LOVE: RUSSIAN STYLE

Dina Pruzhansky, Briana Hunter, Meryl Dominguez, Sungwook Kim, and Paul An

In its annual coproduction with the Lyric Chamber Music Society, Bare Opera presented a delightful evening of Russian song and arias. The cast could not have been better chosen, nor could the material have been better curated. Composer/pianist Dina Pruzhansky contributed to the pleasure in several ways--first by narrating and introducing the selections, encouraging the singers to give their take on the material--but, more significantly by her stunning pianism.

Regular readers will recall our distaste for contemporary compositions but the pen of Ms. Pruzhansky plays a different tune, paying tribute to the composers of the 19th c. whom we so greatly admire. We do love melody and her songs have no lack of melodic invention. We noticed most of all how well the melodies reflected the sound of the Russian language. One advantage of hearing songs in a language one doesn't speak is that one can hear the abstract connection between the language of the poet and the rise and fall of the vocal line.

The poet in question was Alexander Blok, a symbolist poet whose words were probably not completely comprehensible in Russian and rather untranslatable into English. In this case, tant mieux! Meryl Dominguez, a singer we remember well from Santa Fe Opera, gave the four miniatures an excellent performance with great attention paid to the sound of the words. Each song had a different mood and the final one was filled with anxiety. We are really looking forward to hearing more of Ms. Pruzhansky's music at Carnegie Hall on March 3rd.

Ms. Dominguez' soprano is a generous one and her performance of Shemakha's "Hymn to the Sun" from Rimsky-Korsakov's The Golden Cockerel was glorious in its melismatic seduction, all done in an Eastern mode. Her voice opened like a parasol at the top of the register. We loved that opera in Santa Fe when Ms. Dominguez was in the chorus. We would love even more to hear her sing the role of Shemakha! We shall put that on our wish list.

Mezzo-soprano Briana Hunter, always astonishing in her ability to enter a role and give it all she's got, gave an outstanding performance of Olga's arioso "Ah, Tanya, Tanya" from Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin. She explained to the audience how unusual it was to assign the role of a light hearted girl to the mezzo fach; yet when she sang it the feeling was perfectly natural and it was easy to visualize the reserved Tanya sitting in a chair nearby, mildly accepting the loving teasing from her extroverted sister.

The sister, we know, is no saint and somewhat lacking in judgment, having also teased her devoted Lensky by flirting outrageously with Onegin, thus provoking a duel--which takes us to the next selection on the program. Tenor Sungwook Kim was so convincing in Lensky's aria "Kuda, kuda" that our emotions got drawn in. We had to stifle the urge to rush up and stop the duel! And Mr. Kim accomplished all this with pure vowels and crisp consonants. He paced himself well and built to a searing climax.

Bass Paul An shone in Aleko's cavatina "The entire Gypsy camp is asleep" from Rachmaninoff's first opera Aleko, adapted from Pushkin's poetry, as was Eugene Onegin, and so many other works on the program. The piano prelude was particularly portentous. Mr. An impressed us with a pianissimo note, floated at the upper end of the register; this is exactly what we like to hear from tenors and hearing it from a bass just blew us away.

Strangely enough, three days ago we reviewed a song cycle by Janáček about a young peasant who runs off with a gypsy woman. Aleko begins where that cycle ends!

Three songs by Rachmaninoff were finely handled as well. Ms. Dominguez exhibited her fine vibrato in the upper register in "Sleep" whilst Ms. Pruzhansky's piano created a dreamlike state with some gorgeous arpeggi.

Mr. Kim performed "Dream" in lovely fashion; he surely knows how to swell a note in careful crescendo and how to hold a note with sustained energy--all evidence of superlative breath control. He generated lots of excitement in an expansive delivery of "Spring Waters", amplified by parallel excitement in the piano.

Ms. Pruzhansky delighted us with a solo--Tchaikovsky's Nocturne in C# minor, begun at a leisurely tempo but moving on to a livelier theme and ending with what in vocal performance would be called embellishment of the line. We hope pianists will forgive our lame description but we are unaccustomed to writing about piano music.

The conclusion of the program was a quartet by Alexandre Dubuque, a 19th c. composer of French origin who was raised in Russia. The song "Don't Be Cunning" involved men making advances and women rejecting them. The gimmick of the performance, which took it right into the 21st century, was that the men kept trying to take selfies with the women. It was all in good fun and made the perfect end for a perfect concert.

© meche kroop

I'M DREAMING OF.....

Laetitia Ruccolo, Kirsten Scott, Eugenia Forteza, and Matthan Black

This was not your typical Christmas concert. It was more like an intimate gathering of friends. The salon setting in Williamsburg was comfortable and spacious. The material that was chosen seemed to be of a personal interest to the artists--songs remembered from childhood, songs popular in their country of birth, songs they loved.

Mezzo-soprano Kirsten Scott (Co-Founder of Bare Opera, along with Maître de Chant Laetitia Ruccolo) led off the evening's program with Martin and Blane's "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas". This is a song we've heard so often that it has bored us silly.  But-- big but-- Ms. Scott made it new and fresh. We don't think we've ever enjoyed it as much, Ms. Scott having revealed more feeling than we've ever observed--and without a whiff off "cross-over" condescension.

The versatile Ms. Scott gave a stirring rendition of "Chacun à son goût" from Johann Strauss II's. Die Fledermaus. We believe the first time we heard her perform this was a few years ago with Martina Arroyo's Prelude to Performance. We enjoyed it so much we hope that she keeps it as an encore piece.  We loved the way she wandered among the guests and engaged them, truly immersing herself in the part of Prince Orlovsky.

Soprano Claire de Monteil, who is new to us, thrilled us with a truly Gallic "La Vie en Rose". She is the recipient of an award from Opera Index and we hope to hear her gorgeous voice at  the gala in January.

She also performed along with baritone Sungwook Kim in Adolphe Adam's "O Holy Night" creating a spiritual mood in direct contrast with Prince Orlovsky's party song.  We heard verses sung in the original French (our favorite), in Korean, and in well enunciated English. When we heard the phrase "the weary world" it truly resonated with us.

Mr. Kim also gave us an excellent "Every Valley" from Händel's Messiah with a very spirited accompaniment from Ms. Ruccolo on the keyboard. Every word was clear, a situation we never take for granted. He showed off a flexible instrument and a truly excellent trill.

Mezzo-soprano Inbar Goldmann delighted us with a Hebrew song about miracles and struggles called "Shivchi Maoz" in celebration of Hannukah, showing a lot of strength in her lower register.

 Although the Sephardic tradition is not her own, you never would have guessed it from her charming performance of "Ocho Kandelikas" in Ladino, the language of Spanish Jews. We could actually understand the words! Her performance of "Avraham Avinu" got the audience clapping and stamping their feet. What we liked the best was the Andalus mode in the accompaniment.

She also sang "A Piece of Sky" from Michel Legrand's Yentl.

Soprano Eugenia Forteza contributed songs from her homeland of Argentina, where, we learned, the dialect of Spanish is Castellano, pronounced in the typical Argentinian fashion with  "j" sound for the "ll", instead of the "y" sound.

We enjoyed Guastavino's "Hermano", a song about community, and a delightful childhood song "Caballito Criollo", both delivered with beautiful tone, sazon, and a fine vibrato.

Matthan Black accompanied himself on guitar for "I'll Be Home for Christmas". Mr. Black comes from Arkansas where people gather together and make music. We like the little riff of "Jingle Bells" he inserted toward the end.

Irving Berlin's "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas" was performed in three part harmony by Ms. Scott, Ms. Forteza, and Mr. Black, sounding as fine as we've ever heard it sung.

The entertainment part of the evening concluded with a rousing "Libiamo" from Verdi's La Traviata which definitely put us in a celebratory mood.

Lately we have been realizing the unique pleasures of song salons given in casual environments.  We listened, we drank wine, we ate cookies.  We walked out onto the rainy streets of Williamsburg completely satisfied.  Thanks Bare Opera!

(c) meche kroop

BARE OPERA GALA

Kirsten Scott, Suchan Kim, SungWook Kim, and Liana Guberman with Laetitia Ruccolo at the piano

Last night Bare Opera initiated their fourth season with a "let out all the stops" celebration that will linger in our memory for a long time. The singing was beyond wonderful, but before we get to that, we'd like to tell you what made the evening somewhat unusual.

First of all was the audience. Our heart is made very glad when we see young people having a great time at the opera. The guests last night remained totally silent during the performances (in spite of the generous bar and buffet of goodies) but exploded into enthusiastic applause and "bravo"s after each performance. 

If opera is to survive it must be performed with artistry and commitment and it must be taken to venues were twenty-somethings feel comfortable. Last night's "opera party" was held in a fine resonant space, an art gallery on East 46th Street which was generously donated for the use of Bare Opera. There were only a couple chairs and the crowd was happy to stand.

Secondly, Music Director Laetitia Ruccolo, involved the audience in learning the choral parts to "Nessun Dorma" and later to "Toreador". Not only did everyone participate but they sounded great. As any wise teacher/coach might have, the engaging Ms. Ruccolo first taught the pronunciation of the words, and then, the melody. People are learning that opera can be fun!  Perhaps Karaoke parlors will soon include operatic arias!

As to the performances, most of them involved the four mainstays of the company--soprano Liana Guberman, mezzo-soprano Kirsten Scott, tenor SungWook Kim, and baritone Suchan Kim.  Each one is a gem but their ensemble singing revealed genuine unselfish collaboration.

In the opening quartet from Puccini's La Rondine, the four characters offered a toast to love. In the final ensemble, the cast joined in for the "Brindisi" from Act I of Verdi's La Traviata.  There is nothing like a drinking song to put people in a party mood! 

Everything in-between was similarly successful. We have never warmed to John Adams' Doctor Atomic, although we have seen it twice.  But mezzo-soprano Briana Hunter performed Kitty's aria (text by Muriel Rukeyser) with deep feeling and clear enunciation which, taken together, made sense of Kitty's loneliness. More credit for the lovely texture of her instrument!

Delicious pleasure was provided by Ms. Guberman as Poppea and Ms. Scott as Nerone in "Pur ti miro, pur ti godo" from Claudio Monteverdi's L'incoronazione di Poppea", a work Bare Opera will produce next month. The exquisite harmonies and overlapping lines still resonate in our ears. As a matter of fact, we have an "ear worm".  Not bad for a work written at the very dawn of opera!

SungWook Kim dazzled the audience with a powerful performance of "Nessun dorma", backed by the audience/chorus, Ms. Ruccolo's aforementioned master stroke.

Ms. Guberman and Suchan Kim seemed to have as much fun as the audience in a charming performance of the Papageno/Papagena duet from Mozart's Die Zauberflöte. Clever use was made of the space as they began from opposite sides of the gallery and moved closer together, each exhibiting a spunky personality.

For vocal blending, nothing can beat the final quartet from Verdi's Rigoletto. On one side of the gallery, Ms. Guberman enacted the innocent Gilda, appalled by witnessing the Duke's flirtation with Maddalena on the other side of the gallery. As her father, the court jester, Suchan Kim appeared to comfort her distress.  Meanwhile, Ms. Hunter as the tantalizing Maddalena flirted shamelessly with the deceiving Duke, sung by SungWook Kim.  Each character is singing something different but Verdi's writing and the artists' performances brought everything together.

Without missing a beat, the versatile Ms. Guberman changed character and became Violetta as she reconsidered her attitude toward love in "Sempre libera" from Verdi's La Traviata. Sungwook Kim played the offstage Alfredo.

Suchan Kim assumed the appropriate attitude and vocal coloration as he performed the Toreador song from Bizet's Carmen, with dramatic assistance from three adoring ladies (Ms. Guberman, Ms. Scott, and Ms. Hunter) and vocal assistance from the audience/chorus. One truly felt a part of the action!

The penultimate number before the final "Brindisi" came as a complete surprise. Accompanied by Maestro David Rosenmeyer, Argentinian artist Malena Dayen performed "Yo soy Maria" from Astor Piazzolla's 1968 tango operita. We have heard the work before-- but not performed as powerfully as we heard it last night. Bare Opera will produce it in the Spring and we can barely wait.

We left feeling satisfied in head and heart, wanting for nothing. Opera can do that!

(c) meche kroop

THE ART OF LISTENING

Javor Bracic, Suchan Kim, SungWook Kim, Liana Guberman, Kirsten Scott, and Laetitia Ruccolo

Regular readers may recall how highly we prize a little education along with our entertainment. Sunday afternoon we were fortunate enough to see a group of rising stars of the opera world participating in an unusual presentation, hosted by Javor Bracic and The Art of Listening. The Afternoon of Literature and Opera Scenes at the National Opera Center included member of the splendid Bare Opera, of which Maître de Chant Laetitia Ruccolo is the co-founder.

We have been a great fan of Bare Opera since their very first production. Nothing they have presented has been anything short of wonderful and everything has had an unusual and creative twist that has brought innovation and delight to operas in the standard repertory and some that are not often seen/heard.

Sunday's presentation comprised a selection of well known scenes from opera which were inspired by literature, prefaced by readings that shed light upon the scene to follow. Readings were performed by the glamorous mezzo-soprano Kirsten Scott who dazzled us by the potent drama of her readings as much as by the luster of her voice.  We shouldn't have been surprised since we have observed her throwing herself into every role she has performed.

We had never known that E.T.A. Hoffman was a critic of The Enlightenment and favored the dark emotional nocturnal life. Hence, Offenbach gave us "Belle nuit" in his opera Les contes d'Hoffman which was here given a lovely performance by Ms. Scott as Nicklausse (a role we had watched her grow in some years ago) and soprano Liana Guberman as Giullietta with their voices melding in luscious harmony.

After hearing a reading from Schiller's Don Carlos, we were in a position to relate more intensely to "Per me giunto" from the Verdi opera of the same name, performed by lyric baritone Suchan Kim. This is an aria we will forever associate with Dmitry Hvorostovsky but we have nothing but positive things to say about Mr.Kim's sincere delivery, marked by a pleasing vibrato and subtle dynamic variety.

Ms. Scott read both voices from the scene in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet in which the two young lovers meet for the first time--a truly magical moment filled with as much wit as romance. We learned that Gounod translated Shakespeare's words into French word-for-word with consummate respect for the text. Perhaps because much of the imagery of the text is religious, Gounod used a melody he had written originally about the Virgin Mary!

Ms. Guberman was lovely as Juliette, singing with pure youthful tone. Her Romeo, SungWook Kim, impressed us with the ease of his tenor instrument. Both handled the French just fine.

La dame aux camelias was the only novel written by Dumas Fils and it was based upon a true story. We heard an excerpt from the novel, followed by one of our favorite scenes. Germont Père arrives at the home of the courtesan Violetta determined to break up the relationship between her and his wayward son. Suchan Kim's interpretation was spot on as he softened the color of his angry voice in response to the gracious dignity of Ms. Guberman.

Indeed, just watching the expression on Ms. Guberman's face as she heard about Germont's innocent daughter, and hearing the change of color in her voice, was a revelation. She is hearing about a young woman who will have a socially acceptable lifestyle that is closed to her and is feeling pangs of envy. We experienced an empathy for Violetta that was greater than any we had felt before. This was really opera up close and personal!

There was only one sentence in Dante's 13th c. La Divina Commedia which inspired Puccini's one-act opera Gianni Schicchi. SungWook Kim made an expansive Rinuccio as he praises the glories of Florence and the resourcefulness of Signor Schicchi, whose daughter he is wooing. We loved the ease of his tenor and his Italianate phrasing in "Avete torto", an aria which showed off his ringing top notes and his lively personality.

Just as Puccini looked back several centuries for inspiration, so did Purcell, who wrote Dido and Aeneas based upon Virgil's Aeneid, from which Ms. Scott read an excerpt. We learned why the witches conspired to destroy poor Dido; Aeneas had a destiny to go on and found Rome, or so the mythology goes. Ms. Guberman and Ms. Scott are far too pretty to portray witches but they sounded wonderful together in the "Witches Duet".

The final work on the program was the quartet from Verdi's Rigoletto which was prefaced by a reading from Victor Hugo's The King's Diversion on which the opera was based. Suchan Kim as Rigoletto was on one side of the room comforting the highly distressed Gilda of Ms. Guberman, whilst SungWook Kim was on the other side of the room portraying the licentious Duke of Mantua who is having a grand old time flirting with an increasingly willing Maddalena, sung and acted in grand style by Ms. Scott. It was literally stereophonic!

Throughout the evening, Ms. Ruccolo appeared to be 100% at the piano and simultaneously 100% with the singers. Now that's some accomplishment!

Javor Bracic seems to have as much interest in enlightening and educating his audience as in entertaining them. He encouraged questions from the audience which the singers seemed to enjoy answering. Many of the questions were about the acting and how singers can draw from experiences to act without letting the emotions affect the quality of their vocal production. 

In such an intimate format as this was, without orchestra, sets, costumes, or distance to "hide behind", how does the singer manage the exposure and intimacy? There is really a back and forth between singer and audience and we concluded that this intimacy is at the root of opera. When opera began, it was a means of socializing and forming community. These days, we have the Met for spectacle, but we have small opera companies such as Bare Opera which provide this sense of community and intimacy. We relate to the singers. We relate to the characters. We relate to the music. We leave fulfilled!

We can scarcely wait for Bare Opera's next season. They will be doing Monteverdi's L'incoronazione di Poppea in November and Piazzolla's Maria de Buenos Aires in the Spring. We have seen both operas before but we are sure we will be seeing them as if for the first time.

(c) meche kroop

BARE SHARES

Sean Christensen, Colin Whiteman, Kristina Bachrach, Kirsten Scott, and Inbar Goldmann

It was a night of sharing. The Lyric Chamber Music Society of New York and Bare Opera Company joined forces and audiences to present a compelling evening of arias at the beautiful Kosciuszko Foundation townhouse on the Upper East Side. The singers shared their gifts and the audience shared their applause. And at the conclusion, artists and audience shared a lovely repast.

Bare Opera is barely two years old and we've written about them several times. They present innovative versions of operas in unusual venues. A new audience is drawn by the quality of their work, the intimacy of the productions, and the artistry of their singers. Music Director Laetitia Ruccolo was one of the founders and did an exemplary job of accompanying the singers.

Most of their regular singers are known to us and highly valued. Lest we show favoritism, let us describe the program in sequence. Almost the entire ensemble was introduced in the lively "Bevo al tuo fresco sorriso" from Puccini's La Rondine.

"Aprite, presto aprite" from Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro gave soprano Kristina Bachrach's Susanna the opportunity to chase Kirsten Scott's Cherubino around the playing area, to the audience's amusement. This is a wonderful scene to introduce newbies to the opera and we suspect there were a few newbies in the audience.

Star soprano Larisa Martinez performed the soulful "La Maja y el Ruisenor" whilst Ms. Ruccolo provided plenty of Latin flavor from the piano. It was indeed a chorus of nightingales, one vocal and one instrumental.

Ms. Scott returned as the bratty boy of Maurice Ravel's L'enfant et les Sortileges, which was Bare Opera's first production. The superb lyric tenor Sean Christensen portrayed the Chinese Teapot with mezzo Inbar Goldmann reprising her role as the Chinese Teacup; they were very funny. Kristina Bachrach also reprised her role as the forlorn Princesse who confronts that bad boy with the consequences of his bad behavior.

Tenor Sungwook Kim sang the well known "Una furtiva lagrima" from Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore.

The very humorous scene from Mozart's Die Zauberflote brought onstage the Three Ladies--Ms. Bachrach, Ms. Goldmann and Ms. Scott, to take the lock off Papageno's mouth and to present him and Tamino with the Magic Flute and Magic Bells. Bass-baritone Colin Whiteman made a perfect Papageno whilst Mr. Christensen made a terrific Tamino.

From Rossini's first opera, recently presented by Bare Opera, Ms. Scott and Mr. Whiteman reprised their roles as servants Clarina and Norton. What a joy to be reminded of that delightful production.

You, dear readers, will be the first to know that Die Zauberflote will be given a highly original production by Bare Opera in a highly unusual venue--on June 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. We just heard coloratura soprano Yungee Rhie sing "Der Holle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen" and you will not want to miss her fabulous fireworks!

Ms. Martinez gave a sparkling account of "Je veux vivre" from Gounod's Romeo et Juliette, and was joined by her romantic Romeo Mr. Christensen for "Ange adorable". If that didn't melt your heart, you must have a stone in your chest!

The gorgeous trio from Mozart's Cosi fan tutte, "Soave sia il vento" was harmonized beautifully by Mr. Whiteman as Don Alfonso, Ms. Martinez as Fiordiligi, and Ms. Scott as Dorabella.

The program closed with "Arpa gentil" from Rossini's Il Viaggio a Reims. In this scene, all the characters are mesmerized and entranced by the offstage voice of Corinna (Ms. Martinez).  Guess who else was mesmerized and entranced!

There were two lovely touches to the evening. One was that the cast members alternated in introducing each upcoming aria with a description of what was happening. No newbie could have felt left in the dark.

The other touch was that the women's gowns were provided by Shoperatic, the Opera Diva Dress Collection, which we believe recycles gowns for opera singers.  What a great idea!

We would not be at all surprised if some of the chamber music lovers in the audience have become opera lovers. All it takes is an evening of good performances.

We have the upcoming Die Zauberflote on our calendar already. And so should you.

We would also like to share one more idea with you. If you are inclined to rebel against the upcoming cuts to the NEA, do make a donation to this excellent young company...www.bareopera.org/donate.
If the arts are to survive, it is up to US.

(c) meche kroop

BARE OPERA ON A BARE STAGE

A Brilliant Success for Bare Opera

Well, the stage wasn't entirely bare; there were three benches and enough newspaper to remind us of our former neighbor "The Hoarder". The staging of Rossini's first opera was unusual with rows of seats on either side of the theater facing inward with the stage at one end and marvelous Maestro Sesto Quatrini and his fine chamber orchestra at the other.

Stage Director Cecilia Ligorio had some fine ideas and utilized both the stage and the central playing area, giving the singers lots of room to tell this humorous story. Maestro Quatrini at one end could conduct in full view of singers, musicians, and audience members. The only problem was that at times one felt as if one were watching a tennis match; if one needed to read the titles at the top of the stage this head swiveling became constant. But there is no denying that the experience was up close and personal, making it very very special and full of impact.

Rossini was only 18 years old when he composed La cambiale di matrimonio, which premiered in 1810 in Venice. (And what's YOUR 18-year-old doing tonight?). The libretto by Gaetano Rossi is a farsa comica, based on an earlier play which was probably based on commedia dell'arte. 

There is a mercenary older man, played with bluster by baritone Suchan Kim, who always turns in a great performance. There is a rebellious daughter, portrayed by the superb soprano Liana Guberman. There is her impoverished lover, effectively sung by terrific tenor Sungwook Kim. And there is a wealthy suitor from Canada (!) sung by the fine baritone John Allen Nelson. And of course there are two clever servants--Norton (the fine Colin Whiteman) and Clarina (the very gifted Kirsten Scott).

The successful introduction, written by Assistant Director Elias Markos, was delivered by the spunky mezzo-soprano Ms. Scott (who also happens to be the Executive Producer and Co-Artistic Director). Ms. Scott is not only a superb singer but also made an impressive interlocutor, explaining in English what the opera is about.

A wealthy English merchant wants to arrange a marriage between a wealthy Canadian and his daughter, who is in love with a poor fellow. The servants  help the young lovers to defeat the father's plan.

The directorial concept rapidly dealt with any reservations an audience member might have about watching something so old-fashioned as to be based on a man selling his daughter. Cast members read aloud articles from the plenitude of newspapers scattered about, dealing with such issues taking place contemporaneously in several foreign cultures as well as sex-trafficking closer to home. This introduction allowed the audience to experience the work as relevant and also to enjoy the high jinx and the music.

And what music! There is something quite exciting about hearing a composer's earliest works. One could hear the influence of Mozart and one could also hear the origins of Rossini's prodigious gifts. There was a gorgeous romantic duet for Ms. Guberman and Sungwook Kim. There was a face-off duet between Mr. Suchan Kim and Mr. Nelson. And there was a marvelous oppositional duet when Mr. Nelson tries to court the unwilling Ms. Guberman. The two servants also got plenty of stage time for frisky involvement and sang so well together.  And there was a terrific ensemble number as well.

Costumes by Laura Kung were modern and suited the characters.  Mr. Suchan Kim wore a "grandfather sweater", Mr. Sungwook Kim wore a motorcycle jacket, and Mr. Nelson was dressed like a clueless rube in plaid pants.

Music Director (and pianist) was Laetitia Ruccolo whom we just heard Thursday night at the Classic Lyric Arts Gala. Lighting Design was by Anthony Tornambene.

We are feeling particularly grateful to Bare Opera for bringing this work to our attention and for casting such superb artists; we were given all the best of musical and dramatic values, brought up to date without sacrificing the original intent--to entertain!

(c) meche kroop

BARE OPERA GIVES GREAT GALA

Bare Opera Gala (photo by Gustavo Alberto Mirabile)

STANDING

Suchan Kim

Francisco Corredor

Briana Hunter

Sungwook Kim

Larisa Martinez (Gala host)

Joshua Bell (Gala Host)

Liana Guberman

Justin Brown (stage director)

SEATED

Laetitia Ruccolo 

Min Lew (Bare Opera General Director)

Kirsten Scott

Life in New York can be tense, stressful, and competitive!

Life on Planet Opera is warm, relaxing, and mutually supportive!

Take, for example the gala evening offered by Bare Opera, one of our highly treasured small companies. Hosts for the evening were the wildly talented and gracious Joshua Bell and the equivalently talented stunning soprano Larisa Martinez, toward whom we have oft tossed journalistic bouquets.  The venue was their lavishly appointed triplex that seems to have been designed for this type of event.

The room was packed with lots of luminaries from Planet Opera and everyone was there to share in the good will, imbibing champagne and a generous spread of edibles both before and after the musical portion of the evening.

Guests had the opportunity to hear four rising stars-- soprano Liana Guberman, mezzo-soprano Kirsten Scott, tenor Sungwook Kim, and baritone Suchan Kim-- in a tempting program of arias, duets, and ensembles. We use the word tempting because guests were indubitably tempted to order tickets for Bare Opera's upcoming Cambiale Matrimonio, written by Rossini at the tender age of 18.  (And what's YOUR 18 year-old doing with his free time, LOL?)

Francisco Corredor, himself a talented character tenor, served as Master of Ceremonies and introduced each number with style and humor. Justin Brown staged the evening, utilizing the space well, including the staircases; the singers were mysteriously masked.

Singers were accompanied by a trio of musicians with the lovely Laetitia Ruccolo playing the piano, cellist Elad Kabilio (famous for his "Music Talks"), and violinist Omer Ashano who was responsible for arranging the music along with Ms. Ruccolo.

The program was wisely chosen to include audience favorites--entirely suitable for a light-hearted evening. "Pronto io son", from Don Pasquale, involves Dr. Malatesta (Suchan) coaching Norina (Liana) on her portrayal of his convent-educated sister. The couple did justice to Donizetti's tuneful music.

Mozart got a happy hearing as well.  From Nozze di Figaro, we heard "Aprite, presto, aprite" with a frantic Susanna (Liana) trying to get rid of Cherubino (Kirsten) before the Count discovers his presence in the Countess' bedchamber.

From Mozart's Don Giovanni, Suchan performed the lovely serenade "Deh vieni alla finestra".  From Cosi fan tutte, Fiordiligi (Liana) and Dorabella (Kirsten) bade farewell to their departing lovers along with Don Alfonso (Suchan) in the trio "Soave sia il vento".

Rossini was also represented on the program with "Zitti, zitti, piano, piano" from Il Barbiere di Siviglia" with Kirsten as Rosina, Suchan as the eponymous barber, and Sunwook as Count Almaviva. For the finale, the entire cast joined forces for more Rossini--the quartet "Arpa gentile" from Il Viaggo a Reims.

In the hands of Ms. Scott, the event went smoothly and artistically.  We would expect no less from this fine company and have already planned to attend Rossini's early opera which will be performed November 4th, 5th, and 6th.  And so should YOU!

We love opera that is informal and accessible and, also important, affordable!

(c) meche kroop