LUCIA!

Jamilyn Manning-White (photo by Russ Rowland)

There is a very fine line between bringing new insights to a work from the 19th c. and trashing it. We are pleased to report that Heartbeat Opera, one of our favorite small opera companies,  belongs to the former category.  Last night we marveled at the insightful adaptation of Donizetti's masterpiece Lucia di Lammermoor. More than an adaptation, we consider it a distillation of the essence of Salvadore Cammarano's libretto and a superb introduction to the opera.

The house was packed for opening night of the festival which includes lots of goodies, as you may learn on their website, www.heartbeatopera.org. It did our heart good to see an audience of 20-somethings thrilling to Donizetti's score in a unique arrangement by Daniel Schlosberg featuring a string quartet, guitar, clarinet, and some dazzling percussion by wizard Bill Solomon.

As directed by Louisa Proske (Co-Artistic Director of Heartbeat Opera), crucial scenes of the story are presented as flashbacks or fantasies of the poor heroine who appears in a hospital bed, struggling against her restraints.  Her reality appears upstage behind a sheer curtain with the memories taking place downstage.

All the crucial scenes were there. We loved the scene taking place at the fountain between Lucia and her friend Alisa in which Lucia frightens Alisa with her ghost story.  One can already see the unbalanced nature that will be pushed over the edge by the manipulations of her brother Enrico; he has been alerted by his captain of the guard Normanno of her secret rendez-vous with Enrico's enemy Edgardo.  Her only supporter is Raimondo, the family confessor, but he too has been deceived and abandons her to a forced marriage with Arturo, chosen for political reasons.

As the eponymous heroine, one could not ask for a better interpreter than Jamilyn Manning-White whose prodigious skills with the fioritura of the bel canto period were matched by her dramatic artistry. Our heart broke for this victim of male privilege.

Tenor David Guzman made a fine romantic partner as Edgardo; baritone Matthew Singer conveyed all the brutality of a selfish brother whose deviousness was informed by political desperation. John Taylor Ward was effective as Raimondo and Monica Soto-Gil made an excellent impression as Lucia's friend Alisa.

Maestro Schlosberg conducted from the piano and his arrangement brought out many interesting voices in the score. We were particularly taken by the wizardry of percussionist Bill Solomon who created sounds to rival that of the glass harmonica one never gets to hear.

Scenic Designer Reid Thompson did much with little.  Costumes by Beth Goldenberg were contemporary.

Although the two operas of the festival were presented sequentially on opening night, the rest of the week permits one to see just one at a time. We wish we could be as enthusiastic about Henry Purcell's Dido and Aeneas but we cannot. The baroque music was gorgeous. Carla Jablonski's Dido sang beautifully. John Taylor Ward's Aeneas fulfilled the promise of his smaller role in Lucia.

However, the English diction was so poor, especially on the part of the women singers, that we felt we were hearing an opera in a language with which we were only slightly familiar.  It was like listening to Russian and recognizing a word here and there.

Nothing about the story was illuminated and the bizarre movements made no sense to us. We sat there totally baffled by the storytelling. There were so-called witches and sorceresses waving branches, occupying a bathtub and masturbating against push-brooms.  This didn't add up to anything meaningful.  Only "Dido's Lament" at the conclusion was meaningful.  We just couldn't figure out what director Ethan Heard (Co-Artistic Director) was going for.

So...we give an unqualified YEA to Lucia and a NAY to Dido. See it at your own risk!

(c) meche kroop

MSM MAKES MAGIC WITH MOZART

Jana McIntyre, Christopher S. Lilley, and Lisa Barone

Paull-Anthony Keightley

There was a great deal of fun to be had at Manhattan School of Music last night when Mozart's opera Die Zauberflöte (actually a singspiel) was presented with an excellent cast, featuring star-making turns by bass-baritone Paull-Anthony Keightley as Papageno, one of Planet Opera's most endearing characters, and soprano Jana McIntyre as Queen of the Night.  We have seen Mr. Keightley's Papageno before at New York Opera Exchange and it would be fair to say that he owns the role. As adept at comic timing as he is talented at singing, his shtick kept the audience in stitches.

Ms. McIntyre is new to us but we definitely want to hear more of this compelling coloratura whose vocal fireworks were marked by accuracy and artistry. The rapid-fire embellishments came across without any slurring; every note was well articulated.

As Prince Tamino, tenor Christopher S. Lilley sang with a plush tone and enviable legato; he never pushed for his top notes. His romantic partner, Princess Pamina, was given a fine portrayal by Addie Hamilton who has a lovely sweet soprano; she articulated the embellishments nicely.

As Sarastro, bass Shi Li presented a solid tone with depth of coloring. We only wished that the lines he spoke in English were as clear as the German that he sang. As The Speaker, bass Scott Russell left nothing to be desired.

We always love the Three Ladies as they argue over who gets to stay behind and watch over the unconscious Prince. Last night, sopranos Alaysha Fox and Kelsey Fredriksen and mezzo Lisa Barone were superb and their trio was exceptional.

We were also quite taken with the Three Spirits, here portrayed by EphiGenia Kastanas, Crystal Glenn and Hannah Dishman as three giggly prep school boys. Their trio is marked by gorgeous harmonies.

As the evil head servant Monostatos, K'idar Miller captured both the malice and the humor.  His face-off with Papagena was hilarious.

Soprano Carina DiGianfilippo made a perky Papagena without making as much out of the role as one would hope. Her speaking voice when she approaches Papageno pretending to be an old lady was nothing if not irritating and sounded more like a screech owl than an old woman.

The chorus was exemplary and much credit goes to Chorus Master Miriam Charney.  We'd also like to give props to Diction Coach Marianne Barrett. When we don't need to read the titles we know whom to credit!

The production was an adventure in and of itself and required explanation by Director Jay Lesenger in the program. It was helpful to learn in the pre-performance lecture that the audiences of 1791 did not expect their "magical operas" to make sense.--helpful because we have been trying to make sense of this opera since the first time we saw it.  So, the fact that Mr. Lesenger's production did not make much sense did not interfere with our enjoyment.

We appreciated the additional English dialogue however. We were also tickled by the notion that Pamina and Papageno were half-siblings. Moreover, that the Queen of the Night was enraged because her late husband turned his power over to Sarastro, which fueled her wish for revenge.  And we always thought she was a good woman trying to protect her daughter!

There were directorial choices that, while fun, seemed to make even less sense than other productions. The production team went for a 1960's look with a touch of sci-fi thrown in.  The monster slain by the Three Ladies was a robot. The priests in the temple were wearing identical suits and ties, sitting around a table in a board room, leaving us to wonder how corporate America could be a symbol for Reason, Nature and Wisdom!

Within the parameters of the setting, the costumes by B. G. Fitzgerald were apt with special compliments for the black and silver creation for the Queen of the Night. The simple set by Steven Capone and Ron Kadri comprised an eye-catching 7-pointed gold star and large discs in gold and silver which were raised and lowered to symbolize the ascendancy of lightness (wisdom) over darkness.

George Manahan did his customary excellent work leading the MSM Orchestra. Mozart's profusion of melodies is notable for limning each character. He wrote this work as a favor for his friend the impressario and singer Emanuel Schikaneder who wrote the libretto and played the role of Papageno. We have no way of knowing how he played it but we'll happily settle for Mr. Keightley.

Should you wish to share the joy, the same cast will perform the Sunday matinée and on Friday night a different cast will take over. We were fortunate enough to hear a few members of that cast perform during the pre-performance lecture and found tenor Oliver Sewell to be a fine Tamino; soprano Eunmi Park did a splendid job of revealing the Queen of the Night's subtle changes of intention.

And if you can't snag a ticket we urge you to watch Ingmar Bergman's magical film of Die Zauberflöte, filmed in 1975.

(c) meche kroop