La Voix Humaine

This event is part of: Ooh-La-La! presents Voila!

One Character Opera by Poulenc and Cocteau

La Voix Humaine is a test of mettle for the female singer. In the first instance, Francis Poulenc's visceral 1958 opera, with a libretto by Jean Cocteau, is a solo piece; a frantic series of phone calls between a young woman and her five-year lover who has deserted her for another. That we never see the man in question means Élise Lefay must carry this crushing drama all on her own. What's doubly testing for the lead however, is tussling with Poulenc's dissonant piano score; the music is a thing of beauty, yet capricious and barbed, very much like the woman herself. Lefay tames the score (magnificently played by Nicolò Sbuelz) with clever improvisation, simultaneously creating the effect that she is indeed talking - rather than belting money notes - down the receiver. This makes for a performance both arresting and convincing.

La Voix Humaine could easily descend into melodrama, but this never happens. Instead, we feel for Lefay's character; yes, she's pathetic, but this poor soul might do anything. She's self-imprisoned in her boudoir, knocking back pills, and emotionally up and down like a yo-yo. Though her fate is sealed the moment the curtain is raised, we want to remain with her to the bitter end. Partly out of schadenfreude; partly because we've all been in similar situations; and in no small measure because of Lefay's captivating execution of the role.