Les Huguenots

Chronicling the story of thousands of religiously oppressed Huguenots slaughtered during the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre in 1572, this grand opera in five acts was a smash hit as a historical costume drama in the 19th century. In a 1991 performance commemorating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Berlin-born composer Giacomo Meyerbeer, the Deutsche Oper Berlin made an attempt to blow some cobwebs off this golden oldie (which has pretty much gathered dust since WWI), moving the action in librettist Eugene Scribe's Protestant/Catholic conflict up to a more contemporary setting at the Berlin Wall. Once you suspend your disbelief and ignore some of the absurdities (the richly costumed cast sports a wardrobe that's a cross between a Paris runway and the set of the musical Cabaret), however, you can sit back and enjoy the smartly designed set, nimble direction and some rarely heard music brought to you on a German soundtrack (in PCM Stereo with, unfortunately, no Dolby Digital 5.1 option) with subtitles available in English, French, Spanish and Japanese. Willkommen! Bienvenue! Welcome! Or, as we say at VL, highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (J. Reed)