Angela Meade in the title role and Joseph Calleja as Pollione in Norma last Saturday. Photos: Ken Howard/Metropolitan OperaAngela Meade in the title role and Joseph Calleja as Pollione in Norma last Saturday. Photos: Ken Howard/Metropolitan Opera

Comparisons are odious yet hard to avoid.

A 19th-century bel canto masterpiece, Norma showcases the beauty of the human voice – it uses a score replete with vocal pyrotechnics to tell the story of a druid priestess, the double life she lives and the dangerous love triangle between her, her confidant-turned-rival and her secret lover belonging to the druids’ political enemy.

It is this same quality which makes the opera one of the most difficult to cast, due to its vocal demands.

The opening night of Vincenzo Bellini’s opera at La Scala on December 26, 1831, was, in the composer’s own words, “a fiasco”.

But the second night went better, and by the third it was clear the opera would be a huge success. Considered to be Bellini’s crowning achievement, it has been in the operatic repertory ever since.

Fast-forward nearly 200 years and critics had the same tepid reaction to New York’s Metropolitan Opera’s season opener on September 25. The new production of Norma, directed by Sir David McVicar, was not only the opener to one of the most important opera seasons in the world but also featured Joseph Calleja as Pollione – the first time a Maltese tenor has sung a principal role in the Met’s season opener.

“Few things are so deflating as a dull opener,” wrote Eric Simpson for the New York Classical Review on September 26.

“Norma is as worthy a candidate as any to lead off a season, but there was little in the way of first-night electricity at Monday’s premiere,” he added.

For Simpson, one of the night’s highlights was the Maltese tenor.

“As tenor leads go, the Roman governor Pollione isn’t an esp-ecially rewarding role, and McVicar’s conception of him as a straightforwardly loutish brute made him particularly bland,” Simpson wrote.

“The golden voice of Joseph Calleja at least made the vocal part a joy to listen to – he sent free, radiant tone into the house all night without a hint of effort.”

In her review for The Washington Post, Anne Midgette exp-ressed a somewhat-less-glowing opinion: “I have usually been a fan of Joseph Calleja, the tenor, and Monday he got off to a glorious, robust start. But his voice soon got a little tired and became increasingly nasal, so there was a huge contrast from the beginning to end of Act I, though he found his way again in his scene at the end of Act II.”

Calleja brought a big voice and thundering testosterone to the stage

Anthony Tommasini of The New York Times wrote: “Though Mr Calleja’s voice is by nature burnished and ardent, he has a tendency to sing with a slightly nasal quality that can result in a pinched tone. That was a problem here.”

In his comment for Backtrack, reviewer for classical music and opera Robert Levine penned: “Tenor Joseph Calleja started off brilliantly, his bright voice ringing through the house, with utter security in his opening numbers, including the oft-omitted high C. The voice seemed to fade as the first act continued, however, only to return for a blazing In Mia Man, abetted by his Norma’s fury.”

Things, however, got better and better as Norma progressed to its final night on December 16.

“As Pollione, Calleja brought a big voice and thundering testosterone to the stage. If he sometimes seemed to be marshalling his voice for the more dramatic moments, it could be forgiven because of the great overall effect of his performance,” said Richard Sasanow, opera editor for BroadwayWorld.com.

Writing in The New Criterion in November, Jay Nordlinger added to the plaudits: “Pollione was Joseph Calleja, the Maltese tenor – and another golden tenor, along with Vittorio Grigolo. On this night, Calleja experienced a little tightness, but he was still golden, and powerful.”

In his review for the October 20 performance, Anibal Salazar for OperaWire magazine wrote: “I would like to begin this review at the end, since the final impressions, sensations and overall reaction of the audience is the barometer which measures the overall impact of the performance.

“In the case of this Norma, the final curtain was greeted with a massive explosion of applause in the house. This was made all the more impactful by the fact that for the duration of the Bellini masterwork, the audience had been at its most quiet – there were no coughs, whispers or even the shuffling of papers. The audience was entranced.

“The great tenor Joseph Calleja burst into the scene with all the power of a Roman, convinced of his ability to command and control any situation.

“When he sings his duet with Adalgisa, Pollione neither persuades nor seduces the young priestess: this Pollione imposes his demands upon her and requires her complicity. His attitude and demeanour change dramatically in his final duet with Norma, with Calleja now showing a Pollione that is both vulnerable and fearful.

“In sum, Calleja confirmed his vast range and excellent skills as tenor and actor.”

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