Before taking on the role of Ariodante at the Beaune International Baroque Opera Festival, alongside Christophe Rousset and Les Talens Lyriques, mezzo-soprano Ève- Maud Hubeaux reflects on her return to the Handelian repertoire, between engagements with Verdi and Wagner. You’ve just come out of three months of performances in Dresden, where you triumphed as Carmen and as Amneris.  In the autumn, you’ll sing Eboli in Vienna, then Fricka at the Opéra Bastille. In what way is this return to Baroque repertoire necessary for you?

Necessary, or restorative, probably both. This season is likely the most eclectic I’ve ever experienced: I’ve sung Verdi, Wagner, Bizet, but also Rameau, I performed Phebe in Castor and Pollux, a role I adore, and now Handel. Apart from Mozart, which I’ve never sung and likely never will, I think I’ve covered just about everything there is to sing,especially since I’ve also done a lot of contemporary music in the past. I find it fantastic to show that you’re not confined to a single box. I’ve also just sung my first Adalgisa, in Bellini. This return to Baroque repertoire is a bit like singers returning to Mozart, except that my vocal identity isn’t Mozart, it’s Baroque. It forces you to take a voice of a certain scale, built for Wagner and Verdi, and bring it back onto this narrow ridge at the top of a mountain: if you slip to either side, you fall. That’s what I find so fascinating and restorative. Moving from Amneris to Ariodante in less than a week was quite tough, the week was difficult, gathering the voice back onto that narrow path. But I love it, and I love this music.

From a vocal standpoint, does this repertoire act like a “balm”? Do heavy roles like Eboli or Amneris wear out the voice?

A balm, I’m not sure. That word would imply injuries, and that’s usually not a good sign; it would mean you’ve pushed too far. On the other hand, it’s important to plan lighter roles within a season, even Carmen, I would consider relatively lighter in my repertoire. It’s demanding on stage, very physical, but vocally, if sung as written in the opéra-comique style, and not everyone does. Sorry, but that’s my approach, and what I try to defend. Singing in opéra-comique style doesn’t mean singing lightly, but staying close to the text. Compared to Eboli or Amneris, it is less vocally exhausting, which is why I place Carmen among the more “restful”

moments of the season. Relatively speaking, because Ariodante is not restful either: there are ten arias, it’s insane. But it returns to a different vocal approach, where the text is perhaps less central, let’s be honest, and where precision of vocal line is everything. The goal is different in terms of sound production. I’ve been working on it for six months alongside everything else. On rest days during Aida performances, I come back to this vocal world. That’s Handel, the detox after Verdi. Returning to a more contained, more focused path within a season, yes, it is restorative.

You are working again with Christophe Rousset and Les Talens Lyriques, after a production of Lully’s Isis in 2019 here, which was recorded. What does working with this conductor and ensemble bring you? 

I’ve always been an absolute fan of Christophe Rousset, and he knows it. We first met at La Monnaie: he was conducting Mitridate, I was in Béatrice et Bénédict, two overlapping productions. I sent him a little card with my contact details saying: “Mr Rousset, I’m a big fan, if you could audition me one day…” Not long ago, he sent me a photo of that card and said: “Look, I kept it.” It’s lovely, and it says a lot about our relationship. For me, working with them was a dream. The level of demand and artistic quality is absolutely the same as in major institutions like the Opéra de Paris. In my season, this moment is just as important and precious as the others.

Baroque ornamentation, with da capo repeats, do you enjoy that space of freedom?

Christophe writes everything, but it’s always optional: if you have something to propose, you can submit it. Since this isn’t my core repertoire, I’m very grateful that he offers a fully written version, I don’t have to ask myself too many questions. For me, it’s perfect. 

Ariodante is one of the few Handel operas where magic does not intervene in the plot. Does that make the character more human? How do you approach Ariodante psychologically?

It’s funny, I hadn’t thought about the absence of magic, but it’s true that in all the Handel operas I’ve sung, there’s always a sorceress, and the character gets lost despite themselves. Here there’s no magic, but there is deception, a misunderstanding triggered by an external element that renders the character innocent. There is a beautiful aria, Cieca notte, where Ariodante has just learned he has been betrayed and believes he is no longer loved. It’s a real moment of introspection, almost harsh towards himself, he explains how his lack of confidence leads him to believe she could have done such a thing, when she has in fact remained faithful. This aria can go somewhat unnoticed, it is not the most immediately striking musically, but dramatically it is the key moment. The dramaturgy of the work is not the most refined, it unfolds in three fairly monolithic phases. The first act is a happy world, then suddenly he thinks he has discovered something and we shift into tragedy, then in the third act he realizes the truth and we reach the happy ending. The transition is carried by other characters recounting events, we rarely see Ariodante’s own inner journey. Handel is not alone in this, in Baroque opera in general, psychological development is not always the priority.

Eboli and Amneris share with Ariodante themes of heartbreak and suffering, but where they can be manipulative, Ariodante is more innocent. What does it feel like to play a less “scheming” character?

It’s refreshing, because the mezzo repertoire is mostly made up of not so sympathetic characters. So when you get to portray a luminous character, not Machiavellian, who simply suffers the blows of fate, in a way almost like a soprano role, I find it quite restful. 

Does taking on a role in concert version rather than staged production change things for you?

The main advantage is that there is less pressure, you only focus on the music. On the other hand, there is much less rehearsal time. I still like to keep a sense of interpretation, even in concert, but without six weeks of staging rehearsal you’re not going to start moving around the stage. Communication happens through the eyes, nothing more, especially since direct interaction between characters is quite limited in this repertoire. Ariodante is unusual in that respect, there are three duets among four characters, which is far more than in most operas, where you often only get one at the end.

Does singing a “trouser role” change anything for you, given you are more used to femme fatale characters?

I do very, very few of them, it’s mostly very feminine roles in my case. I find it interesting to explore a different kind of grounding in a character, but that’s something I would develop more in a staged production, where attitude plays a major role. As a joke, Christophe said about my costume: “You’re not going to do Ariodante in a half man, half woman dress.” I told him I would wear a suit, but I won’t try to be what I’m not, no shaved head, no fake moustache. I’ll still wear heels, since it’s a concert version. I had already explored something similar in Hamlet, with Krzysztof Warlikowski, who asked me to portray, in the first act, an elderly woman in a wheelchair watching television, it had to be understood purely through body language that it was the same character, Gertrude, but much older. It was fascinating, how to make a character exist only through the body.

You have already sung Cornelia, would other Handel roles interest you, such as Giulio Cesare?

Absolutely. I was supposed to sing Orlando with Les Talens Lyriques, but between Covid and postponements, it never happened, which is a real pity. I’d also love to sing Rinaldo. And Ariodante on stage, who knows. A little nod to Mr Neef, for a revival at the Opéra de Paris… 

Interview conducted in Beaune, by Lloyd, July 4, before the performance of Handel’s Ariodante by Les Talens Lyriques under the direction of Christophe Rousset, alongside Marie Lys (Ginevra), Michèle Bréant (Dalinda), Margherita Maria Sala (Polinesso), Nick Pritchard (Lurcanio), and Nahuel di Pierro (King of Scotland).