THE RAVEN

Alessandra Ferri and Fredrika Brillembourg--Photo by Richard Termine

As part of the New York Philharmonic Biennial, the estimable Gotham Chamber Opera is presenting an avant-garde music-theater piece based on Edgar Allen Poe's chilling poem The Raven.  It can be considered a perfect piece for a festival--original, challenging and outside the customary artistic limits.  Two pages of the program were required for Conductor and Artistic Director Neal Goren and Director/Choreographer/Set Designer Luca Veggetti to explain their inspiration and artistic goals.

We were left wondering at what point in our cultural history music became sound, dance became movement, and singing became vocalizing.  The capacity audience seemed to appreciate the event to a greater extent than we did, leaving us feeling like an old fogey with our 19th c. ears.  The anxiety and horror of Poe's poetry was successfully conveyed but that was not enough to leave us feeling artistically fulfilled.

Toshio Hosokawa's music, while not to our taste, was beautifully played by the Gotham Chamber Opera Orchestra.  But watching the singer and dancer moving around the stage only made us miss Alessandra Ferri's luminous and deeply affecting dancing with ABT.  Mezzo Fredrika Brillembourg's vocalizing--at first, artificial speech, then sprechstimme, made us wonder at the enormous effort she must have made to learn the work.  As is common in contemporary music there was no melodic line to hold onto.

The two women, dressed in identical dull gray pants and sweatshirts (Costume Design by Peter Speliopoulos) were sometimes apart and sometimes together, leaning on one another or entwining in some manner.  The most visually interesting moment of the hour-long work came when Ms. Ferri's shadow seemed to walk away from her as she lay curled up on the floor--a piece of staging legerdemain.

The manner in which the poem was recited and then sung did not make the words clear and the lighting was such that the projected titles were unclear.   It was an advantage to have been familiar with the poem.

There was a "curtain-raiser" of music by André Caplet based on another story by Poe entitled Conte fantastique: Le Masque de la Mort rouge.  Caplet's music, while not particularly melodic, offered interesting textures and was, again, beautifully played by a string quartet augmented by harp. The style was impressionistic and reminded us of Ravel.  We are indeed a big fan of this expressive instrument and Sivan Magen made it sing with gorgeous ascending and descending scales and shimmering arpeggios.

Unfortunately, we do not enjoy every event we write about but we would never dare to criticize its merit because it is not our taste.  We save our brickbats for poor performances.  This work may be exactly your cup of tea and you are invited to comment below if you wish.

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MINUS THE AUTO-DA-FÉ

Krysty Swnn, Elisabeth Stevens, Dominick Rodriguez, Lee Poulis, Sable Rivera, Kevin Thompson nd Matthew Curran

 

 

Of all the versions of Giuseppi's Verdi's Don Carlo, we prefer the Modena version of 1886 and that is just the version we heard last night when the Martha Cardona Theater presented a concert performance at the National Opera Center.  Founder Daniel Cardona wants us to hear opera sung by great voices and has a knack for finding and casting them.  Freed from sets and costumes, we can focus exclusively on the sound.  How pleased we were to hear the opera sung in Italian; there are those who favor the original French but we personally prefer the sound of Italian.

Don Carlo is a long demanding opera which amply rewards the listener's sitzfleisch with gorgeous melodies, shattering arias, harmonically stirring duets and intricate ensembles.  Musical Director Sean Kelly handled the piano accompaniment with great care and skill.

Verdi transports us to 16th c. Spain when King Fillipo II rules his empire with an iron hand, subjugating the miserable citizens of Flanders.  He in turn is ruled by the Grand Inquisitor from whom no one is safe. 

Mr. Cardona wisely included the important first act in which Fillipo's son Carlo (tenor Dominick Rodriguez) meets his intended bride Elisabetta (soprano Elisabeth Stevens) at Fontainbleu.  This sets up the action for the rest of the opera and explains Carlo's despair when his father decides to marry her himself.  It also gives the couple a not-to-be-missed duet "Che mai fate voi?"

But the opera is not just a story of unfulfilled romantic longing but also a story of Filippo's refusal to grant political freedom to the Flemish (nice parallel with today's news) and his despair that Elisabetta has never loved him.  Indeed, his aria "Ella giammai m'amò" is the bass' opportunity to evoke a modicum of sympathy for this detestable character who consults with the Grand Inquisitor about how he can eliminate his son! Their scene was sinister and chilling; its success was enhanced by the very different colorings of their equally impressive bass voices--Matthew Curran as Fillipo and Kevin Thompson as the Grand Inquisitor.

There were other equally riveting scenes.  Mezzo Krysty Swann in the role of Princess Eboli used her rich voice effectively in the garden scene, singing a lovely duet with the page Tebaldo, sung by Sable Rivera.  Her handling of the melisma in the Moorish melody was exquisite.

The expression "chewing up the scenery", had there been any, would have applied to her aria "O don fatale" in which her remorse for betraying the queen is expressed, along with blame for her beauty which has led to the sin of pride. 

Our favorite character in this opera, and perhaps one of our favorite baritone roles, is Rodrigo, the Marquis of Posa; in a performance in which vocal color must express so much feeling, Lee Poulis sang with intense involvement and utterly convinced us of his loyalty to Carlo and his unselfish wish to help the Flemish.

His is a crucial role in the opera since he must support Carlo and also try to establish his loyalty in service to the crown while riskily pleading the cause of the Flemish.  He has a fine duet with Carlo in Act II "Dio, che nell'alma infondere amor" and another in Act IV "Per me giunto è il dì supremo" when he sacrifices his life for his friend. Who could not be moved by "Io morrò, ma lieto in core"?

After Elisabetta's aria "Tu, che le vanità", movingly sung by Ms. Stevens, she is joined by Carlo for the final duet in which they hope to meet in a better world, replacing the hope for joy in the material world heard in Act I.

Mr. Rodriguez's fine tenor carried the title role in fine style.  There was not a performance of less than stellar quality.  Mr. Cardona favors big voices, the kind one rarely gets to hear in small companies casting young singers.  These concert presentations gives them an opportunity to sing roles that they will likely get to sing at the Met in the future.

With such a fine feast of Verdi, getting an "amuse-oreille" before the opera began was nearly overkill but it gave us an opportunity to hear two more outstanding voices in previews of upcoming operas, accompanied by Jestin Pieper. You would do well to add to your calendar three events for this summer.

On June 17th, soprano Michelle Trovato will sing Liu in Puccini's Turandot.  We heard her "Signor, ascolta" last night and were impressed.  On June 28th, Zhanna Alkhazova will sing Tatiana in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin.  We heard an excerpt from the Letter Scene and, on that basis alone, urge you to attend.  And on July 3rd, a little birdie told us that Massenet's Werther is in the works.  This is welcome news for the vocally barren summer season in New York.  Three cheers for Martha Cardona Opera!

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WHAT TO DO WITH A POLYMATH

Sheena Ramirez, Jonathan Fox Powers, Richard Holmes, William Remmers, Erica Rome, Emily Geller, Victor Ziccardi and Cristiane Young

One of the songs from Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe concerned one De Bellville, a polymath who was "kicked upstairs" to the House of Lords after delivering "inconvenient speeches" on the floor of the House of Commons.  Sadly, this song has been lost to us but we have our very own polymath on hand in the person of William Remmers.

Mr. Remmers founded Utopia Opera three years ago and currently occupies positions as Stage Director and Music Director.  Moreover he was favorably reviewed by us for his conducting of Der Freischutz.   Last night as host of the Second Annual Fundraising Gala at the National Opera Center, he greeted the audience and then joined the terrific pianist Erica Rome for the four-handed overture, and then sang the role of The Lord Chancellor.  We have nothing but good things to say about his fine voice and acting and his very funny style.  He is unique.

The production itself was an absolute delight.  Gilbert and Sullivan always strike us as the Rogers and Hammerstein of the 19th c.  Contemporary composers could certainly take a page from their book!  How rare it is to have artists who understand how to make the most of the English language.

Iolanthe was written at the height of their popularity and skill, the seventh of fourteen collaborations.  It is an hilarious satire of British politics that is, in many ways, relevant to our very own Congress and the recent Occupy Wall Street movement.  In this comic opera, a simple shepherd Strephon is in love with Phyllis, the ward of The Lord Chancellor who wants to marry her himself.  Does this perhaps remind you of, say, Il Barbiere di Siviglia?

Strephon, sung by the fine baritone Jonathan Fox Powers, is the 25 year-old son of the fairy Iolanthe and a mortal (guess who!). Iolanthe has been banished by the Queen of the Fairies for breaking the fairy law against just such a union.

The lovely Phyllis, performed by the fine soprano Sheena Ramirez, doesn't believe that Iolanthe could be Strephon's mother because, as a fairy, Iolanthe doesn't age and appears to be but 18 years old. In the revelation scene we couldn't help thinking of the similar scene in Nozze di Figaro when Suzana repeats "Su madre?  Su madre?".  In the title role, mezzo Emily Geller sang superbly and created a most sympathetic character.

There are many twists and turns in the plot and lots of memorable melodies.  We cannot forget the male chorus' rendition of "Loudly Let the Trumpets Bray".  The diction was so fine that we will excuse the chorus members who sang holding their scores.

The Lord Chancellor entered to music sounding very much like a tribute to Bach and Mr. Remmers' patter songs brought grins from ear to ear.  We loved "When I Went to the Bar" especially the repeated phrase "Said I To Myself, Said I".

Ms. Ramirez and Mr. Powers had some beautiful love duets and Ms. Geller was very moving in her solo "My Lord, a Suppliant At Your Feet".  As Queen of the Fairies, contralto Cristiane Young provided comic relief at every turn. Simply to hear her repeating the word "frogs" with various intonations was enough to send us into the LMAO state.

Three very graceful and spirited young women, Kelsey Peters, Eva Parr and Laura Yumi Snell were perfectly cast as the fairies Celia, Leila and Fleta.  They not only sang but had some charming ballet moves as well.

Richard Holmes sang the role of the Earl of Mountararat and Victor Ziccardi performed the Earl of Tolloller.  The two were very amusing as they competed for the position of Phyllis' nobly born husband.  Robert BK Dewar was Private Willis of the Grenadier Guards.

The costumes were lovely and apropos.  There was no set except for what one created in the eyes of the mind, but none was needed. With acting and singing that fine, nothing was missed.

This is the only opera company we know of that lets their audience choose the operas.  The last one of this season will be Verdi's Falstaff on June 27th and 28th.  Next year's choices are Carlyle Floyd's Susannah, Rossini's L'Italiana in Algeri, a double bill of Sullivan's comedy The Zoo (WHAT?  NO GILBERT) with Ravel's L'Enfant et les Sortilèges and finally Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos.  Get on board soon to avoid missing out.

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MUSICAL TREASURES FROM BULGARIA

Adriana Velinova, Ethan Nanev and Miloslav Antonov

If you thought the treasures referred to Bulgarian music you would be wrong.  We have no doubt that Bulgaria has produced some fine treasures in that category but the treasures we are writing about are the Bulgarian artists who entertained us so royally last night at the Weill Recital Hall.

How many great Bulgarian singers can you name?  Tomova-Sintow?  Dimitrova? Ghiaurov? Kasarova?  Pendatchanska? Stoyanova?  Well, now you have two more to add to the list--soprano Adriana Velinova and baritone Miloslav Antonov, both in graduate programs at Mannes College The New School for Music.  We will discuss the marvelous pianist Ethan Nanev later.

Ms. Velinova has a warm and welcoming stage presence and an instrument as bright and shiny as a new penny but more gold than copper in worth.  She soared through Richard Strauss' "Ich trage meine Minne" and "Heimliche Aufforderung".  There was a lovely contrast between the gentle "L'invitation au voyage" and the anguished "Le manoir de Rosemonde", both by Henri Duparc.

But our favorites were in her final set:  Rachmaninoff's "Ne poj, krasavica, primne", the ultimate heartbreaking song of homesickness, with its very Russian melody and Tchaikovsky's "Skazhi, o chem v teni vetvey".  That these songs were our favorites is is not surprising since the Bulgarian language is close to Russian and singers are often more at home in their native tongue.  Lest you think there was no Bulgarian song on the program, we add that Ms. Velinova sang a charming Bulgarian folk song by Pancho (!) Vladigerov about a youth winking at an unreceptive girl.

Mr. Antonov was at his most impressive in two songs by Franz Liszt which he sang with fine dynamic control and dramatic validity.  In "Pace non trovo" he sang with expansive Italianate passion and a nice change of color in the central more tender section.  In "Die drei Zigeuner" he became a colorful storyteller using ample gesture which compensated for the lack of text in the program.

We also loved his performance of Rachmaninoff's "Spring Waters" in which we could feel the welcome onset of Spring as everything icy is melting.  In a welcome encore, he was joined by Ms. Velinova for"Lippen schweigen"  the romantic duet from Franz Lehar's Die lustige Witwe.

Now, as to that pianist, the versatile Ethan Nanev.  He not only accompanied the singers but also performed Modest Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition.  The stately prelude "Promenade" leads to some apt musical descriptions of paintings in a gallery; it was uncanny how well one could see with one's ears!

The first painting "Gnomus" was unsettling with its descending motives and jittery rhythms.  "The Old Castle" achieved a mysterious feel with its minor key and dynamic variety.  But our favorite was the vivacious "Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks" which we would love to see animated by Disney Studios!

"The Market at Limoge" was filled with activity and Mr. Nanev's fleet fingers did it justice; "Catacombe" was somber in nature.  It is a wonderful piece of music to show off a pianist's skill and artistry in coloring.  Mr. Nanev studied with Pavlina Dokovska who was actually the host for the evening.

Three treasures from Bulgaria!  We in the audience struck it rich!

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MASTER OF MUSIC

Tomoko Nakayama an Zhiguang Hong

An enthusiastic crowd welcomed bass-baritone Zhiguang Hong to the stage of the Bruno Walter Auditorium which was packed to overflowing.  At the end of the recital, Mr. Hong was gifted with no less than five huge bouquets of flowers.  What a superb way to celebrate Mr. Hong's achievement of a Master's of Music Degree from Mannes College of Music.

What impresses most about Mr. Hong is his confident stage presence and his heroic style.  He commanded the stage completely in R. Vaughan Williams' Songs of Travel which he sang with authority.  We noticed right away his strength in the lower register.  His collaborative pianist, Tomoko Nakayama, accompanied his "Let Beauty Awake" with some lovely arpeggios.

He was even more commanding in "See the raging flames arise" from Handel's Joshua with its challenging fioritura; his strong full instrument was used to good advantage.  Again, Ms. Nakayama played beautifully in the piano prelude.  Mr. Hong's English diction was beautifully clear.

Three songs from Verdi's Sei Romanze followed, "More, elisa, lo stanco poeta", "In solitaria stanza" and "Deh, pietoso, o Addolorata".  Although his voice sounded fine, we wanted a bit more Italianate style.

In the second half of the program, we heard three songs by Henri Duparc.  We were delighted to hear a more gentle aspect to his voice in "Phidylé" but when he sang  "Le Manoir de rosemonde", we realized that his strengths lie in the more heroic oeuvre.  In "La vague et la cloche" we loved the storm created by Ms. Nakayama on the piano.

Most impressive were the four songs by Schubert which ended the program.  In "Wasserflut" from Winterreise Mr. Hong showed more variety and depth of feeling than in the prior songs.  We found it quite moving and hoped that this promising young artist will continue to work on adding more variety to the other songs in his repertory--variety of dynamics and color.

The final song,"Erlkönig", astonished us because EVERYTHING was there.  His ability to loosen up and tell the story while acting the parts of the narrator, the reassuring father, the frightened child and the eerily seductive Erlkönig made the performance chilling and gripping in its intensity. Each character's voice was colored differently. He also used his body effectively.  

This made us think that Mr. Hong's future lies on the opera stage.  Indeed, he has a number of important opera engagements coming up.  In any case, we would be happy to learn that he is working on his French and German diction which did not quite live up to the standards set by his excellent English.

The audience demanded encores and encores we got!  As one might expect, Mr. Hong was far more relaxed in his native tongue and the two Mandarin folk songs we heard delighted us no end.  Wild applause brought on one final encore "This Nearly Was Mine" from Rogers and Hammerstein's South Pacific.

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BIG, BIGGER AND BIGGEST VOICES

Samantha Guevrekian, Zhanna Alkhazova, Kelly Griffin and Kristen Choi

Daniel Cardona, Founder and Artistic Director of The Martha Cardona Theater has a knack for finding gifted young singers who can handle the heavier repertoire.  Last night we enjoyed hearing a group of talented artists with big voices which literally begged for a large hall.  Although accompanied by "only" a piano we could imagine their voices soaring above or tearing right through a large orchestra.  Musical Director Keith Chambers brought out things in his piano reduction that sometimes pass us by when played by a full orchestra.

Only one of the singers was known to us.  Russian-American soprano Zhanna Alkhazova is a veritable force of nature, like a hurricane; never losing her firm grasp on solid technique, she invests each aria with the passion we want to hear at the opera.  We have heard her as Donna Elvira (review can be found by entering her name in the search bar) and was happy to learn that her French in Jules Massenet's "Il est doux, il est bon" from Hérodiade was just as fine as her Italian in "D'Oreste, d'Ajace" from Mozart's Idomeneo.  With arias of two different moods, she used her skills at word coloring to fine advantage, tender in one and fierce in the other.

Soprano Kelly Griffin has a substantial instrument as well, singing "Pace, pace mio Dio!" from Verdi's La Forza del Destino with deep involvement, building to a powerful anguished climax.  In "Ritorna vincitor!" from Verdi's Aida, she created a most believable character, tortured by ambivalence.  Would it be love or familial loyalty that wins out? 

The second half of the program was devoted to scenes from Puccini's Madama Butterfly and Soprano Samantha Guevrekian made a sensational Cio-Cio San, a role she will perform this summer at The Glimmerglass Festival.  We predict a huge success, judging by how well she sang  "Un bel di" which she performed without a score, letting the audience into her deluded feelings of hopefulness. 

Fortunately, Kristen Choi, the mezzo who sang Suzuki in the Flower duet, will be in the cast with her.  Ms. Choi has a rich mezzo sound, especially in the lower range and the two of them not only harmonized beautifully but faced each other and created a real relationship.

In the love duet from Puccini's Madama Butterfly, Kyle Van Schoonhoven sang the role of Lt. Pinkerton.  He has a sweet tenor with a lovely resonance and gave a well-modulated performance, hampered only by being "on the book".  Having created a considerable amount of engagement in spite of this impediment, we can imagine how superb he will be without it.

In "Io so che sue dolore" Pinkerton is admonished by Sharpless (John Boehr) and in "Addio fiorito assil" he effectively expresses remorse.  Mr. Van Schoonhoven handled the mood changes nicely injecting his voice with different colors.

By the end "Tu, tu piccolo" (Ms. Guevrekian, off the book) we were close to tears, always a good sign for this opera!

We heard more from baritone John Boehr earlier in the evening when he sang "Mein Sehnen, mein Wähnen"; although we understood the words, we thought his pronunciation could be polished up a bit.  In the role of Silvio in Leocavallo's "E allor perchè", he was persuasive as he pressured Nedda (Ms. Guevrekian) to run away with him.  They harmonized beautifully in a very sweet ending, hampered only by the presence of music stands.  Readers know how strongly we feel about this; singers are prevented from making contact with each other and with the audience to the fullest extent.  We are sure there are reasons, perhaps lack of time for preparation.  But we stand our ground!

Tenor Thomas Dehorney sang "De' miei bollenti spiriti" from Verdi's La Traviata which we had just heard the night before.  Mr. Dehorney has a lovely quality in his voice and some fine phrasing.  All he needs to do to really shine is to loosen up his body.  He was more expressive in Ernesto De Curtis' "Non ti scordar di me" with an impressive crescendo at the climax.

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A VALIANT VIOLETTA

Nadia Petrella (photo by John Solis)

We do a lot of sitting on benches in chilly industrial spaces and on hard wooden pews in churches and on uncomfortable metal bridge chairs; the payoff is getting to hear some wonderful voices of young artists on the way up.  These young artists are not jaded and don't fly in from Europe or Russia to do their thing and leave.  They work hard as an ensemble and manifest the freshness and enthusiasm that we so greatly admire.

Last night we were privileged to attend the latest entry by New York Opera Exchange which has had a most successful season.  The production was of Verdi's La Traviata and the thrill came from two cast members who nailed their roles.

Soprano Nadia Petrella turned in a heartfelt performance in the title role.  She has an exciting instrument that seems to do her bidding without effort; the fioritura never seemed to be done for effect but rather seemed to come out of her emotions. Her "Ah, fors'è lui" was so compelling that the audience burst into applause before she could continue with "Sempre libera".  This arresting cabaletta left no doubt about her ambivalence.  Will it be love or frivolous fun?

It was all there--diction, phrasing, accuracy--in sum, a memorable performance.  This is a character who loves life and must go through all the stages of grief--denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance.  Ms. Petrella's dramatic gifts revealed them all; impressively her vocal output never wavered.

Baritone Roberto Borgatti was equally impressive as Germont, especially since this was the first time he sang a role he was born to sing.  He has a substantial voice, great technique and dramatic chops to match.  His arias in Act II were so fine!  In "Pura siccome un angelo" he must convince Violetta to give up Alfredo.  In "Di Provenza il mar, il suol" he must console his son and persuade him to return to his family.  He succeeded on both counts.
 
We particularly enjoyed his interpretation.  He did not come across as a mean man, just one who is protective of his family. He limned the character's growth from disapproval to empathy in a way that made perfect dramatic sense.  We loved the scene in which he shames his son for his ugly behavior toward Violetta.

The role of Alfredo was sung by tenor Lindell O. Carter and, sorry to say, his portrayal missed the mark.  It would not have stood out as disappointing were the other principals not so superb.  We wondered whether he may have been cast at a later time than the others because there was a lack of connection.  In the first act the lack of chemistry between him and Violetta made us wonder why she would prefer him to the Baron.  An enormous suspension of disbelief was necessary to imagine him as an infatuated young man.

His acting was wooden and his intonation was not always accurate.  He gave the impression of insecurity.  In the third act he was much more convincing in his bitterness and anger.  For the most part however, he seemed to be staring off into space, or perhaps watching the conductor for cues, rather than connecting with the other singers.

We go along with the saying that "There are no small roles".  Indeed, soprano Kendra Berentsen turned in a most believable performance as Annina, devoted servant of Violetta.  Tenor Victor Starsky did a fine job as Gastone and mezzo Ann Louise Glasser was just about perfect as Flora.  Her scenes with Violetta were utterly convincing.

Bass-baritone Colin Whiteman made a sympathetic Dr. Grenvil and bass-baritone  Javier Ortiz portrayed the Marchese with style.  Baritone Nicholas Wiggins was commanding as the Baron.  These are all singers we look forward to hearing in upcoming productions.

Alden Gatt was Music Director and Conductor David Leibowitz put the large orchestra through their paces without ever drowning out the singers, even though there was no pit for the orchestra.  The acoustics of the church hall made the force of the brass section rather intense.  We heard a gorgeous oboe solo in the "Addio del passato bei sogni ridenti".

Co-directors Jennifer Bushinger and Justin Werner had a "concept" that almost worked.  The 19th c. Parisian setting envisioned by Verdi was updated to the 1940's and the locale changed to Italy.  Violetta was supposed to be an aristocrat who has become a courtesan to support herself.  Germont père et fils were transmogrified into members of the U.S. military.

What did NOT work were the disjunctions between libretto and titles and the anachronisms.  Let us consider a few.  There were no duels in Italy in the 20th c.  American soldiers did not come from Provence.  When the chorus (a superb chorus we might add) sings the rowdy songs of Carnevale and the titles say that they are celebrating the end of World War II, we feel duped.  Perhaps if you had never seen the opera and didn't know Italian you may not have noticed it.

Sadly, we confess that we are not color-blind.  It would not have disturbed us if Germont and Alfredo were both portrayed by African-American singers.  But it did bother us that father and son were, well, so unalike.  Others may not have noticed. And if there were still Italian aristocrats in the 1940's who retained their titles, we do not think they would be black.

What we DID like about the direction was the opening tableau vivant during the overture in which the major characters enact the same scene we will see at the close of the opera.  And we liked the scenes of Annina helping Violetta dress for the party.  It revealed a great deal about the feelings the two women had for each other that justified the tender nursing care received by Violetta in the final act.  The death scene brought tears to our eyes and that is always a good sign!

Set Design by James McSweeney was minimalistic--a fireplace, a couch and an escritoire.  Costume Design by Taylor Mills was apropos and effective.

There will be one more performance, a matinée on Sunday, very worth your while.  We are already marking our calendars for the next season when NYOE will be presenting Johann Strauss' delightful Die Fledermaus, Donizetti's Lucia i Lammermoor and Bizet's Carmen--happily, all done in the original language.

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