At the end of the overture—conducted by Johannes Witt with verve and sentiment—something does happen after all: in white Gothic script, the opera’s title appears, only to be quickly overlaid by the word “Marguerite,” under which the original title eventually vanishes.

This makes it immediately clear that director Matthew Ferraro, who also designed the set himself, is placing Gretchen’s tragedy at the heart of his interpretation. If you can even call it an “interpretation”—what the American director, formerly a dancer at New York’s Metropolitan Opera and a choreographer, puts on stage over the next three hours is a near-literal rendering of Gounod’s opera, with no subtext or deconstructive ambition. It's presented straight from the score, closely following the text, but seasoned with a healthy dose of self-ironic humor. That’s going over well in Wuppertal, and word’s gotten around: by the second performance, the box office is buzzing.

Ferraro sets his visually rich series of scenes within Faust’s dark, neoclassical study, its tall walls lined with overstuffed bookshelves. A rotating stage brings in the needed locations—like a fairground featuring a giant red funhouse-style devil, whose arms are animated by choristers. Marguerite lives in a warmly lit dollhouse; in the church where she comes to pray, a Madonna figure emerges from the incense, only to reveal itself as a hooded Méphistophélès. And when Faust seals his pact with the devil, a cinematic time machine rolls in, its clock hands spinning wildly backward. The bearded old man turns swiftly into a raven-haired young man. During the Walpurgis Night, a racy silent film plays, racing through Faust’s despair, the pact with the devil, and the love story in rapid-fire montage.

The swiftly shifting visuals, with clever lighting, well-judged stage fog, and Devi Saha’s opulent Tim Burton–style costumes, create a gothic atmosphere and great visual appeal. Especially since Ferraro keeps the chorus in constant motion—perfectly in sync with the pit—and creates striking tableaus. At times, you feel like you’re watching a lush Offenbach operetta…Thunderous applause for a well-constructed, entertaining production with high musical quality.

  • Regine Mûller, Opernwelt (Faust at Oper Wuppertal)

"Director Matthew Ferraro, who has done impressive, resonant, brilliant work in every respect..."

- Reinhard Glaab, Main Post (Evita at Mainfranken Theater Würzburg)

"...The precisely drawn characters begin to draw us in. In a video aesthetic, the lifting podiums are used cinematically...Stephen Sondheim's thriller becomes a sensual human tragedy in Erfurt."

- Hartmut H Forche, Musicals (Sweeney Todd at Theater Erfurt)

"It was a brilliant debut with an extremely successful premiere...Whoever wanted to could recognize the discreet approach of epic theater here...it was simply brilliant...Our recommendation is Puccini's opera Madama Butterfly at the theater in Erfurt. By the way, the next performance is next Thursday. From us, the production gets five stars out of a possible five."

- Holger Elias, Deutchlandradio Kultur (Madama Butterfly at Theater Erfurt)

"Not only the narrative itself, but also some scenes in detail - for example the conspiracy scene on the edge of the boxing ring - are more reminiscent of film than theater. Ferraro consciously works with its means again and again: While the conspirators speak, the boxing match continues in slow motion. Fade to the fight in real time, fade back to the conspirators...."

- Michaela Schneider, Main-Echo (Les vêpres siciliennes at Mainfranken Theater Würzburg)

"In the end, however, the directing team around Ferraro only works out what Tim Rice's smug musical lyrics say anyway. And so the production perhaps moves closer to the actual intention of the Webber and Rice team, scrutinizing the contradictory facets of Eva Perón in more detail than a version more closely aligned with historical events could.

- Michaela Schneider, Main-Echo (Evita at Mainfranken Theater Würzburg)

"Thus this production takes place quite presently, the dynamics of the events, the so nonsensical as to be absurd self-Americanization, with cheap set pieces of everyday life, touches deeply, until the impressive final image. Seen as a whole, this Erfurt performance, entirely without missteps and pathos, sets the standard at the beginning of a new season.""

- B. Gruhl, Das Opernglas November 2014 (Madama Butterfly at Theater Erfurt)

"...And since this evil story, these illusions… Who is fooling whom? Who can't cope with these illusions, or with the disillusionment then? Matthew Ferraro, who is also his own set designer, really shows this in an exemplary way."

- Uwe Friedrich, MDR Figaro Radio (Madama Butterfly at Theater Erfurt)

It doesn’t take extraordinary foresight to predict that this production will have a successful run in the subscription program and also attract single-ticket buyers throughout the Bergisches Land. On the stage of the Wuppertal Opera, everything comes together that many in the audience – not just outside the metropolitan centers – appreciate: a tightly told story, an attractive set design, and formidable vocal performances. There’s no avant-garde, nor does it require vocal feats of the highest order. Instead, refinement triumphs – and that can be enjoyed to the fullest. Director Matthew Ferraro gives the work exactly what it needs: a generous dose of the opéra comique that Faust originally was before Charles Gounod expanded it into a grand opera.

Ferraro certainly allows emphasis and drama to take center stage, but he also gives two other key aspects of this opera room to unfold: sentiment and humor.

-Michael Kaminski, Concerti (Faust at Oper Wuppertal)