Transposed to Paris’s Jazz Age of the 1920s, André Barbe and Renaud Doucet’s production of La Bohème revives Puccini’s theatrical world with great gusto and a deftly modern touch. Framed through the eyes of a present-day tourist—her imagination sparked by the vintage objets d’art that draw her into the story—the production renders this doomed romance and its fragile world as a sigh-inducing, heart-wrenching dream.
The brightly lit opening at Paris’s largest flea market, the Marché aux Puces, may surprise those expecting Puccini’s original nineteenth-century setting. A bohemian-dressed woman, soon revealed as the figure who projects herself into the life of Mimì (Hye-Youn Lee), wanders through the marketplace’s bustle, complete with selfie sticks, cell phones, and headphones. When she pauses before a stall of art objects and traces their time-burnished surfaces, a seamless orchestral transition and a shift in Guy Simard’s lighting conjure the Bohemian world—grimy skylights, eclectic interiors, and a palette of earthy tones shot through with jewel hues. The coexistence of the modern visitor and the four artists in their shadowy garret creates a fascinating temporal seam: a parallel universe marked by contrasts of shade, season, and era. From here, the opera truly takes flight.
Act I unfolds like a welcoming embrace—an irresistible invitation into Puccini’s realm. The laughter of Bohemian friends, the effortless interplay of humour and irony, and the score’s timeless lyricism weave magic from the everyday. It remains spellbinding, one familiar melody following another. Rodolfo’s “Che gelida manina” carries a fragile tenderness that blossoms into a radiant declaration of love. Mimì’s self-introduction aria, “Sì, mi chiamano Mimì,” whispers into the dim moonlight, revealing her gentle soul with dignity, dreams, and small joys. Every delicately spun phrase glows under Simard’s masterful lighting. The lovers’ duet, “O soave fanciulla,” blends their voices in an ascending arch of breathless passion—its energy so luminous it seems to light the cold loft and lingers even after they vanish from sight.
Act II bursts forth in a dazzling brilliance of colour, mood, and sound, casting the opera’s world in laughter and exuberance. The Café Momus, where the lovers and their friends gather, dreamily overlaps with the modern-day Art Deco stall. The Latin Quarter on Christmas Eve teems with vibrant life—animated by the crowd, the children’s chorus, and a kaleidoscope of sound and movement. Musetta (Rhian Lois) makes her grand entrance, igniting the scene with mercurial charm and comic chaos. Though Simard’s lighting and the movement of the crowd occasionally draw focus back to the friends, Musetta dominates the stage, every gesture crackling with theatrical electricity. Her “Quando m’en vo” commands all eyes and ears.
The unrestrained joy is soon chilled by the stark, wintry austerity of Act III, where the sorrowful farewell between Mimì and Rodolfo intertwines with Musetta and Marcello’s fierce quarrel. This quartet, both visually and musically, trembles with the pulse of lived emotion.
Hye-Youn Lee offered the finest voice of the evening. She met every technical demand with brilliance and emotional poise, shaping Mimì not merely as a victim of illness but as a woman of quiet dignity, passion, and devotion. Mario Chang’s Rodolfo exuded ardour, though at times momentarily overshadowed by the orchestra’s power. His duets with Roland Wood’s Marcello, both in the opening and final acts, revealed exquisite tonal symmetry. Rhian Lois’s Musetta danced across the stage, radiating wit, warmth, and irresistible humanity. Together with the buoyant Schaunard (Edward Jowle) and the steadfast Colline (Callum Thorpe), the ensemble formed the beating heart of La Bohème, sustained by the sumptuous playing of the Orchestra of Scottish Opera under its expert baton.
This La Bohème is a glowing affirmation of love, friendship, and life in their purest form—a world both ephemeral and eternal, where Puccini’s music still makes the ordinary shine.
Opera
By Giacomo Puccini
Co-production by The Scottish Opera and Theatre St Gallen
Cast Includes: Hye-Youn Lee; Mario Chang; Rhian Lois; Roland Wood; Edward Jowle; Callum Thorpe
On tour: 24th October 2025 (Glasgow); 1st November (Aberdeen); 8th November (Inverness); 22nd November 2025 (Edinburgh)
Running Time: 2 hours and 20 minutes including a 20-minute interval
Photo Credit: Mihaela Bodlovic