At the Metropolitan Opera, Puccini's Turandot accompanied by a warning for the public

Turandot, “exciting but problematic masterpiece,” according to the Metropolitan Opera. Until June 7, the great New York theater is showing Giacomo Puccini's latest masterpiece. The unfinished opera tells the story of the impossible loves of a Tartar prince and the Emperor's daughter. Everything takes place in a fantasy medieval China. Since its creation in 1926, a few months after the death of its composer, the work has been among the best known of the 20th century and among the most appreciated. Nessun dorma, Prince Calaf's great aria, quickly became a hit, a must for all tenors.

But almost a hundred years after its creation, the perception of this work is evolving, as a program note for spectators explains. “If Turandot can be considered “the last great Italian opera”, this designation does not take into account the fact that a large part of the work is not Italian, believes Christopher Browner, editor-in-chief of the publications of the Metropolitan Opera. From its setting to its plot and, above all, much of its music, Turandot takes inspiration from other cultures (...) Yet it is in no way authentically Chinese either. A Western projection of the Orient, it is full of contradictions, distortions and racial stereotypes.

Among the “distortions and stereotypes” noted by the Met, the names of certain characters, from Princess Liù to Ministers Ping, Pang and Pong, the reuse of traditional melodies re-orchestrated in the Western way.

According to Christopher Browner, "it should therefore come as no surprise that many viewers of Chinese descent find it difficult to watch as their own heritage is co-opted, fetishized, or portrayed as savage, bloodthirsty, or backward." How can we appreciate Turandot, a “fascinating but problematic masterpiece” under these conditions? “As we raise our collective awareness of its flaws, it is essential, rather than shy away from the less attractive aspects of the opera, that in each subsequent revival the audience recognizes and grapples with their implications,” recommends the Met.

This light on Puccini's work echoes a controversy in England a few months ago. The Royal Opera House in London was forced to change the staging of Madame Butterfly, in 2022, to make it "more in tune with the historical context of the story" which takes place in Nagasaki, Japan. beginning of the 20th century. At the time, Olivier Mears, director of the Royal Opera House, emphasized that the opera, while being a "masterpiece" was also "a product of its time", which required some adaptations to be "faithful in the spirit of the original and authentic in its representation of Japan.