Janácek’s ‘Katya Kabanova’ at Glyndebourne

Janácek’s short, intense opera Katya Kabanova is based on a Russian play The Storm by Alexander Ostrovsky. Set in a small town on the mighty river Volga, its main character Katya is a married woman, living under the debilitating rule of her jealous mother-in-law, the Kabanicha. She can do nothing right in the Kabanicha’s eyes. When her husband Tichon goes away on business, Katya is criticised for not falling about in floods of tears (though of course if she did she’d be criticised for a lack of serenity and resolve). Tichon’s weakness is made clear when his mother compels him to give his wife instructions on how to behave while he’s away, and the family’s adopted daughter Varvara encourages Katya to take up an affair with Boris, who has fallen in love with her.

Boris too is in a weak position since his uncle Dikoj controls his inheritance until he is 21, and when Dikoj sends him off on yet another journey, he is in no position to comfort his wife. Human weakness and insecurity sit in stark contrast with the great river Volga as it rolls sublimely forward on its journey to the Caspian Sea, eventually welcoming Katya’s body when she can no longer take any more. As her corpse is washed up on its banks, Tichon is heartbroken, and his mother hides her own weakness by coldly thanking the neighbours for their help.

This Glyndebourne production is a revival of one directed by Damiano Michieletto in 2021 during the time of social distancing when some seats among the audience had to be left empty. No such problems now, and the auditorium was full to bursting with enthusiasm as Robin Ticciati directed the London Philharmonic (now a full orchestra unlike four years ago) in a gripping performance of  Janácek’s music. The cast was headed by the excellent Czech soprano Katerina Knezíková, who sang the role four years ago when the production was new. On that occasion Nicky Spence sang the role of the husband Tichon; this time he gave a powerful performance as the lover Boris, and Czech tenor Jaroslav Březina sang sympathetically as Tichon. With Susan Bickley showing the firmness and, yes, insecurity of the Kabinicha, who enjoys a close friendship with the robust Dikoj of John Tomlinson, this was a very fine cast. The opera starts with a contemplation of the Volga’s beauty by Sam Furness, who sang superbly as Varvara’s boyfriend, the teacher Vána Kudrjás. Among the rest of a large cast Rachael Wilson made a beautifully sung Varvara, with Sarah Pring and Rachel Roper as suitably sympathetic servants.

As to Michieletto’s colourless production — with its white walls, angel dressed in red, and multiple cages hanging from above — we don’t need to follow his allusions because the music sweeps all before it, like the mighty Volga.

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