinkleton
Cast
Dina
Laura Orueta++
Sam
Alejandro Sánchez++
El trio
Mariana Sofia García++
Xavier Hetherington++
Carlos Fernando Reynoso++
Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana
++Centre de
Perfeccionament
Production of Dutch National Opera
Audio
Synopsis
The action in this brief yet fascinating and sincere opera by
Bernstein does not take place in Tahiti. Nor is there “trouble” on
this tourist island in the South Pacific. Where there is trouble is
in the relationship between Dinah and Sam – a young married
middle-class couple from the 1950s United States - who are going
through a sentimental crisis which, far from being addressed by
them, leads them to seek shelter in the hectic consumer materialism
that was typical of the American lifestyle of that time, which we
realise from the ironic tone of the jazz trio that functions as a
Greek tragedy chorus during the arguments between the couple. Sam
is a businessman with little time for his wife and son, who spends
the whole day between the office and the gym. And Dinah offers the
image of a perfect, traditional housewife in a suburban family,
surrounded by all the comforts she could need, although she yearns
for happiness that she only finds when she dreams about an idyllic
garden.
One of the daily routines of the married couple begins in their umpteenth argument over breakfast. Dinah suspects that Sam is cheating on her with his secretary; he denies this. She also asks her husband to attend a school function involving their son Junior, but Sam opts to take part in a tournament at the gym. Later on, while he is at work in the office, Dinah visits a psychiatrist to recount her dream of an idyllic garden that fills her with happiness, although this is unattainable. When she leaves the psychiatrist’s office, she bumps into Sam. They both pretend to have lunch commitments and say goodbye to each other, to then end up eating alone, when they each wonder what is happening in their lives.
In the afternoon, Sam wins the tournament at the gym, while Dinah, who did not go to their son’s school function either, enjoys herself at the cinema watching the fashionable film Trouble in Tahiti. She makes fun of the film because it seems to her a pretentious film for romantics, although the catchy melody of the song “Island Magic” catches her attention, a glimpse of the love she dreams of that the big screen, but not real life, can offer her.
At evening dinner, Sam and Dinah decide to talk frankly about the breakdown of their relationship. But they are incapable, or don’t want, to listen to each other, and end up arguing again. So Sam suggests to her that they go and watch the film Trouble in Tahiti, which she agrees to without saying that she has already seen it. In the end, they both yearn for the chance to recover their lost love, and the images of happiness on the big screen may be a good start to this.
One of the daily routines of the married couple begins in their umpteenth argument over breakfast. Dinah suspects that Sam is cheating on her with his secretary; he denies this. She also asks her husband to attend a school function involving their son Junior, but Sam opts to take part in a tournament at the gym. Later on, while he is at work in the office, Dinah visits a psychiatrist to recount her dream of an idyllic garden that fills her with happiness, although this is unattainable. When she leaves the psychiatrist’s office, she bumps into Sam. They both pretend to have lunch commitments and say goodbye to each other, to then end up eating alone, when they each wonder what is happening in their lives.
In the afternoon, Sam wins the tournament at the gym, while Dinah, who did not go to their son’s school function either, enjoys herself at the cinema watching the fashionable film Trouble in Tahiti. She makes fun of the film because it seems to her a pretentious film for romantics, although the catchy melody of the song “Island Magic” catches her attention, a glimpse of the love she dreams of that the big screen, but not real life, can offer her.
At evening dinner, Sam and Dinah decide to talk frankly about the breakdown of their relationship. But they are incapable, or don’t want, to listen to each other, and end up arguing again. So Sam suggests to her that they go and watch the film Trouble in Tahiti, which she agrees to without saying that she has already seen it. In the end, they both yearn for the chance to recover their lost love, and the images of happiness on the big screen may be a good start to this.
