Missing the Mark

Since its première in 1821, Der Freischütz has remained a staple of the German operatic repertoire; indeed, the allegorical tale of a huntsman who enters into an agreement with the devil in exchange for magic bullets has proven so popular that the pressures of keeping it on the stage place it in danger of being musically undervalued. The new production at the Staatsoper thus offered a most welcome opportunity to hear Weber’s greatest opera performed by a first rate cast and a well-prepared orchestra, here under the direction of Sebastian Weigle. On the strength of Anna Prohaska and Dorothea Röschmann alone, one would not hesitate to recommend this new Freischütz. The fact that these and other performances of a similarly high quality were forced to gasp for air in such a joylessly oppressive production – a claustrophobic, non-traditional…