LA CLEMENZA D'IL BARBIERE AT CARAMOOR

Sean Christensen, Thomas Lynch, Tamara Mumford and Georgia Jarman in Rossini's Aureliano in Palmira

Upon hearing the overture to Rossini's Aureliano in Palmira, one might be forgiven for believing that one had mistakenly wandered into a production of Il Barbiere di Siviglia. At the age of 20, Rossini had already composed nearly a dozen operas and in this long-forgotten one, we hear the young master literally bursting with melodic invention and injecting romantic notions into moribund classical forms and themes.

Due to a number of problematic issues, the 1813 production amounted to a stillbirth with body parts harvested for future operas. Il Barbiere di Siviglia would not be composed for another 3 years with Aureliano's music repurposed; the autograph version of Aureliano in Palmira was lost. There was no authoritative score extant--until now, when Caramoor's Director of Opera, Maestro Will Crutchfield, accepted the invitation of Pesaro's Rossini Foundation and laboriously reconstructed a version of the score, restoring all the original music. We are not at all surprised that this version won first place for 'Best Rediscovered Work' at the 2016 International Opera Awards in London.

None of this history means anything unless the results are both artistic and entertaining. Thanks to Caramoor's sensational casting decisions and Rossini's magnificent music, the nearly four-hour semi-staged production seemed to fly by. The libretto by the equally young Felice Romani relates a very simple story. Roman Emperor Aureliano does battle with Palmyran Princess Zenobia who is assisted by her loyal lover Arsace, Prince of Persia.

The Romans keep winning and Aureliano, who has fallen in love with the warrior princess Zenobia, suffers from ambivalence. He wants to win Zenobia and push Arsace out of the picture; he wants also to punish the rebellious pair; but he also admires their steadfastness and eventually forgives them in a magnanimous gesture.

An amicable solution is found. They will be free to continue their relationship and to rule if they swear allegiance to Rome. So we have neither comedy nor tragedy but an opera seria with a happy ending. There is no onstage action, just a musical exploration of the characters' feelings.

In this production it was the consummate artistry of the singers that successfully conveyed the emotional nature of the characters. An uncredited lighting designer flooded the backdrop with colors that suited the emotions being expressed. It was simple but effective.

As Zenobia, Georgia Jarman, a soprano whom we greatly enjoyed at the Santa Fe Opera as Gilda in Verdi's Rigoletto, handled this difficult role with ease. Gilda is an ingenue but Zenobia is a warrior; she must convey great strength in the role, but also tenderness in her divine duets with Arsace. Her facility with vocal coloring was matched by the force of her sound and the accuracy of her phrasing and embellishments.

Mezzo-soprano Tamara Mumford, whom we so highly praised as Smeaton in Anna Bolena at the Metropolitan Opera, made a superb showing as Arsace. The role was written for a famous castrato of that time and we are happy to report that Ms. Mumford appeared to have made no sacrifices, anatomic or artistic. Her burnt umber timbre made her completely convincing and the involvement with which she approached the role was stunning.  She too brought out all the subtle refinements of color in her character--different colors for the lover and the warrior.  Her prolonged second act aria offered more fireworks than Independence Day.

Tenor Andrew Owens, heretofore unknown to us, handled the role of Aureliano well enough, but if we had to place him as either lover or warrior, the timbre of his voice leans more toward that of a tender lover.  Of course, the way his character is written, he is not given to raging and fuming. In any case, he produced a sweet sound!

Regular readers know by now how much we love duets and this work has a plethora of stirring duets, both confrontational and romantic. The romantic duets between Zenobia and Arsace could melt the coldest heart! And their mutual devotion in fact succeeded in melting the heart of Aureliano.

Paving the way for Verdi was Rossini's luxurious choral writing.  Members of the Caramoor Bel Canto Young Artists and Apprentices sounded sensational whether they were priests praying (to the tune of Fiorello's serenade of Rosina) or shepherds and shepherdesses sheltering Arsace when he escaped from prison. Props to Chorus Master Derrick Goff.

Three young artists excelled in small roles. Tenor Sean Christensen sang beautifully as Oraspe, the Palmyran General. We have been writing about Mr. Christensen for a couple of years and are so pleased by his artistic growth.  It has been slightly over a year since we reviewed Xiaomeng Zhang Master's Degree Recital at Manhattan School of Music and it delighted us to witness his excellent performance as Licinio, a Roman tribune.

New to us were mezzo-soprano Chrystal E. Williams who made a successful appearance as Publia, a Roman noblewoman crushing on Arsace and baritone Thomas Lynch who made a fine High Priest of Palmyra. Now that we've heard them we will surely be looking forward to future opportunities.

We also spotted some young artists in the chorus whom we have heard and enjoyed onstage in New York City.  Mezzo-soprano Madison Marie McIntosh is lovely in so many roles, and was recently heard in Beethoven's Fidelio as Marzelline, with the New Amsterdam Opera; and Alison Cheeseman made a lovely lead in Massenet's Cendrillon at Utopia Opera. How exciting to see them onstage in the chorus.

Maestro Crutchfield conducted as if he'd written the work himself which is understandable, considering his personal involvement. We could not find the names of the instrumentalists in the program but were impressed by the harpsichordist, the first violin who had an excellent solo, and some fine sounding horns.

What a wonderful gift Mr. Crutchfield gave to the opera world, discovering and refurbishing a memorable masterpiece that Rossini himself probably forgot.

(c) meche kroop

LA CLEMENZA D'IL BARBIERE

Sean Christensen, Thomas Lynch, Tamara Mumford and Georgia Jarman in Rossini's Aureliano in Palmira

Upon hearing the overture to Rossini's Aureliano in Palmira, one might be forgiven for believing that one had mistakenly wandered into a production of Il Barbiere di Siviglia. At the age of 20, Rossini had already composed nearly a dozen operas and in this long-forgotten one, we hear the young master literally bursting with melodic invention and injecting romantic notions into moribund classical forms and themes.

Due to a number of problematic issues, the 1813 production amounted to a stillbirth with body parts harvested for future operas. Il Barbiere di Siviglia would not be composed for another 3 years with Aureliano's music repurposed; the autograph version of Aureliano in Palmira was lost. There was no authoritative score extant--until now, when Caramoor's Director of Opera, Maestro Will Crutchfield, accepted the invitation of Pesaro's Rossini Foundation and laboriously reconstructed a version of the score with all the original music. We are not at all surprised that this version won first place for 'Best Rediscovered Work' at the 2016 International Opera Awards in London.

None of this history means anything unless the results are both artistic and entertaining. Thanks to sensational casting decisions and Rossini's magnificent music, the nearly four-hour semi-staged production flew by. The libretto by the equally young Felice Romani relates a very simple story. Roman Emperor Aureliano does battle with Palmyran Princess Zenobia who is assisted by her loyal lover Arsace, Prince of Persia.

The Romans keep winning and Aureliano, who has fallen in love with the warrior princess Zenobia, suffers from ambivalence. He wants to win Zenobia and push Arsace out of the picture; he wants also to punish the rebellious pair; but he also admires their steadfastness and eventually forgives them in a magnanimous gesture.

An amicable solution is found. They will be free to continue their relationship and to rule if they swear allegiance to Rome. So we have neither comedy nor tragedy but an opera seria with a happy ending. There is no onstage action, just a musical exploration of the characters' feelings.

In this production it was the consummate artistry of the singers that successfully conveyed the emotional nature of the characters. An uncredited lighting designer flooded the backdrop with colors that suited the emotions being expressed. It was simple but effective.

As Zenobia, Georgia Jarman, a soprano whom we greatly enjoyed at the Santa Fe Opera as Gilda in Verdi's Rigoletto, handled this difficult role with ease. Gilda is an ingenue but Zenobia is a warrior; she must convey great strength in the role, but also tenderness in her divine duets with Arsace. Her facility with vocal coloring was matched by the force of her sound and the accuracy of her phrasing and embellishments.

Mezzo-soprano Tamara Mumford, whom we so highly praised as Smeaton in Anna Bolena at the Metropolitan Opera, made a superb showing as Arsace. The role was written for a famous castrato of that time and we are happy to report that Ms. Mumford appeared to have made no sacrifices, anatomic or artistic. Her burnt umber timbre made her completely convincing and the involvement with which she approached the role was stunning.  She too brought out all the subtle refinements of color in her character--different colors for the lover and the warrior.  Her prolonged second act aria offered more fireworks than Independence Day.

Tenor Andrew Owens, heretofore unknown to us, handled the role of Aureliano well enough, but if we had to place him as either lover or warrior, the timbre of his voice leans more toward that of a tender lover.  Of course, the way his character is written, he is not given to raging and fuming. In any case, he produced a sweet sound!

Regular readers know by now how much we love duets and this work has a plethora of stirring duets, both confrontational and romantic. The romantic duets between Zenobia and Arsace could melt the coldest heart! And their mutual devotion in fact succeeded in melting the heart of Aureliano.

Paving the way for Verdi was Rossini's luxurious choral writing.  Members of the Caramoor Bel Canto Young Artists and Apprentices sounded sensational whether they were priests praying (to the tune of Fiorello's serenade of Rosina) or shepherds and shepherdesses sheltering Arsace when he escaped from prison. Props to Chorus Master Derrick Goff.

Three young artists excelled in small roles. Tenor Sean Christensen sang beautifully as Oraspe, the Palmyran General. We have been writing about Mr. Christensen for a couple of years and are so pleased by his artistic growth.  It has been slightly over a year since we reviewed Xiaomeng Zhang Master's Degree Recital at Manhattan School of Music and it delighted us to witness his excellent performance as Licinio, a Roman tribune.

New to us were mezzo-soprano Chrystal E. Williams who made a successful appearance as Publia, a Roman noblewoman crushing on Arsace and baritone Thomas Lynch who made a fine High Priest of Palmyra. Now that we've heard them we will surely be looking forward to future opportunities.

We also spotted some young artists in the chorus whom we have heard and enjoyed onstage in New York City.  Mezzo-soprano Madison Marie McIntosh is lovely in so many roles, and was recently heard in Beethoven's Fidelio as Marzelline, with the New Amsterdam Opera; and Alison Cheeseman made a lovely lead in Massenet's Cendrillon at Utopia Opera. How exciting to see them onstage in the chorus.

Maestro Crutchfield conducted as if he'd written the work himself which is understandable, considering his personal involvement. We could not find the names of the instrumentalists in the program but were impressed by the harpsichordist, the first violin who had an excellent solo, and some fine sounding horns.

What a wonderful gift Mr. Crutchfield gave to the opera world, discovering and refurbishing a memorable masterpiece that Rossini himself probably forgot.

(c) meche kroop

THE OTHER CINDERELLA

Zen Wu, Melissa Serlluco, Ryan Slone, Jeff Goble, Caroline Tye, Alison Cheeseman, and Hayden DeWitt

When thinking about operatic versions of Cinderella, most people think of Rossini's La Cenerentola. But Massenet's 1899 opera Cendrillon offers many delights, including a luscious score with many fine arias and ensembles and a libretto (by Henri Caïn) that hews more closely to the original Perrault story which was already two centuries old. It can be taken as a tale of a highly dysfunctional family.

Papa Pandolfe (warmly portrayed by Jeff Goble) has taken as his second wife the harridan Madame de la Haltière (the over-the-top Caroline Tye) who has brought with her two spoiled daughters Noémie (Zen Wu) and Dorothée (Melissa Serluco). Pandolfe's daughter Lucette (Alison Cheeseman) is adored by her father, who feels guilty for neglecting her, and barely tolerated by her step-family.  This feels so relevant today when "blended families" are quite common.

William Remmers' Utopia Opera operates under a rather unique concept. Audience members vote online for the operas they want to hear the following season. We are consistently amazed by how Maestro Remmers rises to every challenge and comes up with a solution to the problem of combining entertainment and professionalism on a miniscule budget.

Although we always enjoy ourselves and admire the creativity, last night we were wildly impressed by the superlative performances of every performer and the innovative direction of Mr. Remmers who truly knows how to tell a story and to tell it well. We were engrossed and enchanted.

Although there is no scenery and barely any props, the story is told and told well. Costumes are of the "let's put on a show" variety. We imagine cast members rummaging through closets and coming up with something to express the characters they are portraying.  Most original of all was the black tie,  top hat , white silk scarf, and cigarette holder of The Fairy Godmother. The description sounds odd but, trust us, it worked incredibly well. Her fairy spirits dressed completely in white.

Lucette appears first in dowdy clothes of nondescript color and later in a shimmery garment with sparkly shoes. The henpecked Pandolfe wears a velvet jacket. Member of Lucette's step-family wear lavish ball gowns.

We first saw Cendrillon at the Santa Fe Opera ten years ago in a beautiful Laurent Pelly production with Joyce Di Donato in the title role-- and again two year ago at Juilliard with Julia Bullock. We were delighted both times but there was something about the intimacy of the Utopia Opera production that will stay in our mind.

There are a number of unforgettable scenes that one is not likely to forget!  You must see for yourself.

Massenet's music is deliciously romantic; Remmers' 19-member orchestra did the score justice once Mr. Remmers' baton brought them all together and achieved balance between the strings and the winds. We were particularly taken by the English horn solos of Zachary Rosalinsky which accompanied the love duets. The love duet between Pandolfe and Lucette was just as fine as that between her and Prince Charming.

Ms. Cheeseman made a winsome Lucette, one we could care about. We could feel compassion for Mr. Goble's Pandolfe who just made a bad marital decision. We could laugh at the domineering step-mother and the ridiculously entitled and sulky step-sisters. But we were most enthralled by the otherwordly magic of Angela Dinkelman's Fairy Godmother whose costume played so strongly against our expectations. Massenet gave her the best music and she didn't let him down!

Even the chorus was well-rehearsed. The fine direction led to camera-perfect stage pictures such that we have spent hours editing down the multiplicity of shots. And we must mention the fine French diction that was totally understandable.  Our companion told us that the titles were down for a period and we never noticed!

If you have been tempted to share our joy by attending, you will find the Lang Recital Hall at Hunter College to have superb sight lines and you will be amazed at the ridiculously low ticket prices. This same cast will perform next Saturday night, with a (likely just as fine) second cast performing tonight and next Friday night. You won't be disappointed!

(c) meche kroop