A MARRIAGE, A FUNERAL, AND A HAPPY ENDING

Aumna Iqbal, Marques Hollie, and Joyce Yin in Caccini's Euridice

Music can lift our spirits, bring us catharsis for sorrow, and produce feelings of oneness with the universe.  But can it bring the dead to life? That is a myth the Ancients would have us believe. The demigod Orpheus played and sang so beautifully that he was able to soften the heart of Pluto, god of the underworld, and thereby guide his beloved Euridice back to Earth.

What a perfect story for a new musical form, devised in 1600. Many opera goers credit Monteverdi as the first composer of opera but the oldest surviving score is that of Giulio Caccini who used a libretto by Ottavio Rinuccini--also used by Jacopo Peri. We understand there was a race to get the opera performed.  These scholarly points matter little to us. What matters to us is that the the fearless and endlessly creative Cantanti Project underwent the project of restoring Caccini's work to vibrant life.

At the turn of the 17th c. there were no theatrical conventions for opera as new ground was being broken. Harking back to antiquity, a Greek Chorus was used to narrate and the characters  sang lovely melodic phrases to each other simply and directly with minimal artifice. 

In this telling of the tale, the chorus of shepherds and nymphs tells us of the joys of the happy couple, Orfeo and Euridice.  Euridice (Artistic Director soprano Joyce Yin) celebrates with her friends, dancing and singing her joy. The celebration of Orfeo (mezzo-soprano Aumna Iqbal) and his friends is somewhat randy with teasing and masculine energy.

The sad news that Euridice has died of a snakebite is brought by Dafne (soprano Elyse Anne Kakacek). Arcetro (soprano Laura Mitchell) tells of the arrival of the goddess Venus (mezzo-soprano Brittany Fowler) who will carry Orfeo to the underworld in her chariot. She encourages him to use his musical talent to sway Pluto, god of the underworld.

At first, Pluto (bass-baritone Tom Corbeil) is intransigent. Returning the dead to Earth is not in his playbook. The intervention of his wife Proserpina (soprano Lydia Dahling) has a powerful effect and Orfeo gets to take Euridice home.

The good news is spread by Aminta (tenor Marquis Hollie) who unites the loving couple and everyone celebrates.

Under the divine direction of Bea (Brittany) Goodwin, the entire cast (including tenor Michael Celentano in the dual roles of Tirsi and Caronte (Charon), the tale was told with integrity and sincerity. We expected the fine singing that we heard from the cast but were astonished by their facility with body movement. We concluded that several of the female cast members had experienced  ballet training at some point. Ms. Yin was particularly affecting in her joyful turns and arabesques. We loved the physicality of the production as much as the singing.

Musical accompaniment was provided by Dorian Baroque with Dylan Sauerwald conducting from the harpsichord. The instrumentation was given to John Mark Rozendaal who bowed his Viola da Gamba with impressive lyricism, to Paul Holmes Morton who dazzled us with his control of the long necked Theorbo, and the plangently plucked Harp of Christa Patton. There were passages in which only one or two instruments were heard.

The singing was lovely all around and the production generated optimistic feelings. We wondered what the audience might have thought and felt four centuries ago. We imagine that this novel form of entertainment must have made a hit because opera continued to grow and evolve.

We would add that Alexandria Hoffman's simple costume designs were effective, as were the simple props.

This is only Cantanti Project's fourth season but they have already given us a number of memorable evenings, including a radical interpretation of Handel's Orlando. Although they are not a repertory company, their reputation ensures that they can attract a stellar cast, as evidenced by the outstanding performances we heard in this production of Euridice.

(c) meche kroop

THAT SCOTTISH OPERA

Mary Ann Stewart as Lady Macbeth (photo by Brian Long)

Dell'Arte Opera Ensemble's "Summer of Shakespeare" is providing an oasis of opera for thirsty opera-lovers in the midst of summer's desert.  We have only good things to say about the production of Verdi's Macbeth which was given some admirable direction by Myra Cordell.  We favor the traditional and Ms. Cordell hewed closely to period, place and dramatic intent.  (The last Macbeth we saw at the Met involved some peculiar artistic choices so we were especially pleased with this production.)  One coup de theatre that we appreciated -- when Banco is murdered, his body is left on the floor, only to rise as his ghost in the banquet scene.

Musical value were excellent all around.  Maestro Christopher Fecteau marshaled the forces of his twenty excellent musicians and from the very first oboe solo we knew that they and we were in good hands.  The strings were situated to our left and the winds and percussion at the rear of the playing area, leading to a most interesting stereophonic effect.  We particularly liked Ellen Hindson's English Horn; Barbara Allen made some interesting sounds for the witches sabbath.

Mary Ann Stewart, a winner of the Osgood/Dell'Arte Opera Ensemble prize. just about stole the show with her riveting performance as Lady Macbeth.  Her sizable soprano was used effectively with notable skill in the coloratura embellishments that lingered from Verdi's bel canto predecessors.  Moreover, her acting was first-rate as she rotated through encouragement, importuning, shaming and manipulation to get Macbeth to do her bidding. Her "Vieni! t'affretta" in Act I was a real show-stopper.

As the eponymous (anti)hero, tenor Jason Plourde was equally convincing as the weak Thane who becomes greedy for power at the behest of his wife.  One could almost feel sorry for him as he was seduced by the predictions of the witches.

The three witches were outstanding. Soprano Monica Niemi's voice rang out in clarion tones with mezzo-sopranos Elizabeth Bouk and Jackie Hayes in fine collaboration.

We are always delighted to hear new voices in small roles that we hope to hear more of in the future.  Tenor Marques Hollie sounded just grand as Malcolm; we noticed his beautiful sound earlier in the evening as part of the ensemble.  Isaac Assor, reviewed twice before at the Manhattan School of Music Summer Voice Festival, also stood out with his fine full sound.

Milica Nikcevic always gets our attention; she won the Osgood/dell'Arte Opera Ensemble prize in 2013.  And bass Hans Tashjian excelled as Banco, sounding better than ever.

With minimal resources, Nina Bova created costumes that were simple but effective.  The three "weird sisters" wore tattered capes over tights and sported wild hair and gruesome makeup.  The men wore sashes of their respective clans and Lady Macbeth a long dun-colored dress with impressive jewelry around her neck.

Karen Tashjian's simple scenic design comprised a low platform upstage, flanked by slender tree trunks.  Lighting designer Scott Schneider cleverly produced a cauldron substitute into which the three witches could throw their nasty bits.

There will be two more performances on 8/22 and 8/24.  We hope there will still be a couple seats available.

(c) meche kroop