A Passion for Zarzuela: Christof Loy’s Musical Tribute to Pilar Lorengar

The Deutsche Oper Berlin concluded its 2025/26 season with a rare celebration of the zarzuela, presenting the Gran Gala de Zarzuela as a tribute to the great Spanish soprano Pilar Lorengar. Conceived by director Christof Loy and performed by his company Los Paladines, the evening offered a richly varied panorama of Spain’s national lyric theatre, from sparkling comedy to heartfelt romance.

Director Christof Loy is an avowed admirer of the zarzuela. In a video message recorded for the Gran Gala de Zarzuela, he recalls how he was “infected by the zarzuela virus” years ago after listening to a live recording from the Salzburg Festival featuring Pilar Lorengar and Plácido Domingo.

Unable to attend the event in person due to injuries sustained in an accident, Loy nevertheless conveys his enthusiasm for this traditional, folkloric form of Spanish musical theatre (in a video message). His passion is so profound that he founded his own company, Los Paladines, with which he has staged Manuel Penella’s El gato montés in Madrid, Pablo Luna’s Benamor in Vienna, and Francisco Asenjo Barbieri’s El barberillo de Lavapiés in Basel.

For a single (!) Berlin performance, the company presents a representative survey of the zarzuela repertoire. The first half is dominated by fiery and comic numbers, while the second turns to a more melancholy and nostalgic mood. Loy directs the individual scenes with understated wit, linking them through brief transitions and spoken introductions that create a seamless dramatic flow. A quartet of dancers joins the performers on two occasions. The predominantly Spanish cast is outstanding throughout, combining vocal excellence with an engagingly natural and sensuous stage presence.

Carmen Artaza makes a confident entrance with Paloma’s opening canción from El barberillo de Lavapiés, while Cristina Toledo displays effortless coloratura in the Polaca from El Barbero de Sevilla, coquettishly juggling the attentions of two suitors. David Oller, the consummate charmer, melts both audience and chorus ladies alike with his waltz from La Gran Vía, before joining Santiago Sánchez and Alejandro Baliñas Vieites in transforming a trio of rogues into a delightful cabaret-style showpiece. The lyrical repertoire is entrusted to the Armenian soprano Mané Galoyan, celebrated in Berlin for roles including Violetta in La traviata and the title role in Suor Angelica. Her warmly blossoming soprano lends genuine emotional depth to the evening’s love arias and duets.

The Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin is conducted by its musical director, José Miguel Pérez-Sierra, whose spirited and energetic leadership occasionally favours a somewhat too compact orchestral sound that drowned out details.

The evening’s greatest ovation, however, belongs to castanet virtuoso Lucero Tena, whose dazzling performances in two instrumental intermezzi make it easy to forget that she is already eighty-nine years old.

The gala is dedicated to the memory of Pilar Lorengar. The soprano, who died thirty years ago this July, began her career as a zarzuela singer before joining the Städtische Oper Berlin in 1958. From there she launched an international career while remaining loyal to the company until her retirement from the stage. The Gran Gala de Zarzuela thus serves as a fitting and affectionate tribute to one of the theatre’s most beloved and admired Spanish artists.

The audience responds with enthusiastic applause throughout the performance, culminating in prolonged standing ovations and countless cries of “Bravo.” After such a triumphant success, one question inevitably remains: when will Christof Loy direct a complete zarzuela in Berlin?

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