評(píng)論
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Books and Arts; Opera Review; Damon Albarn’s new opera;
文藝；歌劇評(píng)論；戴蒙·亞邦的新音樂劇；
Star light, star bright;A meditation on England;
星光燦爛；英格蘭的冥想；
In 1572 a new star blazed through the sky. It was a cataclysmic event for scholars, who believed at the time that the universe was unchanging. From his home in Mortlake, now in the London borough of Richmond upon Thames, John Dee gazed up through the still untainted night as his certainties slipped away.
1572年天空中出現(xiàn)了一顆閃爍的新星。這對(duì)于當(dāng)時(shí)那些認(rèn)為宇宙是永恒不變的學(xué)者來說是一場災(zāi)難性的事情。約翰迪伊過去住在摩特雷克，現(xiàn)在住在泰晤士河畔里士滿區(qū)。無論他住在哪里，都會(huì)舉首凝望那仍然純凈無暇的夜空，而他所確信的觀點(diǎn)也漸漸有所動(dòng)搖。
Cartographer, cryptographer, mathematician, astronomer, astrologer and imperialist (he came up with the idea of a “British empire”), Dee was a trusted adviser to Queen Elizabeth I, even setting the date for her coronation. The appearance of the star was a pivotal moment in his life. It is also the turning point in “Dr Dee”, a new opera composed by Damon Albarn, frontman of the British pop bands Blur and Gorillaz. Dee’s desire to “know what was knowable in the world”, spurred by that star, leads him to occultism and, ultimately, to his downfall. Science was not so far from magic.
約翰迪伊是一位地圖繪制者、密碼破解者、數(shù)學(xué)家、天文學(xué)家、占星學(xué)家、帝國主義者（“大英帝國”一詞就是他提出的），他還是深受女王伊麗莎白一世信賴的顧問，連她加冕的日期都是他挑選的。這顆星星的出現(xiàn)是他人生中關(guān)鍵的時(shí)刻，也是“迪伊博士”中的轉(zhuǎn)折點(diǎn)。“迪伊博士”是一部由英國搖滾樂隊(duì)布勒和街頭霸王的主唱戴蒙亞邦推出的新音樂劇。迪伊的愿望是“通曉世界上一切可知的事物”，正是那顆星星促使并引領(lǐng)他走向神秘學(xué)的道路不過最終也導(dǎo)致他的垮臺(tái)。科學(xué)和魔法僅僅一步之遙。
“Dr Dee” was commissioned by the Manchester International Festival, where it had its première last year, as well as the English National Opera, where it runs until July 7th, and the London 2012 Festival, of which it is part. First “cooked up” over eight weeks, “Dr Dee” has been polished since. The result is a spectacular production that combines Mr Albarn’s haunting music with dramatic staging and mesmerising video.
“迪伊博士”這部音樂劇去年在曼徹斯特國際音樂節(jié)上進(jìn)行了首次公演，并在英國國家劇院一直上演到七月七日，還是倫敦2012年文化節(jié)的組成部分。其首次“計(jì)劃公演期”超過八周，“迪伊博士”也因此而大放異彩。結(jié)果產(chǎn)生了一部精彩的作品，它把亞邦先生那縈繞心頭的音樂與激動(dòng)人心的演出風(fēng)格以及令人著迷的視覺效果融合在了一起。
The notion of Englishness, and what has become of it, is at the heart of “Dr Dee”. The opera looks almost longingly at an age before England had reached its peak. The production sees a magnificent Queen Elizabeth I float above her realm (pictured). A great fleet flying the flag of St George sails across the stage. But “Dr Dee” does not dwell on these days of glory. Instead, it considers Dee from a 21st-century perspective. Mr Albarn and his troupe of musicians sit suspended above the proceedings, observing everything from the vantage of what Rufus Norris, the director, calls “a nation in decline”. This fine opera is both a celebration of England and a lament for a nation whose star is on the wane.
英倫風(fēng)的概念，以及其演變過程正是“迪伊博士”的核心所在。在英格蘭到達(dá)鼎盛時(shí)期之前，這部歌劇看起來幾乎令人無比神往。從作品中可以看到衣著華貴的女王伊麗莎白一世漂浮在她的領(lǐng)土之上（見圖）。掛著圣喬治旗幟的龐大艦隊(duì)橫渡舞臺(tái)。不過“迪伊博士”音樂劇并沒有局限于這些榮耀的年代。相反，它是從21世紀(jì)的眼光角度審視迪伊這個(gè)人。亞邦先生和他的音樂劇團(tuán)俯視整個(gè)進(jìn)程并且從導(dǎo)演魯夫斯諾里斯稱作“正在衰敗的民族”的角度來看待每一件事。這部精彩的音樂劇既是英國的歌頌，又是對(duì)一個(gè)國家的星光逐漸黯淡的挽歌。
