GUILTY PLEASURES

 Curtain Call for Guilty Pleasures

Friday night, Dell'Arte Opera Ensemble gave us two one-act pieces that made us think. Last night, they gave us an evening of pure entertainment. Is pure entertainment a guilty pleasure? LOL! We refuse to feel guilty about pleasure. We had a wonderful time, as did our companion. 

We think it's a great idea for opera singers to try their hand at cabaret; the need for gesture and facial expression should serve them well on the opera and concert stage. And from the audience standpoint, it was a real treat to hear the natural voice singing  the kind of music we usually avoid due to an intolerance of amplification.

Every artist was excellent and appreciated by a most enthusiastic audience. Some made a greater impact than others and only one interfered with audience engagement by the use of the loathed music stand. Let us mention a few of our favorite performances.

Mezzo-soprano Allison Deady, so effective as Annie in the previous night' production of Tickets, Please! showed a real flair for Offenbach in "Last night" from Christopher Columbus, an operetta with which we are not familiar and was equally impressive ending the show with the rousing "One Touch of Venus" from the eponymous Kurt Weill show.

From the same show, mezzo-soprano Rachelle Pike performed a sexy rendition of "Speak Low". Earlier in the evening, she delighted us with "Toothbrush Time" by William Bolcom, sharing an interesting anecdote with the audience.

Also from that show, Olivia Ericsson gave an expressive reading of "I'm a Stranger Here Myself", needing only to move around the stage more to take her performance to the next level.

Kaitlyn Tierney scored points for "Good 'n' Evil" from Frank Wildhorn's Jekyll and Hyde. Helen Haas did a great job using gestures and voice to build up to a climax in some French songs that were completely new to us. 

Elizaveta Kozlova, so effective as Anna I  in the prior night's performance of Kurt Weill's The Seven Deadly Sins, showed a completely different side of her artistry, having fun with "Whatever Lola Wants" from Adler and Ross' Damn Yankees. Valerie Filloux's charming performance of a pair of Schoenberg songs from his Brettl-Lieder reminded us that the composer wasn't always atonal. The songs were most accessible.

We enjoyed Thomas Walter's rendition of the "Alabama Song" from Kurt Weill's Mahagonny because he made every verse different. And Maestro Chris Fecteau tossed off an impressively novel arrangement of "Mack the Knife", making the old trite song fresh to our ears.

It was a fun evening and the audience left smiling. What more could one ask for on a Saturday night!

© meche kroop

NEW AMSTERDAM OPERA SALON GALA

Kofi Hayford, Kevin Johnson, Maestro Keith Chambers, Jonathan Green, Rachelle Pike, Sara Beth Pearson, Raymon Geis, and Eugenia Forteza

What a special Saturday night!  We enjoyed a surfeit of aural, culinary, and intellectual nourishment provided by New Amsterdam Opera. The legendary culinary creations of Leslie Ritch were accompanied by appropriate libations; renowned artist manager Ken Benson was on hand to instruct us about Massenet's rarely heard opera Hérodiade and how it differs from Richard Strauss' Salome; the cover cast of the upcoming May 10th (SAVE THE DATE) production by New Amsterdam Opera provided the entertainment, teasing us with a selection of arias, duets and an ensemble from the opera.

As much as we enjoyed eating, drinking, and socializing with the luminaries of the opera world who attended (including Eve Queler and Jane Shaulis) let us get right to the music which was outstanding. We were wondering "If the cover cast is this stellar, what must the first cast be like?" Maestro Keith Chambers was at the piano and the works were performed concert style, mainly "on the book".

There were only two selections that are well known. "Il est doux, il est bon", which we just heard at the Manhattan School of Music Ades Competition, is a tender aria upon which Massenet lavished abundant melody. Soprano Sara Beth Pearson as Salomé gave it a beautiful reading with bright tone in the upper register. As Mr. Benson pointed out in the introductory lecture, she is not the lascivious heroine of the Strauss opera, but an innocent young woman in love with the prophet Jean (John the Baptist).

There is an impressive duet between Hérode (sung by the fine baritone Jonathan Green) and his wife Hérodiade (given intense life by the excellent mezzo-soprano Rachelle Pike). Here the music was strange to our ear. "Venge-moi...Ne me refuse pas" is a wife's attempt to get her husband to soothe her injured feelings in a kind of "Let's you and him fight!". Ms. Pike sang with appealing resonance and fiery drama. 

In "Calmez donc vos fureurs", the lovesick Salomé tries to win over the resistant Jean, sung by the terrific tenor Raymon Geis.

The duet "Que ce philtre...Vision fugitive" is the other selection from the opera that one gets to hear rather often. Here, Hérode acquires some kind of sleeping potion from a Babylonian woman, portrayed by soprano Eugenia Forteza, whom we are always happy to hear. Here, we got a clearer picture of Mr. Green's pleasingly textured vibrato.

Just like at the Metropolitan Opera, we had an intermission special--an opera quiz which was way too challenging for us but not for the contestants--critic John Yohalem, pianist William Hicks, and OperaWire co-founder and editor-in-chief David Salazar.

Bass Kofi Hayford lent his interestingly textured voice to "Dors, o cité perverse!...Astres étincelants" in the role of Phanuel, an astrologer. We look at the stars and see STARdom!

Awaiting execution, Jean sings "Ne pouvent réprimer" and here we got to appreciate Mr. Geis' delicate vibrato and emotional connection, as well as some lovely arpeggi in the piano accompaniment, so beautifully played by Maestro Chambers.

The Act III ensemble "Peuple juif" brought all the singers together, along with Vitellius, the Roman Consul, sung by Kevin Johnson in warmly resonant low tones.

All of the singers exhibited fine French and were easily understood. We don't know who has been cast for the May 10th performance at The Center at West Park on West 86th St. but we would not have a moment's disappointment to hear any of the singers we heard tonight.

We hope you will be tempted to share this performance with us. We don't believe New York City has heard this opera in twenty years when Maestro Eve Queler conducted it with Opera Orchestra of New York at Carnegie Hall. It's about time to revive it!

We cannot close without lauding the encore which was from Richard Strauss' comic opera Die ägyptische Helena. Soprano Kirsten Chambers has a voice made for Strauss and we loved her aria "Zweite Brautnacht". Perhaps New Amsterdam Opera might consider giving us the whole enchilada!

If you like the sound of this gala evening, you too can become a member of the New Amsterdam Opera family. The post-salon reception lasted way longer than planned because the "family" remained in lively and rewarding conversation long after the food and drink were stowed.  Now that's a memorable evening!

(c) meche kroop

O COMFORT YE

Lauren Flanigan and Friends at St. Paul and St. Andrews

Is it really 23 years since superstar soprano Lauren Flanigan began raising money for the homeless with an annual Christmas recital?  For the past couple years St. Paul and St. Andrews has been the home for the recital with proceeds from the recital going to benefit The West Side Campaign Against Hunger--not your ordinary food pantry but a community organized supermarket of healthful food for those that most need it. When government fails, the community must provide!

Ms. Flanigan's friends joined together to provide an evening's entertainment for opera lovers who bring winter coats, blankets, toys, and food. This annual event is always a highlight of the holiday season.

Leading off the evening was tenor Aaron Blake who delighted us with  "Comfort Ye/ Every Valley" from Handel's Messiah. Without a doubt, this selection was the best choice and Mr. Blake sang it with a beautiful ping in his voice and exemplary diction, making every word comprehensible, something we don't take for granted. His heartfelt delivery was matched by some delicious trills on the piano by Maestro Kamal Khan.

Ms. Flanigan's delivery of "Vieni t'affretta" from Verdi's Macbeth showed no evidence of the head cold from which she was suffering but rather thrilled us to the bone from the very first utterance of Shakespeare's text, right through the chilling recitativo and the intense aria. The exposed a capella phrasing left no doubt as to her consummate artistry.

She followed this serious song with the most delightful lighthearted cabaret song by Marc Blitzstein entitled "I Love Lechery" or "Modest Maid". A catchy tune and lyrics that were twice as clever as they had to be were given their complete due by Ms. Flanigan's witty performance.

Tenor Raul Melo was an important part of the program performing "Chanson de Kleinzach" from Offenbach's Les Contes d'Hoffman. He used his voice well, emphasizing the nature of this student drinking song with lots of effective acting.  We were glad he stayed around to sing the charming duet "Lippen schweigen" from Franz Lehar's Die Lustige Witwe.

Also from Les Contes d'Hoffman we heard "Scintille diamant" (Dapertutto's aria) sung by bass Daniel Sumegi who sang with great depth in his lower register.  He also sang something in a lighter vein, Irving Berlin's "White Christmas", an audience favorite.

Kenneth Overton lent his silky baritone to "Old Man River" from Jerome Kern's Showboat, an American classic. He also sang Roland Hayes' "Sister Mary Had-a But One Child".

Mark Delavan has a very different baritone, one which was perfect for "O du, mein holder Abenstern" from Richard Wagner's Tannhäuser, one of our favorite Wagner arias.

There was plenty of Wagner on the program, thanks to the presence of some sizable voices. Soprano Amy Shoremount-Obra dazzled us with "Elsa's Traum" from Lohengrin, an opera which we have never seen but want very much to.

From Wagner's Tannhäuser, mezzo-soprano Mary Ann Stewart gave an exciting performance of "Geliebter, komm" in which her overtones had overtones. From Siegfried, soprano Kirsten Chambers evinced all the excitement and tenderness of Brünnhilde's awakening in "Ewig war ich", accompanied by Keith Chambers.

Another large voice we enjoyed was that of mezzo-soprano Rachelle Pike who sang the aria of Princesse Bouillon in Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur--"Acerba voluttà". "Elektra's Monologue" from Richard Strauss' opera Elektra was given a performance, as dramatically intense as it was vocally, by soprano Elizabeth Blancke-Biggs, accompanied by Michael Recchiuti on the piano. The phrase "Agamemnon, wo bist du" was heart rending.

It was a very special moment for us when soprano Olga Makarina sang "Mi chiamano Mimi" from Puccini's La Bohème. What made it special was that one of our earliest operatic experiences was attending a master class in which Joan Dornemann coached her in that same aria! Many years have gone by but time has not dimmed the luster of her beautiful instrument. Rachmaninov's "How Fine This Spot" was beautifully performed with sensitive phrasing and dynamics.

Amy Burton and John Musto were on hand for some cabaret that everyone enjoyed.  Three selections from the oeuvre of Irving Berlin were performed with pizazz--"I'm on my way to Cuba", "Russian Lullabye", and "Let's face the music and dance".

There were some fine young up and coming artists on the program. It was a pleasure to hear mezzo-soprano Sophie Delphis, whom we reviewed last month. Her relaxed presentation worked well for "Nobles seigneurs" from Meyerbeer's Les Huguenots. Her French was parfait; the scale passages and arpeggi were finely handled.

Soprano Nadine Benjamin performed "D'amor sull'ali rosée" from Verdi's Il Trovatore with fine nuance. She knows what so many singers with high voices ignore.  High doesn't have to mean loud! Instead she floated her top notes with lovely delicacy.

There was plenty of ensemble singing as well. The Ebony Ecumenical Choir made their annual appearance offering a rousing "Go Tell it on the Mountain".

The entire cast joined forces for Adolphe Adam's "O Holy NIght", with each singer taking a phrase. It was a very generous program that seemed to fly by. Generous is the right word. The artists gave their all and so did the grateful audience.

(c) meche kroop

THE RISE AND THE FALL

The fate of the work itself has significantly paralleled the fate of the eponymous city.  It started life in 1927 as an experimental non-opera singspiel of one act's duration, premiering in Baden Baden.  It became a succès de scandale and shocked the audience with Kurt Weill's jazzy melodies and unusual orchestration and with Bertolt Brecht's radical countercultural themes. 

In 1930, the work was expanded to three acts and, having been too shocking for Berlin, premiered in Leipzig with some of the raunchier scenes toned down.  Brecht's libretto, strongly influenced by his Marxist view of capitalism, managed to skewer politics, the judicial system, materialism and sex.  There were riots.  By 1933, the Nazis banned the work and The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny did not achieve regular productions in the USA until the 1960's.

This was a daring choice for the Manhattan School of Music.  Opera singers have invested a great deal of blood, sweat and tears learning to inhabit a role and getting the audience to identify with their characters.  In this "theater of alienation" the performers are meant to distance themselves from their characters and we of the audience are not meant to identify, but rather to use our brains and think about what is being presented to us.  Brecht held a mirror up to the culture of his epoch and wanted to shame society.  It is a distorting mirror but a mirror nonetheless.  We wonder, "Has society changed?"

With the esteemed Dona D. Vaughn as Director, with valuable contributions from Set Designer Beowulf Boritt, Costume Designer Tracy Dorman and Lighting Designer Tyler Micoleau, the goal was largely reached.  The production had a surreal and cartoony aspect that suited the improbable story of three fugitives from the law whose truck breaks down in the middle of nowhere; they decide to build a city that seems to be one where capitalism runs rampant without any civilizing forces.

No attempt is made in the direction of geographic validity or character development.  There is a curtain on a long cable which is slid back and forth.  There are titles announcing the content of each scene.  The lighting is directly over the scene and anything but atmospheric.  (Are you alienated yet?)  The costumes are splendid, especially for Jenny and the six prostitutes that come to the city to destroy any illusion of romance.  (Anti-opera, remember?) 

Rob Greene and J. Jared Janas are credited with wig, hair and makeup design and credit must be given; Rachelle Pike went unrecognized, although we had just seen her as Marthe in Faust!  But the generous mezzo voice was unmistakable in her superb performance as The Widow Begbick.  Soprano Cree Carrico employed a bright soprano to fine effect as Jenny the whore who won't give up her money to save her man from the electric chair.  The six prostitutes who sang "The Alabama Song" were fetchingly costumed Kerstin Bauer, Ann Louise Glasser, Nan Li, Kathleen Spencer, Leela Subramaniam and Ellen Teufel.

The men were no less wonderful.  Arriving in the truck with The Widow Begbick were Fatty the Bookkeeper, sung by tenor Peter Tinaglia, and Trinity Moses, sung by bass-baritone James Ioelu, well remembered from his role as Méphistophèles in Faust.  It is always exciting for us to witness an artist's versatility.

The four lumberjacks were perfectly cast: Tenor Aaron Short sang the role of Jim Mahoney who is sentenced to death because he can't pay his bar bill or bribe the judges; tenor Scott Ingraham performed the role of Jack O'Brien who dies from grotesque overeating; bass Brett Harrison Vogel sang the role of Joe who dies in a prizefight; baritone Jason Cox was the only surviving lumberjack--Bill.  Michael Papincak was Toby.

Musical values were first-rate with Maestro Kynan Johns on the podium and some mighty fine MSM musicians in the pit.  Weill's radical scoring included two saxophones and an onstage player of mandolin, banjo and bass guitar as well as the marvelous Juan Pablo Jofre playing the bandoneon.  (He seemed to be the only Argentinean involved in the production, but if you started counting New Zealanders you might run out of fingers.)  There is no praise sufficient for the chorus who were given some outstanding music and served to tie together all the loose ends.

This production used the Michael Feingold translation.  Dialogue was spoken in English and the songs were sung in German and English, as they were written originally.  Perhaps Mr. Brecht saw the USA as emblematic of lawlessness and materialism.  Perhaps we still are.

© meche kroop