Opera is often a cheat.  Forcing us to savour a few moments of sublimity that stand in stark contrast to the preceding 20 minutes of greyness.  Or perhaps we are indulged by an aria of simplicity that stands out conspicuously from a surrounding chorus of bombast.  It’s all too often a conceit of the worst kind.

But sometimes, the composer and his interpreters get it right.  Enter the recent Live from the Met performance of Capriccio headlining soprano extraordinaire Renee Fleming.  Fleming’s Countess Madeleine was a bit meek in some ways.  Madeleine’s love for Flamand and Olivier, her two competing suitors, seemed less about a connection with either man and more about the inability of Madeleine to escape from her own narcissistic trap.  Will she choose the lull of music or the persuasion of poetry?  I’m not sure I cared.

But this Capriccio was about more than Fleming’s processing of gluttonous admiration.  This production of Richard Strauss’ final opera deftly meandered through the jealousy of the other lover, the competitive instincts of the artist, the vanity of privilege.  The musical score clinked with the bite of the loyal servant and bellowed with the laughter of the lucky struggling performers who are finally to get their break.  Strauss takes us through every emotion and every permutation of the relationships that inhabit the worlds of the artist and his admirers alike.

The set was a real triumph with its painted finishes and vibrant fabrics drawing us into the luxury of provincial France of a time gone by.  But, through it all was Fleming with the voice of the generation.  Strong, consistent, articulated and colourful, Fleming demonstrated why she is at the top of the list of contemporary sopranists; The American’s closing aria where she debates the choice of artistic loves and carnal lovers wends to a crescendo that is subtly expressive of the impossibility of her choice and convincing of the fate that we all share.  Choosing between loves always brings disappointment.  Choosing this production of Capriccio, however, is likely to bring plenty of  joy.