AN AUTHENTIC SUOR ANGELICA

 Vita Koreneva and Rachel Hippert

Perhaps the most accurate phrase to express our opinion of Regina Opera's production of Puccini's Suor Angelica would be "well worth the trip". Admittedly it is a long way from Manhattan but where else can a hard core opera lover go to see a production that makes sense by virtue of faithfulness to time and place. We are sick and tired of productions that are shoehorned into some narcissistic director's "concept"!

Suor Angelica is imbued with the values of late 19th - early 20th century Italy. Girls who got pregnant were considered a shame upon their families' reputation and were consigned to the convent as punishment for their sins. Nowadays in the United States, single women who want a child barely think twice about deliberately achieving the state of motherhood. The opera does not translate well. 

Here we have Director Helen Van Tine not only giving us the real McCoy but also appending an original moment that touched us deeply, even though we are of a pagan nature. We hesitate to tell you about it because we would like you, Dear Reader, to attend one of the several upcoming performances and experience the moment for yourself. It must be said that singers make the best directors and in a perfect world we would banish all the self-important directors and send them back to Europe or Hollywood or wherever they came from.

So now that you know how highly we regard Regina Opera, let us tell you some specifics. The opera has been cast with a rotating cast of talented young singers, all of whom threw themselves into their roles with enthusiastic intent. The cast we saw at the dress rehearsal included soprano Rachel Hippert as the eponymous Suor Angelica and mezzo-soprano Vita Koreneva as La Principessa. The latter was of particular interest because, by subtle gestures, she permitted us to see a more well rounded character than we have previously seen.

We have been primed by prior productions to hate this woman who has banished her niece to a convent and only visited her after years of neglect. But what Ms. Koroneva showed us was a woman who was obliged to hide her sorrow out of duty to her aristocratic family and society. As she leaves the convent with the legal papers she brought for Angelica's signature, you could see her ambivalence in her glance and posture. We felt sorry for the character who must ensure the successful marriage of her other niece. This evoked the same feelings in us as when Germont Père in Verdi's La Traviata is well portrayed so that we can experience his softer side.  Now that's artistry!

Ms. Hippert also demonstrated the anguish of her character in "Senza Mamma" --the conflict between wanting to join her son in heaven and the guilt experienced by wanting to take her own life. We were allowed to experience her ambivalence without judging. This made the ending very satisfying. We confess that we were so taken with the storytelling aspect that we focused less on the voices, only remembering that all of the voices were better than adequate for their roles. This is an ensemble opera with a large cast all of whom were fine.. Due to the costuming it was difficult to tell the roles apart except for Sister Genovieffa who sang of missing the lambs that she used to tend; Margaux Frohlich made an impression with a very sweetly colored soprano.

There wasn't much opportunity for originality in the costuming but Marcia C. Kresge did well by La Principessa, giving the character a very believable regal Italianate appearance.

An English language translation of Giovacchino Forzano's libretto was projected very legibly and without glitch so we would like to commend Linda Cantoni.

Maestro Scott Jackson Wiley conducted his fine orchestra with sensitivity and subtlety, never overpowering the voices. In an unusual move, instead of filling out the evening with one or both of the other operas in Puccini's Il Trittico, Mo. Wiley programmed two concerti, each featuring a member of the orchestra. We enjoyed Nathan McKinstry's trumpet in a Haydn Concerto and. Anna Lien in a Harp concerto by Händel.  This programming decision allowed the full impact of the opera to sink in without the distraction of the violent Il Tabarro or the humorous Gianni Schicchi.

Before ending, we would like to share a bit of information that we never knew until we researched it. One of the earliest performances of Suor Angelica took place in the Tuscan convent to which Puccini's sister belonged. He played the score on the piano and sang all the roles himself; it was reported that all the nuns wept. Perhaps you will weep too when you see it...and we truly hope that you do. All subsequent performances will take place at 3:00PM this weekend and next.  Don't miss it!

© meche kroop

SHOWCASE OR NEW OPERA COMPANY?

Enes Pektas as Michele

Sarah Stevens as Giorgetta and David Freides as Luigi

With his typical modest manner, Glenn Morton, Director of Classic Lyric Arts Vocal Academy, introduced CLAVA's debut opera performance at The Blue Gallery. As a member of the audience we are not obligated to be modest. As a matter of fact, we are over the moon about a completely engaging performance of Il Tabarro, one third of Puccini's  Il Trittico. The singing was stellar with major roles performed by members of CLAVA and supporting roles cast with graduates of CLA's  immersive summer programs in Italy, France, and The Berkshires.

Adding to the immeasurable vocal thrills of the evening were three factors. The finely tuned direction of Daniel Isengart (a CLAVA Faculty Member) told the timeless story with specificity of detail and characterological honesty.  The conducting by Maestro Michelle Rofrano  built the intensity of Puccini's score to a fever pitch, relaxing only briefly for the dancing scene. The piano artistry of Doug Han who, by some kind of magic, created all the colors of the orchestra.

Mr. Isengart's stage direction was so specific that our guest, who speaks no Italian, was able to relate the story to us after the curtain.  And no, he did not read the synopsis. This was an experiment because there were no projected titles. Not only was the story well told, but each character was believable, evoking memories of real people.

As Michele, the Captain of the barge, we heard baritone Enes Pektas, whose Master's Degree recital we recently reviewed. (You can, Dear Reader, enter his name in the search bar if you missed the review.) His acting was so intense and brooding that we lost sight of the artist as someone we have seen and heard before. He actually became the character and we felt the pain of being betrayed. Although Giuseppi Adami's libretto is set a century ago, the story is a timeless one. The narcissistic injury endured by a man in a loveless marriage unable to retain his wife's affection can easily turn to murderous rage. That story is not unknown today.  The sullen vocal color infused Mr. Pektas' portrayal whilst he preserved his beautiful tonal quality and phrasing.

As his unhappy wife Giorgetta, soprano Sara Stevens (also reviewed several times this year for her performances as a Master's Degree student at Manhattan School of Music) turned in a most affecting performance. By means of vocal coloration she demonstrated the coldness she felt for her much older husband and the feminine energy she projected with Luigi, a stevedore on the barge. By some fine acting one could sense that she and her lover had a past that they shared. Indeed they both came from the same suburb of Paris and probably grew up together. All this was conveyed with facial gesture and posture, but probably came from a deep belief in the character. 

There was the lighthearted side of Giorgetta as well, when she brought wine to the stevedores and danced. There was even a funny moment when Tinca (played by John Viscardi, once a CLA student but now Coach and Artistic Director) tried clumsily to dance with her and stepped on her toes.

The character of Luigi the lover was wisely drawn by tenor David Freides who was careful not to make him too sympathetic. Did he deserve his fate? That was left for the viewer to decide. That he sang with beautiful tone might have prejudiced the audience to more sympathy than he deserved.

It is said in the theater that there are no small parts and that seems to be true in opera as well.  As evidence we offer the fine performance of mezzo-soprano Sofia Durante as La Frugola who comes on board with trinkets and gossip that she shares with Giorgetta. She immersed herself so completely in this voluble role that it took us a few minutes to recognize her as someone we have heard in concert several times before. 

As her husband Talpa, Alejandro De Los Santos made an equally fine showing. The carefree domestic affection between this pair served as counterpoint to the tense relationship between Michele and Giorgetta. This is something we never perceived before and for this we thank the direction.

As far as the setting, there is no actual stage in The Blue Gallery. A metal bar stretched horizontally across the playing area and we had no trouble perceiving it as the railing of the barge. Stevedores toting large boxes across the stage added to the illusion and reminded us that much can be accomplished with minimal material resources and a lot of imagination.

The minor characters were portrayed by Samuel Ng and Sofia Gotch singing from behind the audience and in a space up near the ceiling. This was not a problem since it served to focus attention on the major characters. Costuming was minimal and timeless.

Everything served to show us that opera is theater with gorgeous voices. Famous names and elaborate sets are not as important as the music and the storytelling, of which we had the very best!

A couple years ago the late and lamented On Site Opera produced this same opera at The Seaport (review can be found in the search bar) with action taking place on a ship and the audience seated on the dock. We enjoyed the realism but the voices required amplification. This made last night's performance even more valuable as we heard Puccini's vocal lines delivered with musicality and authenticity.

Without the obligation of bringing in famous names to fill a huge theater, opera can once again be restored to its original function and we applaud this aim. This opera was chosen by CLAVA, not to please an audience, but because they had the right singers for the roles. Would this model work for a small opera company in Manhattan? We very much think so and will be first in line for their next venture. Was this experience valuable for the young artists who participated in CLAVA? We definitely think so. Academic institutions cast them in contemporary operas no one else will ever produce, or in weird productions of great operas. But to get a chance to perform in an authentic production of a great opera means that they can sing these roles anywhere in the world. And we hope that they will!!!!!

© meche kroop

POVERA BUTTERFLY!

 Valeria Chibis, Charles Gray, Emi Noguchi, Tomoko Nago, Maestro Elizabeth Hastings, 

Nikhil Krishna, and Jihye Seo

It took several hours from the curtain call for us to compose ourself sufficiently to summarize our deeply felt experience with Amore Opera's production of Puccini's popular masterpiece Madama Butterfly. There were two aspects of the production that produced these intense feelings and we will deal with them in turn.

To begin with, soprano Jihye Seo turned in a performance that went straight to the heart. There was not a single vocal flaw to distract us from her dramatically valid performance. With beauty of tone, accuracy of phrasing, and excellent Italian, Ms. Seo caught nuances of Cio-Cio-San's journey that was no less challenging than Violetta's journey in Verdi's La Traviata.

She begins her journey as a naïve 15 year-old child with more stars in her eyes than there are in the sky on the night of her honeymoon. As a child she shows her few dear possessions to the older man to whom she has pledged her love.  She is innocent to the ways of the world and the cultural differences between herself and the transient American naval officer. She is all too willing to cut herself off from her family and her Buddhist faith. 

In the next act, we see from her meeting with Sharpless, the United States Consul at Nagasaki (Charles Gray), that she knows little of the ways of the world and is so immersed in denial of reality that the kindly Consul just gives up. Ms. Seo does show us a Cio-Cio San who has kept her faith in Pinkerton's return and has also made efforts to westernize herself.   Her "Un bel di vedremo" did not fail to move us with vocal beauty and dramatic honesty.  Poor Suzuki (Tomoko Nago) stands by Butterfly, seemingly more aware of reality but unwilling to confront her. The smarmy Goro (Mark Martinez) is only interested in how he can profit from the situation. 

By the time she is confronted with indisputable evidence of her abandonment, the childlike innocence drops away and Ms. Seo gives us a strong young woman who sees the future and rejects the two unacceptable options. Marriage to a wealthy oft-divorced Prince Yamadori (a most effective Ting-Yi Chen, who also made a fine angry Bonzu) or eking out a living to support her son without familial support seem equally unacceptable. With true grit and undeniable purpose she chooses the one option that her culture offers, that of suicide. Her fraught encounter with Kate, Pinkerton's new wife, offers her some relief that her beloved son will be cared for.  

So dramatically accurate and emotionally moving was Ms. Seo's performance that we had tears rolling down our face from Act II until the powerful ending.  We might add that Nikhil Krishna's Pinkerton accurately represented the attitude of a narcissist. It is not just the carelessness of colonialism but a true lack of compassion. Mr. Krishna's performance grew from Act I to Act III although the character of Pinkerton did not. He is simply a selfish child abuser whose final aria "Ah, son vil" is histrionic and performative. He will get back on his ship and will have forgotten this youthful episode. We secretly hoped that Kate (a lovely Valeria Chibis) will make his life miserable and devote herself to helping young Sorrow (Emi Noguchi) deal with the stress of growing up in 19th century America as a mixed race child.

As you may have guessed, Dear Reader, we were quite immersed in the story and now we will tell you the cause. It was the astute direction of Tami Swartz, whose Japanese background and diligent scholarship made the story more real, more impactful, and ultimately more satisfying. Some opera goers may think of Puccini's masterpiece as a love story but we have always seen it as a story of rampant colonialism and narcissistic child abuse. We were glad that Ms. Swartz sees it the same way. This production dates back about two decades when she did the research to make the production more authentic, tweaked the libretto, and starred as Cio-Cio San with her husband Adam Klein as Pinkerton for Harrisburg Opera.

Although we generally disapprove of changes to the classics, in this case the tweaking actually improved upon the original with a few minor changes and additions to the Illica/Giacosa libretto that enhanced the storytelling. The awkward playing space did not stand in the way of Ms. Swarz' directorial creativity. Even the aisles were put into service for the parade of relatives coming to the wedding. Other people in the audience seemed as enthralled as we were as evidenced by conversations in the lobby and in the ladies room. A standing ovation confirmed our impression.

Musical values were fine with Maestro Elizabeth Hastings in firm control of the orchestra. Costumes by Sarah Pearson seemed accurate to the time period which had been pushed back to mid 19th century for reasons of historical accuracy.

We cannot end without noting that the excellent cast deserved a more suitable playing space with the orchestra in a pit. Unfortunately, affordable spaces like that in Manhattan are as scarce as proverbial hen's teeth. These young singers occasionally had difficulty cutting through the dense orchestration, with the exception of Ms. Seo, whose soprano rose right above the orchestra. Lighting was also a problem with the entire space brightly lit, making the excellent titles rather difficult to read. Minor quibbles aside, it was a most worthwhile evening, one we will not soon forget. Actually we plan to attend another performance to see how things work with a different cast, so watch for an addendum.

© meche kroop

TWO OUT OF THREE WERE JUST RIGHT

 Deborah Love and Natalie Lewis (photo by Maria Baranova)

We did not feel at all cheated experiencing two of the three operas conceived by Puccini as a trilogy. There was enough aural beauty that we left the Peter Jay Sharp theater on opening night feeling totally satisfied by a tight production of the tragic Suor Angelica and a rollicking production of the comedy Gianni Schicchi. Fortunately, we eschewed reading the program until after the production, allowing it to speak for itself. Having read  John Giampietro's Director's Note, we think it valid to position both works as pleas for forgiveness and the achievement of moral redemption--valid, but rather a stretch and definitely unnecessary.

The gloomy grey setting used for both operas seemed more like a prison than a convent.  The "Synopsis" tells us that this is a contemporary "community of holy women" but we know, dear reader, that this is a convent and it is not contemporary. Not having read the notes in advance, we just thought of it as a convent since the dialogue makes it perfectly clear with references to the Virgin Mary and penitence and obedience. Whatever those blue scarves the women were fooling with, they were easy to ignore in favor of focusing on the musical values. Bringing set elements up onstage by removing tiles in the floor was just plain silly.

But oh, those musical values! Maestro Daniela Candillari made the most of the resources at hand--the completely magnificent Juilliard Orchestra which we would prefer to listen to than to the NYPhilharmonic. Mo. Candillari brought out more layers in the score than we had heard heretofore and achieved perfect balance to the orchestral sections.

The singing was fine with the heavy lifting done by Deborah Love as Sister Angelica, delivering a moving "Senza Mamma" with passionate intensity. There was quite a contrast with the Zia Principessa of brilliant mezzo-soprano Natalie Lewis (whose arrival in a gilded coach was translated as "vehicle" to fool us into thinking of this as happening in the 21st century).

Only in fundamentalist Muslim cultures are women so badly punished for an out-of-wedlock child; if some daring opera company decides to pick up that ball and run with it, we will probably beg off!

Ms. Lewis' rich lower register and austere body language were most persuasive and the tense scene between punitive aunt and wayward niece was most affecting. We believe it is a far better decision to keep this story in its own time and place--one in which a prominent aristocratic family would have suffered great shame by an out-of-wedlock birth. The marriageability of Angelica's sister would have been a major concern in the late 17th c. and jeopardized by scandal.

The other nuns don't get much chance to sing and it is challenging to tell one from another but we found the sincerity of Song Hee Lee as the guileless Suor Genovieffe to be touching as she confessed to still having desires to pet a lamb as she did in her former life as a shepherdess. There was something very alive and believable about her performance.

The costumes surely resembled nun's habits although they were lilac in color. A jagged golden crack in the wall was meant to suggest a fountain that glimmered from the sun only 3 days of the year. It was not convincing.

POVERA BUTTERFLY

Ana Maria Martinez and Joshua Guerrero in the final scene of Madama Butterfly at the Santa Fe Opera
(photo by Ken Howard for Santa Fe Opera)

We have been known to get a bit moist in the eye at the opera, but the last time we were reduced to bawling like a baby was in 2010 when Santa Fe Opera mounted Lee Blakeley's production  of Madama Butterfly. The tall and handsome tenor Brandon Jovanovich towered over the tiny soprano Kelly Kaduce, emphasizing the total imbalance of power in this exploitative relationship between an arrogant American naval lieutenant and an innocent and deluded 15-year-old Japanese geisha. Last night we saw a revival of this production, astutely directed by Matthew Ozawa and we completely "lost it".

With eight years of additional opera going experience, we realized that it was not only the terrific performances that produced such grief but Puccini's music, so affectingly played by the Santa Fe Orchestra under the baton of Maestro John Fiore. The program indicates that we are seeing the Brescia version but we thought we were hearing Puccini's original 1904 version, the La Scala premiere of which was considered so unsuccessful that Puccini revised the opera in many respects. Indeed, there are five iterations extant, but this one is, in our opinion, the most powerful.

Librettists Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa pulled no punches in their depiction of an arrogant sexist American lieutenant, here performed by tenor Joshua Guerrero. He made his character so loathsome that he was booed at the curtain call. There was no doubt that it was the character being booed, and not the performance, which was marked by fine Italianate phrasing and topnotch acting. His "Addio, fiorito asil" was gorgeously sung; if it was meant to evoke sympathy for his remorse, it failed. This character is totally involved with himself and his own feelings with little concern for his abandoned bride.

The role of Cio-Cio-San was magnificently performed by soprano Ana Maria Martinez whose "Un bel di vedremo" deserved all the applause it received. Ms. Martinez is not all that shorter than Mr. Guerrero; nonetheless, her acting achieved the same result as in the benchmark performance that affected us so greatly eight years ago. Some interesting directorial touches evoked the thought that Butterfly's suicide not only represented "death with honor" but also could be perceived as an act of anger, what with all the violently overturned chairs. This amounts to a Westernized psychoanalytic view of suicide. 

Aside from the strength of the depiction of the characters, what makes this version so powerful is the elimination of the intermission between Act II and Act III. Instead, the audience has the opportunity to join Butterfly in the overnight vigil as she waits for Pinkerton. The melancholy "Humming Chorus" sets the stage for our emotional devastation. The feeling of dread mounted in our chest and we felt ourself trembling. The confrontation between Butterfly and the new Mrs. Pinkerton, ably enacted by mezzo-soprano Hannah Hagerty, added to the dread. The sight of little Trouble pointing his dagger at Pinkerton next to the body of his dead mother was one of the most chilling sights we have seen at the opera. His future seems like one more aspect of the tragedy.

Baritone Nicholas Pallesen had the good fortune to portray the wise and kindly U.S. Consul Sharpless. His voice was splendid and his dramatic portrayal was filled with appropriate gesture. The poor man was unable to convince Pinkerton to behave better; nor was he able to reason with Butterfly. We completely believed him in the role.

The other realist of the evening was Suzuki, Butterfly's servant, performed to perfection by the excellent mezzo-soprano Megan Marino. Suzuki knows the score but cannot get Butterfly to face reality. Her loyalty is above reproach and she endures a bit of abuse from the angry Butterfly.

Another powerful performance was that of the angry Bonze, realized by bass Soloman Howard who commanded the stage. Tenor Matthew DiBattista made a very slimy Goro. Baritone Kenneth Stavert played the role of Prince Yamadori without the customary excess of foolishness; this was a fine idea because it emphasized the idea that Butterfly's rejection was based upon her delusion that Pinkerton would return and resume their marriage, not on the idea that Yamadori was a poor choice.

We were delighted to see other Apprentice Singers onstage. Bass-baritone Erik van Heyningen made an excellent Imperial Commissioner, and bass Colin Ramsey was equally fine as the Registrar, both of whom officiated at the marriage. 

Maestro Fiore's conducting presented the music we know and love, along with some music that had been cut when Puccini revised the opera. Puccini successfully combined lyrical Western melodies with Asian folks songs. The chorus, under the direction of Susanne Sheston, sang beautifully and intelligibly, even when offstage.

The set design by Jean-Marc Puissant gave us every possible Japanese signifier including cherry blossoms, lanterns, and shoji panels for Butterfly's home. During the overture, the house itself took shape as panels were carried on and installed. The audience could readily grasp the theme of impermanence. We noticed that the interval of three years was marked by some modernization by way of utility poles with electrical lines. The 20th c. had arrived.

We always have a small quibble and here it has to do with the lighting design of Rick Fisher who missed the chance to show the dawn of which Suzuki sings. The sky never brightened. But the street lights did turn off.

Brigitte Reiffenstuel's costume design was traditional.

This is the Madama Butterfly that we will remember and cherish.  We hope we will not have to wait another eight years to see it again.

(c) meche kroop

TURANDOT--SENZA PING PONG

Joseph Flaxman, Michael Pilafian, Therese Panicali, Judith Fredricks, Edgar Jaramillo, and Xueyan Fan

Tomorrow we will be listening to the broadcast of Turandot from Chicago Lyric Opera on WQXR; we don't expect to enjoy it nearly as much as we enjoyed Opera New York's production, heard last night at the Church of the Sacred Heart. 

Artistic and Stage Director Judith Fredricks produced a slightly abbreviated version of this beloved opera (Puccini's last and not-quite-finished score which premiered in 1926), omitting the scenes with Ping, Pang, and Pong, as well as the decapitation of the Prince of Persia. We find producing Turandot to be a brave choice; but if you have the voices, why not?

There were no projected titles but the enthusiastic audience received a program with a summary in English; a narrator spoke the summary in Spanish for the Spanish-speaking members of the audience. The opening decrees were spoken in English by Robert Montgomery.

The piano reduction was played by Michael Pilafian, who has played for many of Opera New York's productions. To our great surprise, soprano Elena Heimur played the other orchestral parts on the organ, situated above and behind the audience. Not a day goes by that we don't learn something new about the singers we love. So Ms. Heimur's proficiency at the organ simply dazzled us.

Ms. Fredricks' stage direction made the most of the space, utilizing the rear gallery and the aisle. We were so busy listening to the grand voices that we barely missed the huge spectacle provided at the Met. What we gained was a feeling for the intimate relationships of the four main characters. Behind the lavish sets and costumes, this is really a family story.

Our newbie guest wanted to know how father and son came to be separated and then reunited in a foreign land. We couldn't answer but we could certainly make up a back story. Se non è vero, è ben trovato!  Here goes!  Son went off to find his fame and fortune and a princess to be his bride.  Father lost his sight and was deposed and thrown out of his kingdom; wandering into the neighboring kingdom, he ran into his son on the street. He was being led around by his loyal and devoted slave girl who loved Calaf the Prince because he once smiled at her.  (OK folks, how'd I do?)

Calaf, sung by tenor Edgar Jaramillo with rich full tone and ringing high notes, is headstrong like many young men we know. He gets a glimpse of that radiant celestial Princess Turandot and is determined to win her, even with the risk of losing his head, like so many previous Princes had.  Of course, his helpless father is threatened and tries to dissuade him. Unsuccessfully. Mr. Jaramillo was exceptional in "Nessun dorma".

This icy Princess Turandot is bearing the weight of #MeToo. Because an ancestor of hers had been sorely abused and murdered, she is a real man-hater, eager to decapitate all comers by challenging them with difficult riddles. In this role, it was a pleasure to hear dramatic soprano Therese Panicali whose huge authoritative voice limned the character of Turandot in "In questa reggia". The fact that she is young, slender, and beautiful made Calaf's willingness to take the challenge more believable for us. We count ourself among those who want casting to be believable. She was even believable in her change of heart at the end, even without support from Puccini's pen.

The turning point for Turandot is Liu's willingness to take her life rather than reveal Calaf's name. She is being tortured by Turandot's minions and stabs herself so that she won't cave. In this role, soprano Xueyan Fan was also totally convincing. She did an excellent job of conveying the deference of a slave, while singing in impressive Italianate style. Of the entire cast, her role is the most sympathetic. We loved her "Signore, ascolta".

As the blind father Timur, Joseph Flaxman also did a fine job with great singing and some very effective simulation of blindness as he crouched over his walking staff.  Since the singer is young and handsome, this represented a triumph of acting.

This Turandot rested on the artistry of the singers. There were no sets and the costumes were rudimentary, but they worked. The small chorus (Brooke Dobossy, Betsy Cangelosi-Lind, Umberto Ross, and Patricia Ruiz) contributed to the success.

New York is replete with small opera companies, each with a unique approach. Unfortunately, we do not have affordable small theaters and these companies have been finding homes in churches. The surroundings are beautiful but the acoustics are spotty and one's auditory pleasure rests upon finding a seat in just the right spot. Won't some captain of industry build a small theater? We can just imagine how much that would improve the cultural landscape of New York City!

(c) meche kroop

GIANNI SCHICCHI ARE OPERA

Brett Vogel, Timothy Madden, Helaine Liebman, Drew Seigla, Allison Gish, Jay Lucas Chacon, Alanna Fraize, and Eamon Pereyra

This is the 100th anniversary of the premiere of Puccini's Il Trittico, of which Gianni Schicchi was the last of three one-act operas. It is the most popular of the three, probably because it not only contains some gorgeous melodies but because Giovacchino Forzano's libretto is hilarious. Forzano based his libretto on a minor character in Dante's Divine Comedy--actually a real live person in 13th c. Florence. Many of the characters have roots in commedia dell'arte.

Last night we attended the opening night of this masterpiece presented by ARE Opera at the Kraine Theater,  the sightlines of which make every seat a good one. The opera will be performed through Sunday.  ARE stands for "accessible. relatable, and enjoyable". Judging by the whooping and applause at the conclusion of the evening, they have found their audience.

The company debuted last May with a stellar production of Rossini's Cenerentola, with the audience surrounding the action, a situation that enhanced the immersive quality. In spite of admirable musical values, last night's production felt more alienating than involving. We don't attribute this alienation to the proscenium type stage. We sat on the front row but did not feel involved.

Although we have sometimes enjoyed an opera brought up to date, in this case we did not for many reasons. When we see operas set in other time periods we like to do the work ourselves, the work of considering how the desires and fears of the characters are echoed in the present time. We think of lovers we know who have been betrayed, of fathers who have alienated their children, of people who put duty ahead of desire. To have a director try so hard to make a point feels like spoon-feeding. 

It is likely that there were not many Italophones in the audience, but for us, or anyone who is familiar with the libretto, to hear the libretto sung accurately (and beautifully sung we might add) whilst the projected subtitles are saying something completely different, is disturbing. The libretto was shoehorned into a concept that only an inexperienced director (or one who directs cinema perhaps) would devise.

Singing about the New York skyline is just lacking in the flavor of Florence. The dead aristocrat Buoso lives on Park Avenue and is wearing a red onesie. His aristocratic family grasping after his inheritance bore no resemblance to the wealthy folk of Manhattan. The wealthy folk of today contest wills in court. The story loses its significance in the updating.

Instead of leaving his money to the monks, this Buoso left it to the Make-a-Wish Foundation. It is one thing to laugh at a medieval man leaving his land and his mill and his mule to the monks; it is quite another thing for a 21st c. man to leave his yacht and his home in the Hamptons to an organization that fills the dying wishes of children with cancer.  When the titles read about the family's scornful opinion of dying children, it just ISN'T FUNNY!

When the notary arrives, in this case an attorney we imagine, he is accompanied not by a cobbler and a dyer but by a "stylist".  We suppose he styled the red onesie!

Dr. Spinelloccio, as the titles indicate "Johns Hopkins and Harvard trained", is dressed in slovenly fashion, a doctor that no Park Avenue resident would employ as personal physician.

Schicchi threatening the family with prison if they reveal his duplicity does not carry the same weight as the threat of cutting off the hand, as the libretto indicates.  It is a marvelous moment in the opera when Schicchi dictates his will to the notary and waves his hand in the air to warn the family.

We could go on and on about the failures of this concept and its execution. But the audience laughed and presumably had a great time. They obviously found it more "relatable" than we did.

We rather chose to focus on the performances which were all fine. Baritone Patrick McNally made a wily Schicchi and seemed very much at home in the role. The program contained no bios but we warrant that he has performed this role before. We liked the fullness of his voice and his dramatic instincts.

Tenor Eamon Pereyra sang sweetly as Rinuccio and aced his big aria "Firenze e comé un albero fiorioto"; Rinuccio wants very much to marry Schicchi's daughter Lauretta, beautifully sung by Rachel Policar who gave us a lovely "O mio babbino caro" with the titles telling us that she would throw herself into the East River if she couldn't go to Tiffany's for a ring. The two also had a lovely duet together--"Lauretta mia".

As Rinuccio's Zia Zita, mezzo-soprano Allison Gish employed her substantial instrument and stage presence to create a character. She seemed to be a bit over-directed as an alcoholic.

Timothy Madden's deeply resonant bass-baritone was just right for the role of Simone, the eldest and the wisest among the family.  Baritone Jay Lucas Chacon made a fine Marco with mezzo-soprano Alanna Fraize equally fine as his wife. But her exercising him on the floor of the dead Buoso made it look as if she were a visiting yoga teacher. Just another example of an inexperienced director trying too hard.

Tenor Drew Seigla sang the role of Gherardo with soprano Helaine Liebman performing his wife Nella.  Instead of the little boy Gherardino they had a very spoiled daughter Gherardina (Ella Scronic Jaffe) who kept holding her papa up for funds.

The role of Betto was well sung by bass Brett Vogel. Betto is the "poor relation" and an opportunity was missed to dress him less fashionably than the others. But the others were not stylishly dressed.  The family is supposed to resent Schicchi for being a peasant but in this production he was the most elegant one onstage.

Bass Alexander Sheerin was effective as Dottore Spinelloccio, in spite of the slovenly attire. Baritone Andrew O'Shanick portrayed the notary/attorney and actually looked right for the part. His two witnesses were the basses Steven Ralph and Nathanael Taylor.

Maestro Jonathan Heaney conducted with his customary sure hand and Andrew Sun played the keyboard as if it were the full orchestra. 

In sum, all the singers performed admirably but deserved better direction. We want to believe what we see onstage!

We admire ARE Opera for their mission and they have certainly engaged the audience and have brought opera to the public for a very modest ticket price. They also have a mission of engaging youth and have programs to foster opera appreciation in the schools and programs to prepare high school students for conservatory auditions. They deserve your support.

(c) meche kroop

WE HEART AMORE OPERA

Jose Heredia, Dilara Unsal, and Jonathan Green (photo by Nathan Hull) in Tosca

Every small opera company in New York occupies a different niche and we value Amore Opera for bringing the classics up close and personal while utilizing a full orchestra. Some operas belong on the stage of The Metropolitan Opera and some seem to demand a more intimate venue. We never thought so about Tosca but last night's experience demonstrated what a very personal story this is.

We were asking ourselves what is so special about Tosca that we never tire of it. First of all, Puccini's work is so melodic that the tunes dance around one's head long after one leaves the opera house, and his orchestrations are lavish. The libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa is filled with romantic and political passion--so refreshing in the current era of irony; the story was adapted from an earlier play by Sardou.

The opera had a difficult conception with lots of turmoil but somehow the conflicts got resolved and we were left with a work of astonishing power and a straightforward arc from start to finish without the longueurs that plague some other operas. One dare not snooze in Tosca, not even for a minute.

Furthermore, the opera offers three starring roles that allow great singers the opportunity to show their vocal and dramatic chops. Opening night of Amore Opera's production took place in the comfortable Riverside Theater and put three superlative singers onstage. There are alternating casts for tonight's performance and for the Sunday matinee and the production will go onstage next week Wednesday through Sunday. We looked over the casting and feel comfortable recommending all of them, having recognized singers of whom we hold a high opinion.

But let's talk about last night. In the title role, soprano Dilara Unsal was in full command of her prodigious talents--a sizable soprano with great power to cut through Puccini's dense orchestration, and a total commitment to her character. She was every inch a diva, self-possessed and demanding of attention and adoration--but also very loving and devoted to her man. Caught in Scarpia's net, she sang "Vissi d'arte" as finely as we've ever heard.

In the role of the painter Mario Cavaradossi, tenor Jose Heredia used his fine instrument well, creating a warm and full-throated sound without the pushing that bothers us in so many young tenors. He begins the opera as a carefree young man in love, delighting us with "Recondita armonia". Then he must mollify the jealous Tosca with a beautifully rendered aria "Qual'occhio al mondo".

He must then cope with his panic stricken friend Angelotti (portrayed by bass Kofi Hayford) who has just escaped from prison. Then he must deal with cross-examination and torture ordered by the evil Scarpia and his anger at what he believes to be Tosca's betrayal. And finally he must deal with a premature death.  "E lucevan le stelle" was sung with great depth of feeling.

Tosca's arrival at the prison has him praising her tenderly with "O dolci mani". All of these emotional shifts were captured by Mr. Heredia with vocal coloration and dynamic variation.

With his excellent baritone, Jonathan Green made a persuasive Scarpia, the man we love to hate. Scarpia is one of the most loathsome characters in the operatic canon. He uses his political power to intimidate and force himself on Tosca. (We think of the current Harvey Weinstein scandal in Hollywood. Plus ca change plus c'est la meme chose.) When Tosca stabs him and cries "Mori, mori", we smile with satisfaction.

Tenor Marc Khuri-Yakub made a believable Spoletta, acting on Scarpia's orders and taking his abuse. Bass Trey Sandusky performed the role of Sciarrone, Scarpia's orderly.

Baritone Gennadiy Vysotskiy added some humor in Act I, portraying the judgmental and devout Sacristan of the church in which Cavaradossi is doing his painting.

Isabella Reichenbach was inaudible as a young shepherd.

Which brings us to the issue of the orchestra.  The Riverside Theater is a comfortable theater but the orchestra "pit" is not exactly sunken and only the strong voices of the principals were consistently audible. Maestro Richard Cordova did his best to control the volume but Puccini's orchestration is dense. The brasses came on strong in the beginning and we enjoyed the work of the winds and percussionist. But oh, those strings! There were significant problems with intonation.

Direction by Nathan Hull was as apt as ever. Costume Design by Cynthia Psoras was a propos. The opera is set exactly a century before it was written, at the time of the turn of the 18th c. when Napoleon was returning to take over the papal province of Rome from the Neapolitans. The Empire costuming seemed just right.

Sets were probably left over from the days of Amore's predecessor, Amato Opera; they seemed shopworn but served the purpose. We came for the singing which was glorious, not for the sets.

Although Amore Opera is famous for its productions of the classics, we would be remiss if we did not mention La Zingara, a rarely produced opera by Donizetti which we absolutely loved last Spring during its American premiere! (The review is archived and available through the "search bar".) There will be a reprise on October 24 and a matinee on October 28th. If you missed your chance last season, now's your chance for a fun evening which balances the Puccini tragedy quite well.

(c) meche kroop

WOMEN ON THE VERGE

Rachel Stewart

Years ago there was a saying about double features--"one piperoo, one stinkeroo". Let no one say that about the operatic double feature we enjoyed last night performed by the Opera Repertoire Ensemble of Manhattan School of Music.  Actually, there was plenty of resonance between the two tales of female suicide.

The heroine of Francis Poulenc's 1959 monodrama La Voix Humaine (adapted from a play by Jean Cocteau) suffers from romantic illusions whilst the heroine of Puccini's 1918 Suor Angelica suffers from religious illusions (or delusions, as the case may be).

   

Monica Talavera and Amber Evans

In both cases, the women have put their centers of gravity outside themselves, one willingly and the other as a victim of cultural and familial forces. The pairing, taking Suor Angelica out of it's place in Puccini's oft-produced trilogy, leads us to see the work in a new light. The only downside is leaving the theater feeling the full force of the tragedy without the relief of Puccini's light-hearted comedy Gianni Schicchi.

In the Poulenc, a woman with no name is having a much interrupted conversation with a lover who has ended the relationship. Clearly she is not ready to let him go and is still using terms of endearment. The role calls upon the soprano to sing a minimalistic vocal line based upon French speech patterns, and to inject her
lines with a full spectrum of emotions.

The listener hears only her half of the conversation.  The words of the man are left to the imagination of the listener to fill in from his/her own experience. He must obviously care for the woman to some extent to stay on the phone and listen to her protestations of love and her made-up stories which she later recants.

Continual interruptions and disconnections add to the fragmentary nature of the monologue, and are symbolic of the emotional disconnection. As "Elle", soprano Rachel Stewart rose to the vocal challenges and gave a shattering performance, involving the audience by means of her own involvement with the role. We wonder about a character who would give up her life for five years and center it around a man--but this was over a half century ago.  Autre temps, autre moeurs. 

Even further back in history, a century ago, getting pregnant out of wedlock was enough to cause a family to reject the unfortunate mother-to-be and to hustle her off to a convent to do penance for her "sin". Nowadays women who prefer to be unwed can deliberately create a child and raise it alone or en famille.

Suor Angelica's aristocratic family has immured her in a convent and deprived her of any contact. She suffers mightily from neglect and wants nothing more than to embrace her son. When she finally gets the longed-for visit from her aunt, La Principessa, there is no forgiveness or acceptance. The purpose of the visit is to get her to sign over her inheritance. Even worse, she learns that her child died several years earlier.

She poisons herself with an herbal concoction, becomes terrified about being damned, prays, and believe herself forgiven. She hallucinates her child welcoming her to heaven.

With meager resources at hand, the Opera Repertoire Ensemble gave the piece an excellent production, thanks to the breadth of vocal talent available.  The piece opens with the superb chorus singing an Ave Maria. The eponymous Suor Angelica was sung by the excellent soprano Amber Evans who was moving in her portrayal and sang with a light clear tone regardless of whether she was in ecstasy or despair.

The other superb performance was that of contralto Monica Talavera who created a character who was as cold as she was arrogant; her rich instrument stood in lovely contrast with Ms. Evans' soprano.

The entire cast of nuns sounded wonderful with voices raised in gorgeous harmonies and the brief solo lines were well handled by each and every nun.

Although we missed Puccini's lush orchestrations, a great job was done by pianists Jiwon Byung and Yi Xin Tan together with Jia Jun Hong filling in with special effects on the synthesizer.

As usual, Maestro Thomas Muraco's sensitive conducting pulled everything together to create a most worthwhile evening. Watching his hands is a treat in and of itself.

There will be a second performance tonight with some cast changes and we recommend it highly if you can snag a ticket. Last night had a waiting line to deal with so go early.

(c) meche kroop

PUCCINI'S SPAGHETTI WESTERN (or Minnie, Get Your Gun)

Mark Delavan and Patricia Racette (photo by Ken Howard)

Puccini's heroines have been called "piccole donne" but upon closer examination we observe that they have great strength of character.  In the case of La Fanciulla del West, seen last night at the Santa Fe Opera, Minnie, the titular character, manages to handle a large diverse group of gritty miners and also to fight for her man.  The libretto was derived from Girl of the Golden West, a play by David Belasco, who also wrote the play which inspired Puccini's Madama Butterfly.

Belasco wanted to portray the West with a realism unknown at the turn of the 20th century. The men in the mining camps of  mid 19th c. California participated in the Gold Rush to provide for their families or to get rich.  They came from all over and often suffered from despair and loneliness. Somehow we were made to think of Ping, Pang, and Pong  in Puccini's Turandot, longing for the peace and comfort of home.

Minnie is a notoriously difficult role to sing but soprano Patricia Racette rose to the challenge, tackling the difficult tessitura with her customary aplomb and throwing herself completely into the role, earning a vociferous standing ovation at the end.  Minnie, with all her life experience, has never been kissed and experiences her first romance with the gentleman bandit Ramerrez, alias Dick Johnson, who is leader of a band of highwaymen, come to her saloon probably to rob the men of their savings.

They fall in love and Minnie, with impressive loyalty, overcomes her anger at the deception, and hides Johnson (tenor Gwyn Hughes Jones) from Sheriff Jack Rance (bass-baritone Mark Delavan). Both male roles were sung with fine tone and commitment, providing a dramatic situation of great suspense.

We particularly enjoyed the scene in which Minnie, generally an honorable sort, resorts to cheating at poker to make sure that she beats Rance, who is so taken with her that he was willing to pay $1000. for a kiss--a kiss she happily gave to Johnson for free. At this point in the story, Puccini's music fades away and there is only the low murmur of the kettle drums. Of course, we know what is going to happen and yet Puccini's magic had us on the edge of our seat. 

Emmanuel Villaume's conducting was exemplary, as was the work of the chorus (directed by Susanne Sheston).  Actually, the miners are not exactly a chorus, since each man has a name and a specific personality.  One of them, Larkens (Adrian Smith), is so lonely and depressed that his buddies take up a collection to send him home. Baritone Craig Verm made a fine showing as the reasonable Sonora. The Wells Fargo agent Ashby was well portrayed by bass Raymond Aceto. The sizable role of Nick the bartender was finely enacted by tenor Allan Glassman.

We recognized several of the Apprentices as well, including baritone Jared Bybee as Handsome,  tenor Galeano Salas in the chorus, and a strangely pregnant Wokle sung by Kristen Choi .

If there was any fault to be found in this splendid evening, it would have to be the production, which was a co-production with the English National Opera.  Director Richard Jones seemed to lack a feel for place and period and the spare sets by Miriam Buether  failed to convince.  The saloon had a tin ceiling but the bare metal tables and chairs looked entirely too slick and modern.  And why would the Marshall's Office have a large picture window? Mimi's cabin did sport gas lighting but looked neither weathered nor thrown together. It reminded us of a skier's A-frame.

We did like the set-up of showing Minnie's office off to one side of the saloon and another room to the other side, where the miners withdrew to dance with one another, somewhat reminiscent of the four young men of La Boheme who prance around their garret to keep their spirits up.

 

The miner's costumes (Nicky Gellibrand) were appropriately scruffy but Minnie's dresses did not suggest the period of the Gold Rush.

The hanging scene in the final act was particularly poorly handled. We can surely overlook the lack of horses onstage but there was no scaffolding set up, nor even a tree-- just a box only a few inches off the ground and a rope descending from on high. This hanging would never have worked!

Fortunately, the excellent cast and marvelous music trumped the production's shortcomings.

© meche kroop

TWO IMPRESSIVE DEBUTS at WEILL RECITAL HALL

Melody Moore (photo by Chip Gillespie)

Benjamin Perry Wenzelberg

It isn't every day that we get to celebrate two debuts--that of the aptly named famous soprano Melody Moore, heretofore unknown to us, and that of musical wunderkind Benjamin Perry Wenzelberg, about whom we have been writing  for several years.  Mr. Wenzelberg sings, conducts, plays several instruments and composes. He is finishing his first opera.  But last night's impressive debut was a song he was commissioned to write for Ms. Moore.

It isn't every day that we hear the "f word" in Carnegie Hall and that is another first that we will get to further along in our review

Ms. Moore has been making quite a name for herself with her highly dramatic interpretations and warm stage presence.  The list of roles she has tackled and those upcoming give one the impression of astonishing versatility--Mozart, Wagner, Puccini, Verdi, Bizet, and Jerome Kern are all represented. With collaborative pianist Robert Mollicone, she held the Weill Recital Hall audience in rapt attention. 

Stefano Donaudy and Ottorino Respighi were contemporaries but their turn of the 20th c. songs could not be more different.  Donaudy looked backward to the 19th c. that we so love and Ms. Moore sang his "Amorosi miei giorni" with an attractive vibrato and well-shaped phrasing. The embellishments were superbly handled and we are hoping that Ms. Moore may get interested in the bel canto repertory.

Respighi's work looked more toward the future with less glorious melodic invention but more interesting harmonic structure.  Ms. Moore sang his "Notte" with gorgeous coloring. 

But nothing captivated us as much as  Puccini's early song "Sole e amore" to which, we believe, he wrote the text himself. We felt our eyes tearing up and realized that the melody and accompaniment were almost identical with those heard in his opera La Bohème!

Claude Debussy, a contemporary of Puccini, distinguished himself from his colleagues by setting prose and free verse that he wrote himself.  Thus what we are hearing seems to be an aural counterpart to paintings of the Impressionist school, although Debussy vociferously objected to his music being called impressionistic.  One's ears are surrounded by beauty that is mutable and unstable.

We were delighted to be introduced to his Proses lyriques, in which Ms. Moore and Mr. Mollicone painted pictures in sound.  In "De grève", the piano provided multiple images of the sea, both at rest and in its wildest moments. The final song "De soir" gave the singer an opportunity to paint auditory portraits of Debussy's varied images by means of gesture and vocal coloring.

The second half of the program began with Strauss songs, in which Ms. Moore's operatic voice seemed more at home. In the first half, the bronchitis which she had pushed aside (a less confident artist might have begged the audience's indulgence) lent a somewhat hard edge to her voice when she pushed for volume in the upper range. But in the Strauss, everything sounded just fine. 

We always love the bittersweet "Befreit" from his Op.39 in which the words speak of joy but the occasion is one of releasing a loved one to death. We heard a beautifully modulated performance in which Ms. Moore spun out the final note to great emotional effect.

The final work on the program sprang from an original idea. Ms. Moore asked five composers to set texts by a poet of whom she is very fond, Clementine von Radics. This young poet has been well-celebrated; we can understand why her texts about the female experience of love have resonated with her readers.

But when we read the texts they seemed to us like novelistic prose, requiring no music to make their impact. Obviously, the five composers felt otherwise and managed to make music for Ms. Moore and Mr. Mollicone to perform.

Having just reviewed an evening of Stephen Schwartz' music at Manhattan School of Music, we were most eager to hear what this versatile composer, equally at home with Broadway musicals and opera, would add to the text. We found he was the most successful of the group at emphasizing the vocal line, making it interesting and singable. His lyricism is wondrously accessible and he knows how to write for the voice so that every single word can be understood. We liked the way he used repetition, especially of the word "river" in "Someday I Will Stop Being Young and Wanting Stupid Tattoos".

It is interesting that Mr. Wenzelberg became friendly with Ms. Moore on the set of Mr. Schwartz' 2011 opera Séance on a Wet Afternoon, one of a very few contemporary operas that we would want to see a second time. We care not a whit if other reviewers find his work "too accessible"!

As far as the texts set by other composers, we admired the pianistic writing more than the vocal line. Since certain verses and lines were omitted from the program notes, there were many phrases that went by without comprehension, although it was no challenge to get the gist of what Ms. Moore was singing about.

Each composer was able to choose the text he wanted to set and Mr. Wenzelberg had felt a special affinity for "Some Things You Could Do to Heal Yourself".  We loved the dramatic intensity and the melismatic vocal line on the word "silly".

Scott Gendel's setting had some lovely writing for piano and Gregg Kallor wrote a suitably quiet setting for the text of "A Prayer".  David Hanlon wrote the cabaret-inflected music for "Poems and Other Sentimental Bullshit". 

It was in this song that the f-bomb was dropped. At the risk of sounding prudish, we do not find the "f word" suitable in an art song.  Clearly we were outvoted since the audience seemed to love this instance of  épater le bourgeois.  We would prefer "sentimental bullshit"!

As encore, Ms. Moore sang Mr. Rogers' song "It's You I Like", an original way to end the evening.

(c) meche kroop