3. The Death of Klinghoffer.

I went to see the production of "The Death of Klinghoffer" and I must say that it was very interesting. I decided to go and see it with an open mind but much media attention and debate meant that I already had some inkling of its possibly incenduary potential.

The newspaper had recently reported on a Rabbi over in America who called for a boycott of the premier performance of John Adams opera about the terrorist murder of an Jewish American back in 1985. The production has been dogged by controversy. The original UK premier faltered and was subsequently cancelled when Glyndebourne Opera team bowed to protest and pulled out. Similar productions in the US have also been cut short or cancelled, especially after 9/11. The recent terrorist atrocities in London helped stir up concern and there was a very real risk that this production would also go the way of the other planned performances. Fortunately this would not be the case and I had the chance to see the penultimate show of this very controversial operatic work.

The production certainly courted controversy with its use of guns amongst the audience; the resultant misfire caused a panic among the security staff and prompted a quick evacuation of the theatre.

The opera dealt with the terrorist seizure a cruise ship, the Achille Lauro, just out of Egypt. Palestinian terrorists claimed to have bobby-trapped the engine room and took the passengers and crew hostage. Operas and plays have often dealt with difficult issues and events; such luminaries as Mozart, Verdi and Shostakovich have all come up against public and political pressure. All too often the outcries are lost with the passing of time; recall the moral panic over Oh, Calcutta!

Certainly the very recent deaths of London bus and tube passengers has reminded us all of the very real threat of terrorism. The opera gives voice to such terrorists and by giving their motivation for such acts of violence, may make many uneasy. I do not think that the Opera actually justified their actions and the death of the Mr Klinghoffer is shown as nothing more than a murder. It is not a romantic political act or something we might feel comfortable; there is no sense of pathos such as with Dickens “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.” Klinghoffer’s last words to his frightened wife are; “I should have brought a hat”. Don’t think that the opera is flippant; it merely shows the banality of evil as portrayed by Hannah Arendt's observation of the Nuremburg trials. This is seen by the way the terrorists embrace the ships Captain at the end of the work.

The first act lacks any overall political message; we are introduced to the ship by its captain and the appearance, at the start, of a sexy showgirl who mugs the audience and a plump panic stricken Austrian woman hiding out in her bathroom certainly generates humour rather than the morbid. It is here that one of the main objections is pointed at; Mamoud – a Palestinian terrorist seen shooting his gun and manhandling the passengers, sings about night time radio music and of his past. He appears to be a sympathetic character that has had a harsh life in which his family was killed in his youth. But there is no mention of why they took the ship. This is not a platform, as some critics would have us believe, for justifying terrorism. We are just shown that such figures who take the path of violence are not simply brainwashed thugs. It is the fact that an act of terror is portrayed in detail without condemnation that has irked some; I would have liked to believe that we have moved on from the need for a carefully defined moral warning like those found on cig packs; Warning – terrorism is bad for the health.

The second act wratches up the intensity; the terrorists are contrasted. One cries out for a holy death, another torments Klinghoffer and the other passengers. Eventually Klinghoffer becomes the centre of attention and is taken away. He is killed off stage. We know he is dead and this adds depth to the wife as she hopes he is being looked after below ship. The Captain is informed of the death; he colludes with their demands to tell the World that a woman was also killed and others will follow while, at the same time, continuing with the fantasy that Klinghoffer is below deck. The captain is not a coward but is mindful of the crew and the safety of the passengers. Eventually a settlement is reached and the terrorists give themselves up at some undisclosed location. They put down their guns and embrace a shell shocked captain. It is left to him to tell the sickly wife of the fate of her husband; she is first defeated and crumpled at the loss of her husband and friend but this turns to anger at the captain. We are shown a personal snapshot from history; a name taken from a very long list that. Sadly, is still being added to.At the end we see two boys playing with the wheelchair, perhaps mirroring the callous taunting of the terrorists who had unseated the elderly Klinghoffer. This could show that this was part of a circle of violence but I think it reflected the true banality of the situation. The Palestinian cause was not helped by the murder of an old man, the pain that the terrorists might have experienced at the hands of the Israelis is not cured, and a major terrorist event is shown not for what it was; the murder of an old man. This can be seen by reference to the earlier work “Nixon in China” which brought out the big political machinations as well as the character of the main players. With the Death of Klinghoffer, we are not told of the rational for the hostage taking, the political deals and ramifications of the act. Instead what was a media event has been redressed as a personal, almost familial, event.

My only disapointment was that I was expecting something on the scale of Adams orchestral works such as Shaker Hoops or El Dorado. But the grand scale and violence of the music would have detracted from the raw violence presented in the body of the opera. Unfortunately I am not schooled in Music and its theory so my explination is a little lacking. But I am certainly a big fan of his works. Anyway next stop; Wagner!