Conclusion: Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle

The actors applaud the composer

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle. 

I only wish it was commercially available in the United States, even if it was just the soundtrack. It's almost tragic how the Dingo Pictures and Jetlag Productions' adaptations are easier to find than this, but there's always hope.

With great music, creative lighting, and a cast of immensely talented actors, it manages to be both one of the most faithful and one of the most inspired adaptations of the Victor Hugo story.

Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle is an overlooked and underrated gem of an opera.

Music: Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle

Coppenole addresses the crowd

If you recall from my review of La Esmeralda (1836), I'm not an expert on music. I certainly am not an expert on opera. I like what I like. I probably am not ideal to ask about the quality of a composition or the flow of the lyrics. Especially because I do not speak a word of Latvian.

It would seem that this would be a disaster for me, right? Well no. I loved the music of Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle. That's not a word I tend to throw around loosely. The music moved me, in an emotional sense. The music is fully orchestrated, unlike a certain other stage version, and the voices of the singers are instruments on their own. The drama is made through the harmony of the both of them. It's also light when it needs to be, like during the election of the pope of fools and Phoebus's argument with what he thinks is a ghost.

My personal favorite pieces were the "Garden of Flowers" scene with Quasimodo and Esmeralda and the scene when Gudule grieves over her lost daughter. With my only reference being the often spotty subtitles, I think the lyrics are very well done. I couldn't even imagine someone trying to make an English translation. It seems like something that can only work in its native language.

I thoroughly enjoyed the music of Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle.

Next: Conclusion

Sets, Lighting, and Costumes: Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle

There is not much in the way of sets in  Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle. The people involved do well with minimal sets. It's a testament to the quality of the blocking and staging that I hardly notice repeated locations.

The stage for the mystery play also serves as a whipping post for Quasimodo, an old alley, and a bell tower. Instead of large sets which, while nice, are also costly, this version is more humble. A rose window and some lights are all that is needed to convey the idea of a cathedral interior. I dare to say that Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle looks better than the 1977 version. While that's not saying much, it goes to show how limitations can help and when they can hinder. In the '77 film, the minimal sets were distracting. Here, they are engrossing.

The lighting around Gudule makes her stand out as abnormal

Lighting is a very important in theater, and it is used to great effect here. An example of how lighting can set the mood is when it shows the difference between characters. A good example is during Esmeralda's introduction. While she dances and delights the public, the lighting is warm and inviting, but as soon as Gudule enters and begins spewing hatred, the lighting changes. The light around Gudule is an unnatural and sickly turquoise, making her stand out from the warmly light Esmeralda.

Esmeralda dragged before the Hellish mob

The lighting sets the mood in a visually dynamic way. In a scene with high drama, like the moments awaiting Esmeralda's execution, the light on the mob is blood red, while the innocent Esmeralda is the only character under traditional lighting.

It also is applied very well with Quasimodo. The areas around him are often obscured in shadow, making the misshapen hunchback catch your eye. The light around him, unlike the harsh blackness, is cool, and melancholy. Scenes with Frollo are also very dark, but the little light surrounding him is white and threatening. 

They didn't have to do these things. They could have easily stuck to flat stage lighting, but they didn't. They use it to help tell the story, which is never a bad thing.

The costumes, unlike the sets, are highly detailed. Every character is visually distinct, which is important for any form of stage entertainment. Every person in the audience should be able to tell what is happening no matter where they are seated. The makeup is also well done. Frollo and Gudule have age makeup on, and look like they have gotten older since the opening scenes. Quasimodo's makeup, while not as grotesque as the novel, is made up by actor's performance. The ways he contorts his body make him look the part.

On the whole, the production values are really impressive.

Next: Music

Characters: Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle

Esmeralda with Djali

While often faithful to the novel, Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle has its own unique interpretation of the characters.

Esmeralda strikes a balance between innocent and mature. As a result, she is much more likable than she is in the novel, as she is more independent and less petty. She stands up for Quasimodo, despite his worry that she is going to harm him, and fights back against Frollo's advances, just to name a few examples. But that sense of innocence, while less pure naivete, is still there. Her first song, describing how she wishes that "dreams could come true," contrasts with her final words before her untimely death, gasping of "the pain" and "peace" of it all.

Quasimodo

Quasimodo, played by Latvian rock star Igo, is the highlight of the show. While the majority of the cast do their jobs fairly well, it's the little bits of acting such as the way he lumbers about and the range of his voice that make him memorable. This version places less emphasis on Quasimodo's facial deformity as it does his physical abnormality. Quasimodo is often referred to, by himself and others, as a "cripple," and lame person. Quasimodo's plight is used less for audience sympathy as it to draw a comparison.When Frollo, near the beginning, likens adopting the infant Quasimodo to when"Jesus went to the lame and the sick," this notion seems clearer.

Claude Frollo

Claude Frollo is one of the most developed versions of the character in any adaptation I've seen. Unlike, say, the 1982 Hallmark TV movie or the recent Disney stage musical, Frollo isn't portrayed as an ideal saint before he saw Esmeralda. While his backstory is not really examined, it doesn't need to be. His character is developed through the music. Frollo is a threatening and often frightening villain because of his failed humanity, and that concept is shown beautifully in this opera. Sergejs Martinovs does a fine job playing madness without resorting to camp or caricature.

Gudule and Esmeralda

Gudule's importance is increased in this opera, unlike the novel where she was part of a minor subplot. She doesn't have any extras scenes really, but they are interspersed throughout instead of short chapters. She's more sympathetic here because of the way the character is framed. In the book, Gudule is a crazy old hag first before her motivation is explored. This is the case for a lot of characters in the novel, likely to enforce the "deception of appearance" theme. While that may work for a novel, the opera chooses a more conventional method of storytelling, and it succeeds as a result. In the case of Gudule, I can certainly say that this in an improvement.

Pierre Gringoire

Pierre Gringoire is not particularly different from his literary counterpart. He's given a bit of pathos, which is refreshing after Fitzball's and Jetlag Productions' flat comic relief. Being that Jehan Frollo is absent from this adaptation, the author decides to combine include elements of that character into Gringoire, such as the scene where he asks Frollo for money. While I usually don't like when adaptations of books combine characters, it works very well here. One strange addition to this adaptation is a scene where Gringoire is nearly raped by a group of women in the court of miracles. I'm not sure what the point of this scene really is. I suppose it is effective in showing the court as a dangerous place, but the scene is played more for laughs than anything else. (Then again, that itself is a bit problematic.) 

Fleur de Lys and Phoebus

Phoebus is also basically unchanged from the novel. Both his arrogance and ignorance are used for comic and dramatic affect throughout. Fleur de Lys also is similar, but works nonetheless. The two of them have a certain chemistry together. There are shifts of power that I really like. Early on, Fleur de Lys admires Phoebus as an idea hero and he plays the part on the surface. However, after she discovers his misadventure with Esmeralda, Fleur de Lys has power over Phoebus and says that they will  be together forever once married. It's an expansion of a concept hinted at near the end of the book, and it's both humorous and dramatically satisfying.

Clopin and a beggar

Clopin is also not very different from how he is in the book. He's filthy and cruel, but not humorless as in the French musical or Hallmark TV movie. There's also a lot of vulgarity with this Clopin, and it works very well. I really like this interpretation, and the actor seems to be having a lot of fun playing the character. 

The extras all of a bit of personality, which usually is not the case in theater productions. It's fun to spot the wiry man with a crutch hobble about with a paranoid gaze or the noble women who talk with their hands. Details like this make the world come alive.

Next: Sets, Lighting and Costumes

Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle: The Plot

Frollo and Gudule

The opera opens with an overture, which features several themes that show up throughout the the piece. Once this is over with, a woman, a respected Duchess, is seen giving birth. The birth is particularly painful, and the resulting child is hideous. The Duchess' friends, all gypsies, conclude that the repulsive child is a "curse."

Fearing the wrath of the Duke, the Duchess decides to rid herself of the child. her Gypsy friends formulate a plan, to swap the Duchess' child for the daughter of Gudule, a poor prostitute. Gudule loves her daughter above anything else, and feels that she has saved her soul. The plan works, and Gudule swears vengeance on the Gypsy people, while at the same time cursing the replacement child.

Gudule is distraught over the loss of her child. A nearby priest, Claude Frollo, tries to comfort Gudule, encouraging her to take in the hideous creature. Since so one else will do so, the priest adopts the child on his own.

Gringoire gives Jupiter advice

Years later, a mystery play is to be preformed. The play is being delayed, much to the chagrin of the audience. The audience begin to take their frustrations out on the plays author, Pierre Gringoire, and they even begin to threaten Michel Gibon, playing Jupiter, with hanging. Gringoire advises Jupiter to assure the audience that the play will start as soon as the Cardinal and his entourage arrive.

Using the rabble as a cover, pickpockets begin to make their rounds, stealing purses left and right. Beggars begin to plead the crowd for money. One "cripple" claims that "heaven was merciful" to him by supposedly curing his blindness. Clopin, the beggar king, orders the man to exchange his pennies for not being murdered. The Cardinal finally arrives and the play finally begins.

Coppenole praises Quasimodo's ugliness

Coppenole, and man from Ghent, questions how people can watch such a boring play. He offers an opportunity for "real merrymaking," an election of a pope of fools. the winner is "the one who can pull the scariest face." The audience attention is diverted from the play to the competition. The Cardinal and his entourage decide to leave for dinner. The winner is chosen out of nowhere. The winner,  the feared and monstrous Quasimodo, is decked in a colorful robe and paraded away.

Gringoire begs for Jupiter and the other actors to stay even though his audience has left. Jupiter tells him that someone has run off with a neccesary ladder in order to watch Esmeralda dance. Esmeralda has attracted a large number of spectators, who she entertains with her dancing and fortune telling. She is harassed by Frollo, who says that she'll "pay the dearest price" for her evil.

A second objector is Gudule, who has become a mad recluse after losing her daughter. She wishes death upon Esmeralda, and the public try to tell the girl not to pay attention to Gudule. Quasimodo arrives along with the spectators, who claim that Quasimodo is "a real angel, though he looks like a beast." Quasimodo is enjoying the attention, until he is struck down by Frollo. Quasimodo begs for forgiveness, and while Frollo claims "it won't be easy to make amends," Quasimodo can help by assisting Frollo by "kidnap(ping)

Gringoire, surrounded by strumpets

a witch."

As Esmeralda walks the streets, Quasimodo tries to carry her off. She escapes, only to be confronted by Frollo. Quasimodo grabs her again. Gringoire, who was passing by, tries to intervene, but fails. The stately captain Phoebus arrives and has Quasimodo arrested. He and Esmeralda converse before she has to leave. Phoebus monologues about Esmeralda, and his growing affection for her.

Gringoire is threated by faux injured people and wanders into the Court of Miracles, the den of theives and beggars. He is surround by strumpets who offer themselves to him, nearly forcing themselves onto the unfortunate poet several times. Gringoire is taunted and beaten before being brought to the king, Clopin. Clopin tells Gringoire that "when we crucify you only your stench will be resurrected." Gringoire is offered safety if he can prove himself to be a tramp. When he fails he is offered to the women, who reject him due to his undesirable qualities. When all seems lost, Esmeralda chooses to marry him. Clopin preforms the wedding ceremony, mentioning that the marriage will only last four years. Esmeralda is not in love with Gringoire, and is quick to establish that, but she feels that she is repaying him for when he tried to save her earlier. She is instead in love with Phoebus, who she believes is her "first love."

Esmeralda takes pity on Quasimodo

The following day Quasimodo is being punished. After being peremptorily whipped, Quasimodo is to stay tied down to the whipping post for another hour. Frollo, watching from the church, laments the public laughing at Quasimodo's anguish, because in his eyes they are "scorning the cathedral" by doing so. Quasimodo feels that "his senses are leaving (him)" and wishes to be taken to the bells of Notre Dame, feeling that they will heal his wounds. He begs the crowd of tormentors for water and is met with a rag that has been "soaked in slops." A group of women tell Quasimodo to drink from the filthy rag, so it will "make (him) sick, like (how) you make us sick with you church bells." A man kicks Quasimodo in the stomach, blaming him for having a deformed child. Esmeralda comes to Quasimodo's aid, chastising the people for ridiculing him. Quasimodo is afraid that Esmeralda is "foreboding misfortune again" because the last time he saw her he was arrested. Esmeralda gives Quasimodo the water he had begged for just as he is being freed.

Gringoire attempts to explain his predicament

Frollo feels as if he is going insane. He has developed an obsession with Esmeralda, and is torn between his obsession and hatred toward her. His holy vows prevent him from pursuing her, but he is compelled to nonetheless.

While searching for her he stumbles into Gringoire, but in a hardly recognizable form. In order to assist Esmeralda, Gringoire is costumed as a jester. Frollo is enraged to discover that Gringoire has married Esmeralda, and Gringoire desperately tries to explain that he had no choice but to do so. Frollo agrees to spare Gringoire if he reveals who Esmeralda is really in love with. With this information, Frollo tosses Gringoire aside and runs off.

Phoebus and his fiance Fleur de Lys invite Esmeralda to dance in their home. Fleur de Lys and the other women mock Esmeralda's appearance and social stature, but their mood shifts when they discover that Esmeralda has a "magic goat," Djali. Fleur runs screaming in horror. Phoebus tries to lighten Esmeralda's mood as this happens.

Quasimodo in Notre Dame

In the belfry of Notre Dame, Quasimodo feels at peace, away from the public. He tells the church bells, Gabrielle. Guiame, Pasque, of his sorrows, and how "for the love of god (...) how (he) wants to escape the Hell" of his existence. Quasimodo decides to give a name to a bell whose "voice resounds so sweetly," Esmeralda, to show his gratitude.

Gringoire tells Frollo that Esmeralda will be going out that night with Phoebus. Gringoire takes the opportunity to beg Frollo for money, and the priest agrees to give begrudgingly.

Phoebus discovers Frollo waiting for him. Because of Frollo's black attire, Phoebus believes that Frollo is an "apparition" and challenges him to a sword fight. Frollo tells Phoebus that he doesn't believe that Esmeralda is in love with him, and Phoebus offers to let Frollo see him "in action." Frollo pays Phoebus for the privilege of watching him and Esmeralda and promises more money afterwards.

Phoebus challenges the apparition to a duel

In a local brothel, Phoebus and Esmeralda whisper sweet nothings to one another. Frollo, as this is happening, is watching from afar. Esmeralda mentions that she promised to remain chaste until she found her long lost mother. Phoebus rejects such notions, but before the two of them can consomate their relationship, Frollo darts in and stabs Phoebus with a knife. at the sight of this, Esmeralda faints, and Frollo kisses her unconscious lips..

Esmeralda is blamed for Phoebus' murder and locked in a dungeon. She tries to keep hope in her darkest hour, until a priest enters the dungeon. Esmeralda begs for him to save her from execution. The priest reveals himself to be Frollo, terrifying and disgusting Esmeralda. Frollo asks the unfortunate Gypsy girl to run off with him only to be rejected. She would rather be with Phoebus, in death, than with his supposed assassin.

Esmeralda chooses her death over the hateful archdeacon

As Esmeralda awaits her execution, Fleur de Lys and Phoebus plan their wedding. Fleur wants to make sure that Phoebus is there to see Esmeralda's hanging beforehand. Frollo goes to Gudule and tells her that Esmeralda, whom she so deeply hates, is going to die. Gudule is overjoyed to hear the news. Esmeralda is brought to Frollo in order to repent her sins. Instead, Frollo offers himself to her again. Esmeralda still rejects him, and Frollo tells her to die. She's dragged to the scaffold and falls to her knees. She sees Phoebus with Fleur de Lys and cries out for his help. She is ignored, not just by Phoebus, but by all of the people around her.

When all seems lost, Quasimodo swings down from Notre Dame and carries Esmeralda into the church. The hangman tries to have soldiers seize Esmeralda, but an official
insists that she is safe inside of the cathedral. Solidifying this notion, Quasimodo appears along with Esmeralda near the top of Notre Dame, shouting that she is under "protection" and "cover."

Quasimodo and Esmeralda  bond with one another

Safe in the church, Esmeralda wonders what has happened. She wishes for Phoebus to arrive and save her on his white horse, but she instead finds Quasimodo, bearing a white flower. Quasimodo apologizes for frightening her with his appearance. He observes that she is not dissimilar to him. They both have been condemned by their looks. Esmeralda for her "innocent beauty" and Quasimodo for "being a cripple."

Esmeralda asks where Quasimodo got the flower from. As it is winter, flowers normally would not grow. Quasimodo shows Esmeralda the garden in which the flower was grown, on her request, and tells her that all of the flowers can be for her if she forgets her "thoughts of death."

Quasimodo tells Esmeralda of his upbringing, how even though he was "just a child" "people would stone and curse" him. In order to cheer the unhappy bell ringer up, his stepfather decides to plant a garden in honor of the Virgin Mary. Esmeralda asks who Quasimodo's stepfather is and is repelled by the information. Frollo is Quasimodo's stepfather. He tries to explain that Frollo once loved him and God, that he wasn't always the way Esmeralda knows he is. Esmeralda tells Quasimodo that "he is a murder," and Quasimodo tells her that "he is sick," and to "get some rest."

Frollo encourages Quasimodo to spare him

Frollo feels that he is dead, sulking about the street at night. Gringoire comes to him, not out of  necessity, but of guilt. He has developed an attatchment ot Esmeralda and wants to save her. Frollo is perplexed as to why Gringoire is "speaking in riddles," as he believes Esmeralda to be dead. Gringoire explains the truth to a horrified Frollo, who thinks that Esmeralda "has risen from the dead." Frollo agrees to help Gringoire save Esmeralda, and plans on using him as a saccarafice. Not wanting to die, Gringoire suggests that he could have the beggars from the court of miracles start a riot as a diversion while they save her.

During the night, Frollo tries to have his way with Esmeralda by force. She resists his advances, and tells him of his former self, but Frollo insits that his former self has died along with is sanity. Quasimodo intervenes, holding a knife. Frollo convinces Quasimodo not to use his weapon because murder would be a "deadly sin," before sneaking away.

Clopin leads the mob

Quasimodo tries to comfort Esmeralda, but he reunion is short lived as the mob of vagabonds has gathered around Notre Dame, promising that Quasimodo's "head will roll" and that Esmeralda "must come back." Clopin cheers on the mob by informing them of the "silver and gold" buried in the "cells of the cathedral." Quasimodo begins to fight against the vagabonds, saying that they will "burn in the blazing fire of Hell!" Esmeralda commends Quasimodo's bravery, but laments the death of her companions.

Frollo takes Esmeralda out of Notre Dame. He gives her a choice, one last time, between him and death, and is rejected for the final time. Instead of giving Esmeralda to the hangman, he gives her to Gudule, knowing that the old hag will want to "claw (her) fingers round (Esmeralda's) throat." Gudule attacks Esmeralda, but stops when she has a revelation: Esmeralda is her child that was stolen years earlier. The estranged mother and daughter reunite. Gudule plans to save Esmeralda. Frollo, feeling betrayed, stabs Gudule to death. She dies in Esmeralda's arms.

Quasimodo kneels before Esmeralda

Upon her death, Frollo grabs Esmeralda, and has the knife pointed to her throat, repeating that his "evil is sacred." Quasimodo comes up from behind with a rope, and uses it to strangle Frollo to death. Unfortunately, Esmeralda is dying from Frollo's attack, fading right before Quasimodo's eyes. She calls out Phoebus' name, the last piece of her innocence. Before dying she says Quasimodo's name, acknowledging his affection.

With the two people he loved in the world gone, Quasimodo feels he has nothing to live for. Hoping for "eternal love and peace" in the afterlife, Quasimodo lies by Esmeralda's body until death comes to him.

Next: Characters

Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle: Introduction

Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle Concert DVD

Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle is an opera by Latvian composer Zigmars Liepiņš. It was written and preformed around 1996, and was very successful. The CD recording was the most demanded recording of any Latvian opera in history. The opera was awarded the Great Latvian Music Award the following year. 

Despite its success in its native country, Parīzes Dievmātes Katedrāle is highly obscure in the rest of the world. To my knowledge, it has not been released or even preformed  outside of that part of the world, which is unfortunate. I couldn't find the official CD or DVD recording on major sites like eBay or Amazon. Certain websites may have had them, but the sites weren't in English and I didn't want to go through the hassle of overseas shipping and converting money and all that.

The version I will be reviewing is a Youtube video of the DVD. While I normally would not encourage piracy, it's the only readily available option. Plus, the video includes English subtitles, so it's possible to actually understand it.

Next: The Plot