WRONG REVOLUTION

Madalyn Luna and Samuel White (photo by Carol Rosegg for Manhattan School of Music)

Sometimes operas can be successfully updated or even changed to a different locale. And sometimes the changes strike us a just plain wrong-headed. In 1839, when Emmeline (possibly Emeline in real life) was sent as a 13 year old child to work in a factory in Lowell, Massachusetts, society was different. Her story tells us something about the effect on families created by the Industrial Revolution. It also tells us something about the social mores of the day.

It is 180 years later and we are in the middle of an Information Revolution with very different effects on society, its mores, and the economy. We have child labor laws. We have birth control. We have Planned Parenthood. We have means by which unwed mothers and adoptive children can find one another. A man who never learned to read is almost unheard of.

This is what was going through our mind during Manhattan School of Music's production of Tobias Picker's 1996 opera Emmeline which we saw last night. The performances were stellar, particularly that of the totally committed Madalyn Luna who created the role of the tragic heroine. According to Judith Rossner's book from which J.D. McClatchy's libretto was derived, the poor child was torn from her impoverished family and put to work in the mills to support her family with its numerous children.

Hungry for love, she fell for the blandishments of the boss' son-in-law and got pregnant. Her child was taken from her sight unseen and adopted into a family. Dismissed from the mill she returned to her family where she took care of others for a couple of decades. Unwilling to marry for wealth, she fell for a young man from the Midwest who married her. Her past came back to haunt her in a particularly tragic and mythic fashion.

In order to make this 19th c. story "relevant", Director Thaddeus Strassberger has forced it into a Procrustean bed. Toward the end he has religious bigots carrying posters and signs about "Sin" and "Pro-Life". Yes, we still have pockets of belief like that in the United States but it was wrong-headed to try to force this story to comment upon that. Yes, we still have men in power abusing young women but that's a different opera.

In spite of our disappointment in the production, we enjoyed this "play with music". The music was quite pleasant, particularly in the instrumental interludes, but the vocal lines did not hold our interest. The only melodies we heard were when the excellent chorus sang "Rock of Ages" and also when we heard riffs of a folk song which we couldn't quite identify.

Tenor Samuel White has a good sized instrument which he used well in the role of Matthew Gurney. His acting was persuasive as well. He had a believable connection with Ms. Luna who was more believable as a 13 year old than as a woman in her mid-30's.

Baritone Laureano Quant, whom we just enjoyed as Zurga in Les pêcheurs de perles, was also believable as Mr. Maguire, the "vile seducer".  His singing was just as fine as it was as Zurga but more difficult to appreciate in English, especially with the wandering vocal lines in the score.

Elisabeth Harris turned in a fine performance as the cold-hearted Aunt Hannah, and Gabriella Chea was winning as the warm-hearted landlady/housemother Mrs. Bass.

Kelly Singer filled the role of Sophia, a friend of Emmeline, and did it well. Yi Yang portrayed Emmeline's weak father. Emilyn Badgeley was scarily convincing as Emmeline's spiteful younger sister. Robert Ellsworth Feng was the fire and brimstone preacher.

This same excellent cast will be performing on Saturday; an equally fine cast (several members of which we can vouch for) will be performing on Friday and Sunday.

Paul Tate dePoo III's Scenic Design was believable and quite inventive for the factory scene.

The chorus, directed by Jackson McKinnon was in fine condition and the young musicians of the orchestra did their usual excellent work under the baton of George Manahan, giving Mr. Picker's score a fine reading.

(c) meche kroop

FELLOW TRAVELERS

Aaron Blake and Joseph Lattanzi  in Fellow Traveler (photo by Jill Steinberg)

Our disappointment in contemporary American Opera has been altered twice this year, once by The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs at Santa Fe Opera last August, and last night by Fellow Traveler, receiving its New York premiere by the Prototype Festival at John Jay College. How interesting that Kevin Newbury directed both operas! The production originated with the Cincinnati Opera.

Gregory Spears' music struck us as far more than "interesting", a word we use when we don't know what else to say! This music was luscious and accessible, underscoring the subtext and emotional content of each scene. Varying moods struck us, from erotic to sinister. George Manahan's conducting of the American Composers Orchestra was thoughtful and we were particularly impressed by the winds.

If the vocal lines were not "memorable", at least they were not irritatingly jagged. They sang well and an aria for the baritone stood out. We also loved the overlapping vocal lines for the ensembles.

Not having read the eponymous book by Thomas Mallon, we are not sure how much labor went into adapting it; Greg Pierce's libretto made sense and wisely kept to short punchy phrases which matched the music well in rhythm and length of phrase.

The story takes place in the McCarthy period--mid 20th c.--as remote to us as the periods in which our beloved 18th and 19th c. operas are set. This remoteness was not a problem in the relevance department since the crazy ideas which propel politics are still extant.  Every generation projects its fear and hate onto some group.  Then it was "commies" and "pansies".  Now it is immigrants.  Plus ca change...

The love affair between the young innocent reporter Timothy Laughlin and the charming but fickle State Department employee Hawkins Fuller began on a park bench with a not-so-subtle pickup. Rising star tenor Aaron Blake was as fine in his acting as he was in his singing. His character's internal conflict is the same one that has fueled opera stories (and stories in general) since forever. He has desires.  As an Irish Catholic, he believes them to be sinful. He goes to confession for awhile, then goes no more.

His Teflon seducer is the glib and careless "Hawk" (for which one can read "chicken hawk"-- and if you don't understand what that is, ask us to explain); barihunk Joseph Lattanzi used his gorgeous instrument and confident stage presence to give a complete portrait of a man who just can't commit. He is a perfect foil for the awkward and shy reporter; he uses his power to get Laughlin a job and then gets him fired in order to end the affair and earn Laughlin's hate.

Although the libretto is mainly "conversational", Mr. Lattanzi had a monologue toward the end which could stand alone as an audition or competition piece.  It was filled with mood and color as he expresses his inability to be the man Laughlin needs him to be.

In the role of the best friend Mary, we could not have asked for a better soprano than Devon Guthrie. Ms. Guthrie's singing and acting were exemplary and we totally believed her character, a good friend to all and a good woman who cannot abide the dirty dealing in the State Department.

Soprano Cecilia Violetta Lopez was excellent in the role of Lucy, the woman Fuller marries. As the irritating gossipy Miss Lightfoot, Alexandra Schoeny gave the audience a few chuckles.

Supporting roles were played by Vernon Hartman as Senator Potter, a war hero; by Marcus DeLoach in several roles; Christian Pursell in several roles; and Paul Scholten as Tommy McIntyre.

The story had a profound effect on us as a love story gone wrong; the situation politically only served to add to the effect. Here in New York we no longer think about gays being blackmailed and persecuted.  The term "commie" has lost its power. But it isn't lost on us that there are parts of the world where our freedoms have not yet arrived.  Probably there are pockets of fundamentalism in our very own country that suffer from the same predicament.  Let us not get lazy in our struggle for freedom for all citizens.  And for immigrants too!

Set designer Victoria "Vita" Tzykun employed some large moveable units in various arrangements; they became the roof of a post office or files in an office, as needed. Laughlin's tiny lodging comprised a narrow bed with a college pennant alongside and a hot plate for warming soup. This told us everything we needed to know about his situation in life.

Costuming by Paul Carey and Hair and Makeup Design by Anne Ford-Coates were appropriate to the 1950's and not particularly flattering. (Does any decade's fashion look good in retrospect?)

English diction was on the whole quite good, although there were times when we were happy to have the projected titles.

We ardently hope that contemporary American opera will move in the direction of good storytelling with accessible music and powerful emotional content. Bravi to everyone who contributed to this success.

(c) meche kroop

MOZART'S FINAL OPERATIC OFFERING

Yeon Jung Lee and Marie-Gabrielle Arco (photo by Carol Rosegg)

La Clemenza di Tito is a rather static offering, hastily written by Mozart in 1791, as a commission to celebrate Leopold II's coronation as King of Bohemia.  This would explain why the eponymous Tito is portrayed as a marvelous ruler, beloved by his people, and possessed of all kinds of admirable qualities.  

Such a hero is not terribly interesting so we are fortunate that he is surrounded by all kinds of interesting characters. Librettist Caterino Mazzola adapted the story from a libretto by Metastasio. It must have been appealing because about 40 composers set the story before Mozart got his hands on it.

In a stunning production at the Manhattan School of Music, a brilliant cast of women brought these characters to vivid life. The direction by Dona D. Vaughn kept the action moving along and brought a great deal of intensity to the interaction of the characters, such that we "got" this opera for the first time.

Tito, as fine a character as he is, is not a lucky man. Beatrice Queen of Judea, his first love, is not Roman and he was obliged to give her up. He decides to marry the lovely Servilia, sister to his friend Sesto, but she confesses that her heart has been given to Annio, Sesto's friend.  With great magnanimity, Tito releases her as well. That leaves Vitellia who ain't too happy about being passed over so many times.

The backstory is that Tito's father dethroned Vitellia's father, so she feels entitled to the throne. She wants vengeance on Tito and persuades the lovesick Sesto to assassinate Tito. The plot is uncovered, Sesto is charged and convicted, Vitellia feels remorse and confesses her role as instigator, and the morally superior Tito forgives everyone and takes Vitellia as his consort.  Whew!

Women in pants roles can be difficult to accept when they are roundly shaped and have feminine gestures.  What a surprise to hear two sensational singers who are totally convincing in their roles. Statuesque mezzo-soprano Marie-Gabrielle Arco carried off the part of the lovesick Sesto and we doubt that we will ever hear that role so well acted and sung. 

To show desperate love for a rejecting woman without sounding wimpy is quite an achievement. The colors of the voice were perfectly employed, along with fine phrasing and clear Italian diction.  "Parto, parto", the most frequently sung aria extracted from this opera, was particularly well performed. Not every young singer who calls herself a mezzo has an instrument this richly textured.

The other mezzo-soprano was equally convincing. Alanna Fraize fulfilled all the demands of the role of Annio. She used her lovely voice well and portrayed a likeable character who is quite the optimist. He is reluctantly willing to give up his beloved Servilia when he believes she will be changed from his lover to his Empress.  His duet with her is a heartbreaking one--"Ah, perdona al primo affetto". The fact that we just wrote "he" would seem to highlight just how convincing SHE was! Her solo "Torna di Tito a lato" was absolutely thrilling.

Both sopranos in the cast were similarly outstanding.  In the role of the seductive and manipulative Vitellia, Yeon Jung Lee emphasized the strong core of her instrument to convey strength of will. At the end of the opera, Vitellia undergoes a change of character and Ms. Lee's strength of will is colored with remorse in her show-stopping aria "Non più di fiori".

As Servilia, Jianing Zhang sang with a pleasing tone. We particularly enjoyed her aria "S'altro che lagrime" as she tries to persuade Vitellia to take action to save Sesto, who has demonstrated his love for Vitellia by not betraying her role in the plot against Tito.

Although working against time, Mozart's magic managed to fill the opera with so many marvelous arias, duets, and ensembles that one could not keep track of them all.

The role of Publio was well sung by Liang Zhao and Wooyoung Yoon performed the role of the magnanimous Tito.

The chorus, directed by Miriam Charney was outstanding in their diction, as usual.

Under the baton of George Manahan, the Manhattan School of Music Opera Orchestra did a swell job. The overture did not anticipate the themes of the opera but sounded like the first movement of a symphony.  Special props to clarinetist Narek Arutyunyan for the solos.

The production itself was an eye-catching one. The costuming by Tracy Dorman was simply gorgeous and resembled our fantasies of Ancient Rome. The women of the chorus wore long floaty garments while Servilia was appropriately gowned in white with Vitellia in royal purple. The men were elaborately garbed with exactly what one might see in an epic film. Shins were guarded and spears were carried. But nary a chariot in sight!

Authentic looking wigs were designed by Dave Bova and J. Jared Janas.

Erhard Rom's set design was simple but effective--stone walls, Corinthian columns, a marble throne.  All was well lit by Tyler Micoleau who managed to suggest the flames of Rome burning.

It's a wonderful experience to acquire affection for an opera one had previously dismissed.  For this we credit Ms. Vaughn's direction and the superlative singing and playing. If only every opera going experience were this mind-changing!

(c) meche kroop

Addendum:  After three Mozart events in two days, we still wanted more! Like champagne, perhaps you can have too much Mozart but you can never get enough. We returned to hear the other cast in La Clemenza di Tito at Manhattan School of Music. Mezzo-soprano Hongni Wu, while not as physically imposing as Ms. Arco, sang the role of Sesto with gorgeous tone and impressive musicality, as well as dramatic intensity. Soprano Abigail Shapiro was outstanding as the fickle Vitellia and showed all the colors of the vocal rainbow in her final aria "Non più di fiori".  Tenor Philippe d'Esperance made a superb Tito--confident and affecting in his onstage presence and exhibiting a gorgeous tone. We are so glad we returned.  Whichever cast you heard, we are sure you had a thrilling experience.

DANGEROUS LIAISONS

Brittany Nickell, Abigail Shapiro, Timothy Murray, and Anna Dugan (photo by Carol Rosegg)

What an ambitious task was taken on by the Manhattan School of Music Opera Theater; we are happy to report that Conrad Susa's opera Dangerous Liaisons was given a terrific production by their young singers and their artistic team. It was sheer theatrical magic to convert an epistolary novel, written by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos in 1782--and to make it visually and dramatically interesting.

We have not read it but we well recall the 1988 movie which we have seen more than once. The scandalous tale of dissolute pre-Revolution France also inspired several stage adaptations, the most notable being that by Christopher Hampton, several films, and a ballet which we wish we had seen.

In 1992, the San Francisco Opera gave the commission to Conrad Susa and the opera was presented with Thomas Hampson as Valmont, Renee Fleming as Madame de Tourvel, and Frederica von Stade as Madame de Merteuil. It has been rarely produced since then but was seen in New York about seven years ago, when DiCapo Opera gave it a production that critics found static and boring. This production was anything but static and boring.

The story is a cynical one, the tale of a malicious pair of aristocrats who get their jollies from seducing and manipulating others. We are told nothing of the background of Vicomte de Valmont to explain his need to deflower virgins and seduce married women.  As far as his "friend with benefits",  Madame de Merteuil, our only clue is that she feels shortchanged in her role as a woman.  She protests that men get what they want while women take what they can get.

Soprano Anna Dugan is splendid in this role, as is her counterpart baritone Timothy Murray. They managed to hide their sinister motives behind a veneer of courtly behavior, plotting under the watchful gaze of their fellow aristocrats. The opera opens at the grand estate of Madame de Rosemonde outside Paris. Mezzo Noragh Devlin sang and acted this role to perfection. She loves her nephew Valmont but suspects he is there more to do mischief than to see her.

Valmont is preoccupied by the seduction of a pious married woman Madame de Tourvel, convincingly played by soprano Abigail Shapiro. However, he is persuaded to do Merteuil's bidding by the promise of sexual favors.

Merteuil wants revenge against a lover who discarded her by getting Valmont to deflower the man's intended bride, the 15-year-old Cécile de Volanges, fresh out of a convent, and marvelously portrayed by soprano Janet Todd.

Meanwhile, Cécile has fallen in love with her harp instructor, the Chevalier de Danceny, convincingly played by Kiwi tenor Oliver Sewell. Her mother Madame de Volanges (the fine soprano Brittany Nickell) must break up this romance because Danceny is a commoner and the intended husband is a well to do aristocrat. She is worried about the wrong fox in this hen house!

Merteuil pretends to be Cécile's friend and confidant but betrays her and takes Danceny as her lover. Valmont rapes Cécile under the guise of instructing her in the art of love, and simulates friendship for Danceny.

Madame de Tourvel struggles against her urges but, religious woman that she is, sees the possibility of redeeming Valmont and he plays along until she weakens. He then cruelly dumps her under the tutelage of Merteuil who writes his lines for him. "It is not my fault", he keeps repeating, sounding every bit like our antique MacIntosh Blueberry when it crashed.

We have given enough spoilers but you can imagine how unfortunate the ending will be for all concerned.

Dona D. Vaughn's direction could not have been any better. It is too bad that DiCapo's production was perceived as static. This production was anything but. Erhard Rom's set comprised decorated vertical panels that slid from side to side, creating a lavish drawing room, various bedrooms, a woodland walk, and a convent. Several scenes took place side by side.  For example, Merteuil might be writing a letter at her desk on one side with Valmont reading it aloud in his own room on the other side.

Costume designer Tracy Dorman outdid herself as one can see in the above photo. Each design revealed something about the character and the color palette matched the season of the year in which the act took place. The overall effect, complimented by Dave Bova's wig and makeup design, achieved verisimilitude.

Since this is an opera, we must discuss the music. Frankly, Susa's music did nothing for us; but one must take our opinion with the following grain of salt. We rarely enjoy late 20th c. music. Susa's music is mostly tonal but there was no beauty in it; there was power and discordancy but it all sounded the same.

The libretto by Philip Littell (who never wrote an opera libretto before) comprised dialogue in rhymed couplets (good) but came across as doggerel (bad). The recitativi supporting the dialogue were jagged and unmusical. There were plenty coloratura vocalises but they seemed to be randomly inserted without characterological justification.

Perhaps the English language does not inspire beautiful phrases of music.  As a matter of fact, we conferred with our opera-loving companion during intermission regarding who might have created a better opera from this story. It should have been in French, inasmuch as the story is so quintessentially Gallic.  Gounod?  Massenet?

The problem with the vocal line was that the tessitura was uncomfortably high.  The singers handled it beautifully but it is not the most attractive range to listen to for two hours. It might appeal to those who enjoyed Thomas Ades' Tempest, which we did not.

Interestingly, the English diction was far better than expected, credit going to a lot of hard work on the part of the singers and Diction Coach Kathryn LaBouff who made sure every vicious word counted. Happily, there were surtitles in case one missed something.

Valmont and Merteuil each had a sort of aria, or rather a monologue, in which they explained something about themselves.  But the best parts musically were the trios and duets in which the various voices balanced beautifully.

George Manahan led the orchestra through a reduction of Susa's score created by composer-arranger Randol Bass. We can only imagine how this dense and difficult music must have sounded before it was reduced.

The final scene made use of a wonderful chorus, under the direction of Miriam Charney. Brittany Bellacosa portrayed Emilie, Michael Gracco played Monsieur Bertrand, and servants were played by Amy Yarham, Christian Thurston, and Ashley Alden. Father Anselm was Robert Orbach.

This same superb cast will perform the Sunday matinée and a different cast will perform Friday evening.  Having heard some of the Friday night cast at the opera preview, let us reassure you that their vocal and dramatic skills are just as fine.

(c) meche kroop

MSM GOES GALLIC

The Manhattan School of Music presented an outstanding production of Massenet's Thaïs this past weekend.  Artistic Director of the MSM Opera Theater Dona D. Vaughn ensured success by lining up a superb production team that honored the work as to time and place and gave it a focus that would appeal to a modern audience.

Everyone loves a bad girl and no one loves a hypocritical religious extremist.  Louis Gallet's libretto, based on a poem and novel by Anatole France, traces two opposing spiritual trajectories.  Thaïs, the bad girl, actress and courtesan, becomes a saint and Athanaël, the cenobite monk who converts her to Christianity, becomes overwhelmed by his lust.

The action takes place in Egypt in the 4th c. and Massenet's music skillfully evokes the exoticism through the use of extravagant orchestral color which was well brought out by George Manahan's conducting of the fine student orchestra.  The production team deserves a great deal of credit for creating the visual counterpart.  The simple set was created by André Barbe for Opéra Montréal and comprised nothing more than a disc on the floor, a vertical eye-shaped element, several columns dropped in from above when needed to create a palace and a pedestal which elevated at plot junctures to indicate the heroine's spiritual elevation.  Guy Simard's lighting design went a long way toward creating and changing the atmosphere.  Everywhere was seen the "Eye of Horus" a symbol of major importance to the Egyptians.

Mr. Barbe's wildly colorful costumes further emphasized the exoticism and were uniformly flattering to the singers.  The communities of monks and nuns wore drab dun colored garb and the "party people" (YOU know, the ones having FUN) looked sexy as all get-out.  The appropriate headdresses and wigs by Amy Wright added to the effect.  Director Renaud Doucet blocked the scenes effectively.

The night we attended, the eponymous heroine was sung by soprano Rebecca Krynski who looked and sounded marvelous, using her beautiful instrument to good advantage with some lovely phrasing and fine French style.  A high point was her consideration of the future loss of her beauty and her fear of death.  Just following this was the exquisite "Meditation", a theme which was to recur several more times.

Tenor Aaron Short made a swell Nicias, an old school friend of the monk who had put himself in debt to finance a week of carnal pleasure with our heroine.  Absolutely delightful were the antics of Crobyle, sung by soprano Allison Nicholas, and Myrtale, sung by mezzo Elsa Quéron as they mocked the dour monk and changed his drab clothing for something more suited to the palace.  Their voices blended charmingly.

Albine, leader of the religious order to which our heroine is consigned, was well sung by mezzo Raehann Bryce-Davis; Palémon, leader of the monks who advises our hero to stay away from worldly people was sung by Brett Vogel.  Athanaël was difficult to like at first, being such a disagreeable fanatic with a rather dry voice, but he garnered our sympathy as his suffering increased in Act II.

We continued to explore the Gallic side of MSM the following evening by attending a most compelling recital coordinated by the esteemed Catherine Malfitano which was entitled "Pleurs d'or" and involved 20 third-year vocal students.  The first half of the program comprised chansons from the late 19th and early 20th c.--beautiful miniatures by Debussy, Hahn, Duparc, Chausson, Ravel, Fauré, Delibes, Bizet and Massenet.  Ms. Malfitano structured the recital to be more than a recital with the singers in mostly formal black attire and wearing masks suggestive of carnevale or Mardi Gras.  They sat in chairs facing upstage and each singer stood up for his or her turn and interacted with other singers, lending visual and dramatic interest.

The second half comprised arias from operas by Meyerbeer, Massenet, Bizet, Gounod, Lalo, Thomas, Ravel and others.  For this part, masks were removed and the singers sat on either side of the stage, rising only for their own performance.  Although it is way too early in their respective careers to say much definitive or predictive about the voices, we will say that every singer connected with his/her material and with the audience.  The emotionalism made for an involving evening.  We do confess to being somewhat blown away by mezzo Hannah Dishman who sang Bizet's "Chanson d'Avril" and "Nobles seigneurs, salut!" from Meyerbeer's Les Huguenots; by soprano Amanda Grafton who sang Chausson's "Le temps des lilas" and "Voyons, Manon" from Massenet's Manon;  and by Michael Anderson whose sweet tenor illuminated Hahn's "Le rossignol des lilas" and "Vainement, ma bien-aimée" from Lalo's Le Roi d'Ys.  French diction was mostly good all around.  Vive la France!

(c) meche kroop