AHHH-PERA

No star in the sky dazzled with as much brilliance as the glamorous Danielle de Niese at the Central Park Summer Stage last night.  A favorite of ours since her days in the Lindemann program, Ms. de Niese just keeps getting better and better, her voice as sparkling as crystal and matched by some mighty fine interpretations and some gracious hosting of the first evening of the Metropolitan Opera's Summer Recital Series.  Our favorite moment was hearing for the first time a concert aria composed by Mozart to accommodate the wishes of a soprano who wanted to replace his "Deh Vieni" from Nozze di Figaro--as Ms. N. explained before singing--"something with a lot of high and low notes".  She was equally fine in several arias and duets by Donizetti, so light-heartedly perfect for a warm summer evening.  Likewise for her "O mio babbino caro" from Puccini's Gianni Schicchi which surely made all the men in the audience want to satisfy her wishes.  The coloratura was always quick and clean.

Partnered by venerable bass-baritone John Del Carlo in duets from Don Pasquale and L'Elisir d'Amore, not a shred of drama was lost; in the absence of sets and costumes, it is all up to the singers and, so good were they that the mind's eye supplied what was missing. Mr. Del Carlo commanded the stage in "A un dottor della mia sorte" from Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia. Dan Saunders accompanied and the orchestra went unmissed.  Tenor Dimitri Pittas sang with equal  dramatic intensity and some truly lovely diminuendi.  Sadly, he tended to push his high notes instead of floating them.  Not that the attentive audience had any reservations, judging by the applause for his "Una furtiva lagrima".  His duet from L'Elisir d'Amore with Mr. Del Carlo was hilarious.

These outdoor events are generally plagued by much distraction from munchers, quaffers and texters.  Let it be said that even opera neophytes who applauded in the middle of arias were more than usually attentive.  That's what happens when such stellar beings take the stage.  There are more performances to watch out for.  Take note.  Don't say we didn't tell you!

(c) meche kroop

TREACHERY DECEIT AND BETRAYAL

All that in a comedy!  We know what treachery, deceit and betrayal look like in the 21st c. but to learn what they looked like in the 18th c. we must put our eyes and ears in the hands of Mozart and Da Ponte who explored those very issues in the comedy Cosi fan Tutte.  We have sat through this opera countless times, most unthankfully when the director updated the story to the mid 20th c. and placed it in a diner in Queens, and recently when it was updated to contemporary times and placed in a Wall Street firm.  We did not appreciate being spoon fed the notion that interaction between the sexes has not changed.

Fortuitously, director Kay Walker Castaldo has presented the story the way it was written but has put her personal stamp on the Prelude to Performance production at Hunter College.  Ms. Castaldo had enough original ideas for two productions and most of them added to our understanding and enjoyment.  The overture was visualized for us by a framing device that seemed to show a troop of actors bustling about preparing for the performance.  One wished to have returned to this situation at the close!  A non-singing role was added-- that of a sourpuss dueña played in travesti by Oliver Wolf; along with the presence of crosses, this emphasized the notion that we were in an upper class  Catholic home where two sisters will be tempted into misbehavior by two devilish presences, that of the cynical Don Alfonso, effectively portrayed and sung by bass-baritone André Courville and that of the charmingly sassy ladies' maid Despina, splendidly acted and sung by soprano Mizuho Takeshita.  These morally loose characters were made far more appealing than the strict black-garbed guardian of morality.

One realizes soon what the director was going for--a battle between love and lust.  Originally, the two sisters Fiordiligi, sung by bell-voiced soprano Clara Heikyung Yu and Dorabella, sung and engagingly acted by mezzo Yiselle S. Blum are betrothed respectively to the tall handsome Guglielmo, richly sung and acted by Steven LaBrie and the adorable blond Ferrando, sung by sweet-voiced tenor Rogelio B. Peñaverde.  Having wagered with the devil incarnate Don Alfonso over the fidelity of their sweethearts, they woo each other's intended.  By Act II, the minimal but consummately effective set (credited to Peter Harrison) was awash in symbolism of The Fall.  Trees and flowerpots were overturned; there was a basket of apples; Dorabella and Guglielmo are snuggling (or snogging) under a blanket.  Bad boy Mozart would have loved it!

With so much talent onstage it is difficult to single out any one performer; all worked together as an ensemble.  There are, however, some memorable stage pictures.  As the curtain rose we saw a silhouette of one of the performers vividly outlined against a yellow-lit backdrop.  When the opera itself began, we witnessed Don Alfonso, Ferrando and Guglielmo being bounced along in an invisible coach.  The trio were so good at this that we could actually see the coach in our mind's eye.  Another image we won't soon forget is the entrance of the two men pretending to be Albanians, dressed to the nines in the most outlandish and yet wildly becoming costumes (credited to Charles Caine whom we have decided is one of the best in the business).  Yet another is the struggle on the face of Dorabella as she contemplated giving in to her lust for the disguised Guglielmo and thereby betraying her love for Ferrando.  We further enjoyed the set changes being performed by a quartet of housemaids, each one of which had a personality of her own.

If we have a cavil or two, it might be that occasionally the always hilarious stage business occurred during a major aria and distracted one's attention from the singer.  Also, it seemed excessive to toss the dueña over a wall to get rid of her.  The sybolism was clear but it reminded us too much of poor Falstaff being tossed into the Thames the previous night.

We particularly enjoyed the spacious pacing of Maestro Steven White which gave the uniformly talented singers space to caress the vowels.  This is not to say that the action lagged in any way; on the contrary, the action moved right along.

This will become the Cosi against which all our future Cosi's will be measured, just as last night's Falstaff did.  We are clamoring for more of these exceptional evenings. And yes, this is a love letter to Martina Arroyo who has made such a remarkable difference in the New York City opera scene.  MWAH!

(c) meche kroop

FLAWLESS FALSTAFF

It is with no small degree of embarrassment that we confess to not appreciating the charms of Verdi's final opera--not until tonight, that is.  Under the stewardship of Artistic Director Martina Arroyo, the program Prelude to Performance once again provided a matchless evening of entertainment, fun and artistic merit to a delighted audience as well as performance opportunities to young singers at the cusp of major careers.  Now how does she do all this????

By doing what the Metropolitan Opera, with all its vast resources, cannot.  She hires the best talent in the business to coach and direct the young performers in a concentrated program; the ensemble feeling is evident from one moment to the next.  We were privileged to attend several master classes and gratified to see how the young artists put their new skills to good use.

Under the astute direction of Matthew Lata, the story made complete sense and every character was well-rounded and believable.  Falstaff, as portrayed by the generously proportioned (voice as well as girth) Robert Kerr (photographed by Jen Joyce Davis and seen above), was not just a self-deluding has-been and a figure of scorn; he became an object for our empathy as well.  His two down-at-the-heels henchmen, ably sung and hilariously performed by tenor Christopher Longo (Bardolfo) and bass Christian Zaremba (Pistola), kept us in stitches with their hijinks. 

Mezzo Nichole Ashley Peyreigne had a marvelously resonant voice and impressive comedic skills as Dame Quickly; we were impressed by the variety of tone she gave to her salutations to Falstaff--"Reverenza" never sounded so good.  We were dazzled by the spine-tingling soprano of Nicole Haslett whom we first heard and enjoyed in The Ghosts of Versailles; she gave an outstanding interpretation of a young woman trying to learn something about life from the older housewives--Dame Quickly, Meg Page (a fine mezzo Kiri Parker) and her mother Alice Ford (an equally fine Allyson Herman whom we remember well from Summer and Smoke at Manhattan School of Music).  Tenor Brandon Snook, belying his youthful good looks, was made up to look like the cranky old fogey Dr. Caius and sang with distinction.  Tenor Youngchul Park, well known to Prelude audiences, was a likable Fenton and did a fine job with one of the very few arias in Falstaff--the meltingly beautiful "Dal labbro il canto".  The other aria, sung by baritone Matthew Gamble as Mr. Ford was equally delightful to hear.

Fortunately, Mr. Lata, unlike some of the new directors hired by the Met, made no self-serving attempts to alter time and place.  This is very much a 16th c. tale and the Elizabethan costumes designed by Charles Caine were dazzling.  See photo of Mr. Kerr's  Falstaff above.  Not much scenery was necessary but Peter Harrison used a few pieces to convey a sense of atmosphere.  We especially enjoyed the laundry hanging out to dry which provided a playground and hiding place for Fenton and Nannetta as they sang their love duet.  The illusion of being alongside the Thames was abetted by the subtle lighting of Traci Klainer Polimeni.  We loved the scene of Falstaff and his page (Natan Mulady) swimming down the river and climbing out which was augmented later by the illusion of Fenton poling his way downstream.

Finally we were most impressed by the fine-tuned conducting of Maestro Willie Anthony Waters who pulled some fine playing from his pickup orchestra.  There is one more performance on Sunday afternoon and one could do no better on a stuffy day in New York City than to drag one's fatigued body up to Hunter College and to fill your ears with Verdi's swan song and your heart with laughter.  If we had one operatic wish (and we have not yet shared this with Ms. Arroyo) it would be to have her productions all year round.  As it is, one must wait for the dog days of summer--but the experience is worth waiting for.  You will see us tonight at Cosi fan Tutte which promises to be equally rewarding.  Come and revel!

(c) meche kroop

THE MOST HAPPY AUDIENCE

The Dicapo Opera Theatre has managed to fill the house with music and laughter during its extended run of Frank Loesser's The Most Happy Fella--so much so that we were reminded of our long-held wish that one of New York City's small opera companies would fill in one of the gaps in our opera scene.  At the time we expressed this opinion, South Pacific was filling the Vivian Beaumont Theater at Lincoln Center night after night.  BUT, big but here, they used amplification; Dicapo does not.  It is a comfortably intimate house that seats but 200 and, in this case, involved a cast who moved gracefully from opera to "a Broadway sound" without any feeling of noblesse oblige.  These singers brought the show to life without making any compromises.  Reflecting on what we previously wrote about what comprises an opera, we consider this an opera, especially when it is sung by good voices and without miking.

As the eponymous hero, baritone Michael Corvino gave a most committed performance.  He was completely believable as the lonely Italian vintner establishing himself in Napa Valley, CA in the mid 20th c.  He absolutely oozed garlic.  His sister Marie was gorgeously sung by mezzo Lisa Chavez, who, while very much looking the part did not have an old-country accent at all, leading us to speculate on how she managed to lose it!

The San Francisco waitress with whom Tony falls in love and whom he calls "Rosabella" was winningly acted and impressively sung by soprano Molly Mustonen.  The big issue that this couple must deal with involves a series of betrayals and ultimate forgiveness.  Tony woos Rosabella by mail with a photograph of a much younger and handsomer man, his foreman Joe, in which role Peter Kendall Clark gave a persuasively cocky performance that benefited from his generous baritone voice.  His solo "Joey, Joey" was moving and went a long way toward establishing his character.

In a blind rage at the deception, Rosabella behaves badly, marries Tony anyway but has an intimate encounter with Joe which results in a pregnancy.  Tony also has his issues.  Fear of Rosabella's discovery of his deception leads him to have a driving accident and he is carried home in very bad shape for the wedding.  How these two flawed human beings resolve their issues leads us to care for them and want them to be together in spite of Marie's warnings about the difference in their ages.  Marie wants Tony to be an old man she can look after and is threatened by Rosabella's taking over her duties.

This is serious stuff but comic relief is provided by Rosabella's friend Cleo (the delightful belter Lauren Hoffmeier) and Tony's employee Herman (the hilarious Brance Cornelius) who somehow manage to get together also. Their show-stopping number "Big D" won our hearts. As if this weren't sufficient to keep us smiling, we also heard some wonderful ensemble work in "Standing on the Corner" and, our personal favorite "Abbondanza".

That delicious word just about sums up the entire production.  An abundance of good singing, good acting, good storytelling and good music provided by (gasp!) a full orchestra, ably conducted by Maestro Pacien Mazzagatti.  For unknown reasons, the orchestra was not in the pit but onstage behind the singers.  John Farrell is credited with the set design which consisted of nothing but a few benches and a table; more was not necessary.  Costumes by Julie Wyma were apropos the period.  Francine Harman was responsible for the choreography which we truly enjoyed in the "Big D" number.  General director Michael Capasso did better as Stage Director than he did as an actor portraying the manager of the San Francisco restaurant where Rosabella was working.

We thank him and Diane Martindale, the Artistic Director, for showing us a realization of our dream--to see an American musical treated as the opera which we believe it to be.  With pleasure we noted that next season's roster includes Kismet.  We are filled with anticipation.

(c) meche kroop

A SWAN TO CHEER

The ABT audience loves to cheer-- and cheer they did at last night's performance of Swan Lake, starring two major stars of the ballet world, Polina Semionova and David Hallberg.  The Petipa/Ivanov choreography we know and love has endured for over a century with periodic tweaking, including that of Baryshnikov and, in the current version, by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.  There are those who rail against the Prologue in which Odette's backstory is revealed; we belong to the camp that appreciates it.  We actually get to witness von Rothbart the Evil Sorcerer transform the beautiful young maiden into a swan.  Great theater!

If there is a better ballet, we have not seen it, although Giselle and Romeo and Juliet come close.  Gorgeously tuneful and lavishly orchestrated music by Tchaikovsky?  Check.  Lucid storytelling?  Check.  Dazzling choreography for the principals?  Check.  Dazzling sets and costumes?  Check.

At last night's performance, Polina Semionova was deftly partnered by the long-limbed Mr. Hallberg whose line is regally poetic and whose technique is unsurpassed.  Ms. Semionova was luminous and added some very special touches to her Act III fouetées.  Their partnership leaves nothing to be desired.  Mr. Hallberg's acting was most convincing in Act III; he made it easy for us to "feel his pain".  He was distressed by his mother's insistence on his choosing a bride; his disappointment with each Princess was palpable; his delight when Odile arrives was plain; his passion for the woman he thought was his beloved was thrilling; and his despair when he realized the deception was heartbreaking.  If only he had created a character in Act I it would have been perfect.  As performed, it was difficult to tell what sort of Prince he was and what his relationships were with his mother, his tutor and his best friend.  We have written before about Max Beloserkovsky's Prince Siegfried who shows us all that and more.  Perhaps it is his Russian soul.

Roman Zhurbin danced the role of the monster von Rothbart while the Count in human form was performed by Alexandre Hammoudi who lacks the compelling seductiveness with which Marcelo Gomes invests the role.  The Pas de Trois was neatly executed by Stella Abrera, Maria Riccetto and Sascha Radetsky.  The corps de ballet might have been a bit sharper and one wished for sprightlier cygnettes.

David LaMarche conducted the familiar score without any unwelcome surprises.  Sets and costumes by Zack Brown have held up well and serve the production, as does the atmospheric lighting by Duane Schuler.

(c) meche kroop

Ashton 10 Ratmansky 2

 

A pair of one act ballets at ABT left us wishing we had slipped out during the intermission.  Not enough good things could be said about Frederick Ashton's "The Dream" from 1964; no encomium could do justice to Herman Cornejo's portrayal of Puck.  Wait... portrayal is not the right word.  Mr. Cornejo inhabited the role; one could easily say that he owns it, endowing the character with great joie de vivre, mischievousness, jaw-dropping athleticism, and consummate artistry. 

We all know the story and this is just another case in which a master choreographer can tell the story so that it makes sense; it delights the child in us at the same time as it awakens the adult in us to the vagaries of romantic love.  As Oberon, Cory Stearns was as regal as any King of the Fairies could be.  As Titania, Xiomara Reyes was adorable, if not quite convincing as a Queen.  (She was far more convincing last week as Juliet).  Alexei Agoudine was hilarious as Bottom.  The complicated romantic tribulations of the four Athenians were made crystal clear by Maria Riccetto, Stella Abrera, Sascha Radetsky and Jared Matthews.  Ormsby Wilkins conducted Mendelssohn's delightful score and the Young People's Chorus of New York City sang beautifully.

But oh, that Firebird!  Alexei Ratmansky, Artist in Residence at ABT, can be faulted for trashing a ballet some of us know and love.  Over a century ago, artist/designer Alexandre Benois collaborated with choreographer Michel Fokine and wedded together two Russian folktales, that of the Firebird and that of Katshchei the Immortal.  Diaghilev's Ballets Russes  gave the premiere in Paris where it was an enormous success.  Balanchine also choreographed the work for New York City Ballet and updated the costumes and the sets over the years, eventually settling on Marc Chagall's.  Mr. Ratmansky shows himself to be a pipsqueak in the shadow of giants.  It is sad that in today's audience, there are many who have nothing with which to compare this version and who may leave the theater totally perplexed by this violation of a classic.

The stage is filled with firebirds, all dressed alike, with nothing to distinguish THE Firebird except the outstanding dancing of Natalia Osipova.  Poor Ivan, splendidly danced by Marcelo Gomes, is introduced wandering through bare rooms with doors.  WTF!  The maidens are hideously garbed in green, looking like they wandered over from "Wicked"; worse still, they are given some kind of post-modern witchy-twitchy-itchy movements that make them look spastic, rather than entranced by Katshchei, powerfully danced by David Hallberg, whose makeup makes him look like he could slice bread with his face.  It is hard to believe that Ivan would choose any one of these green ghouls as his beloved.  But he does, he chooses Simone Messmer who did not make much of an impression with her dancing, probably because of the choreography. After Katshchei is destroyed (Ivan breaks the egg containing his soul), off come the green wigs and horrid dresses revealing unbecoming blond wigs and white shifts.  These are attributed to Galina Solovyeva and the weird sci-fi scenery to Simon Pastukh.

There is a puzzling pas de quatre for the Firebird, Ivan, the Maiden and Katshchei that conveys nothing about their respective characters, intentions or relationships.  All in all, there are profound deficits in storytelling and, with few exceptions, a lack of beauty and grace.  And isn't that what we want when we go to the ballet?  Otherwise, we may as well go see post-modern dance.

The score by Stravinsky was commissioned for the ballet when he was but a youth and it brought him great success.  Charles Barker conducted it with spirit.  It could best be enjoyed by closing ones eyes.

(c) meche kroop

SWAN LAKE WITHOUT TEARS

The Australian Ballet is in town and we went to see Graeme Murphy's version of Swan Lake.  We were left with some rather mixed feelings.  The work is original and entertaining but lacks the emotional impact of the Petipas/Ivanov version which has accrued layers of "improvements", none of which distracted from the spiritual intensity and mysticism of the original.  We have never been able to watch Max Beloserkovsky dance the role of Siegfried at American Ballet Theater without being completely convinced of his backstory and feeling intense grief over his being deceived by the evil Von Rothbart; if not sobbing at the end we have at the very least been dabbing at the tears on our cheeks evoked by the unwitting betrayal of Irina Dvorovenko's Odette, who can be so intensely immersed in her swanhood with her avian arm movements and long lean lines.  (That they are not dancing as partners this season at ABT is another source of grief!)

Now what has Mr. Murphy wrought?  A tired old story of a love triangle between three people that WE DO NOT CARE ABOUT!  Odette is a bride whose husband is still in love with an old flame, the very married and unpleasant Baroness von Rothbart.  Prince Siegfried at his own wedding seems to prefer the Baroness.  Performed by Kevin Jackson, this Siegfried evinces no backstory.  We don't have a clue about who he is or why he is marrying Odette.  A tall woman in a big hat seems to be The Queen (his mother?) and she also seems to prefer the Baroness.  So it doesn't appear that Siegfried has married Odette to please his mother.

Poor Odette, danced by Madeleine Eastoe, exhibits her jealousy, behaves wildly and is carted off to a mental institution by a black garbed doctor and two white garbed nuns with extravagant headdresses.  Ms. Eastoe is a strong dancer but lacks the long limbs necessary for a beautiful line.  The dancing was quite fine all the way through, including the hateful Baroness, danced by Lucinda Dunn.  BUT, there was no poetry or depth to the performances.

We might have enjoyed the lengthy (3 hours) piece better if it had not made the pretense of being related to the ballet we know and love.  We did observe a number of tributes to the original and were not cheated out of the dance of the four cygnets.  The Hungarian dance was moved to the wedding celebration in Act I.  The reordering of Tchaikovsky's music, ably conducted by Nicolette Fraillion, Music Director and Chief Conductor of the Australian Ballet and played by the New York City Ballet Orchestra, did not trouble us.  Mr. Murphy used it as he saw fit and did some very interesting choreography in the adagios and for the corps as well, especially in the first act wedding scene and the third act party scene.  Yes, THAT scene in which Odette flees the loony bin and crashes the party and wins Siegfried back.  And if you think it ends THERE you will be mistaken.

The lovely and simple sets as well as the vaguely Edwardian costumes, both by Kristian Fredrikson, added to the production.  The lakeside scenes presented women who may or may not have been swans in shorter skirts that may or may not have been meant to look like feathers.  We couldn't stop thinking "Send in the Swans!"