A Stunning Carmen at Seattle Opera

From Seen and Heard International
By: Bernard Jacobson

Bizet, Carmen: Seattle Opera, Soloists, Orchestra, Pier Giorgio Morandi (conductor), McCaw Hall, Seattle, 15/28.10.2011 (BJ)

Bernard Uzan, whose new Carmen for Seattle Opera ran through the second half of October, can certainly not be accused of one-size-fits-all directorial methods. As the disparity between the thrilling naturalism of Pagliacci in 2008 and the somewhat inchoate abstraction of Macbeth two years earlier illustrated, the gifted Frenchman’s response to the operas he stages tends to be admirably specific and sharply individual.

No exception, this Carmen in its turn offers a brilliantly imaginative and utterly compelling blend of naturalistic elements with touches of often quite magical stylization. The only major false note – the idea of having the officer Zuniga, on his capture by the gypsies, not led off under guard but summarily executed – added a gratuitous level of nastiness to an already morally challenging plot (and it was hardly consistent with “trusting the text,” which Uzan cites as a basis of his directing work.)

But everything else, from dance sequences like the graceful interplay of soldiers and cigarette girls at the start to the desperate Don José’s act of murder at the end, told the story of the ill-fated title character with exemplary clarity and suitably excruciating vividness.

More than most operas, Carmen depends for its success on the quality of its leading lady, and this production was graced by performers of major talent in both casts. On opening night, Georgian mezzo Anita Rachvelishvili, in her Seattle debut, fashioned a portrayal of stunning power. There is something about her facial expressions, her style of singing (and speaking), and her way of holding herself from which we learn that this Carmen is who she is and not just someone else’s idea of who she is. Her first aria, the sultry Habanera, was curiously disjointed of line and failed to make its usual effect, but if this was due to first night nerves, they were swiftly banished, and from then on we were treated to a glorious outpouring of impassioned and cleanly focused tone. A shade less individual in characterization, Malgorzata Walewski’s Carmen perhaps resembled more the traditional idea of the vamp, but within the framework of that conception her portrayal was consistent and convincing; she moved (and danced) well; and she made more of the insistent chromatic line of that first aria.

Of the two Mexican tenors in their respective casts, Luis Chapa sang strongly as Don José, who is not so much a hero as a plaything of destiny. He projected, too, just the nebbish air of indecision that makes José putty in Carmen’s hands – no competition, character-wise, for the sexy and vocally impressive Escamillo and Zuniga of Michael Todd Simpson and Donovan Singletary. As the production’s second Don José, Fernando de la Mora showed us a man who was less of a pushover, which made the dynamic between him and Carmen less subtle in the early stages of the story but conversely increased the credibility of his later self-assertion. Vocally, moreover, he is one of the most richly gifted operatic tenors I have encountered in a long time: this is a voice of voluptuous tone and at times startling power. It was good to the last drop, with not a trace of tightness at the top or of strain even at the end of the evening.

The clear-eyed courage of Norah Amsellem’s Micaëla made her much more than merely the nice girl next door, and the other Micaëla, Caitlin Lynch, matched up well both dramatically and vocally to her more experienced colleague: there was an attractively Gallic tinge to her tone, and she needs only to develop a somewhat stronger sense of verbal coloration to establish herself as a singer to reckon with. The rest of the cast provided exemplary support on both nights, with admirably vivid characterizations from Joseph Lattanzi as the would-be seductive Moralès, from David Krohn and Andrew Stenson as the two lead bandits, and from Amanda Opuszynski and Sarah Larsen as their molls. There was polished orchestral playing under Pier Giorgio Morandi’s baton, with caressing solos from the Seattle Symphony’s new principal flute, Demarre McGill, and crisp work from Beth Kirchhoff’s chorus. Enhanced by R. Keith Brumley’s efficient set (originally created for Lyric Opera of Kansas City), James Schuette’s equally sensible costumes, and Donald Edmund Thomas’s atmospheric lighting, which used a followspot to fine effect in setting Carmen off from the rest of her world, the total effect of this Carmen was of a rare and dramatically overwhelming cohesion.

Production

Director: Bernard Uzan
Sets: R. Keith Brumley
Costumes: James Schuette
Lighting designer: Donald Edmund Thomas
Hair and makeup designer: Joyce Degenfelder
Choreography: Peggy Hickey
Chorus director: Beth Kirchhoff
Musical preparation: Philip A. Kelsey, David McDade, and Jay Rozendaal

Cast

Moralès: Joseph Lattanzi
Micaëla: Norah Amsellem/Caitlin Lynch
Don José: Luis Chapa/Fernando de la Mora
Zuniga: Donovan Singletary
Carmen: Anita Rachvelishvili/Malgorzata Walewska
Frasquita: Amanda Opuszynski
Mercédès: Sarah Larsen
Escamillo: Michael Todd Simpson
Remendado: Andrew Stenson
Dancaïre: David Krohn
Principal Dancer: Lisa Gillespie

At Last, Good Verdi From Parma: Un Ballo in Boston

From Seen and Heard International
By: José M. Irurzun
G. Verdi. Un Ballo in Maschera: Soloists, Orchestra and Chorus Teatro Regio di Parma, Gianluigi Gelmetti (conductor), Teatro Regio di Parma. 9.10.2011 (JMI)

Photo courtesy Teatro Regio di Parma, © Roberto Ricci

Among much mediocrity, the Parma Verdi Festival’s Un Ballo in Maschera was a triumph. Pierluigi Samaritani’s production premiered at this theater in 1989 and includes, as is typical for him, sets and costumes; traditional both. The production harks back to its 1859 premiere in Rome when it first became known under its now customary name: before then Un Ballo had been Gustavo III, then Una vendetta in dominò. The King of Sweden in turn became Riccardo, Earl of Warwick (via Duke of Pomerania); Ackerstrom became Count Renato, and the setting was moved first to Stettin (Una vendetta) then to the British colonial town of Boston.
available at Amazon

Samaritani’s appealing set, in the form of painted curtains, work outstandingly in the two scenes of Act I, and the masked ball. His typically attractive costumes please the eye, especially for Kristin Lewis’ Amelia. One problem with this production is that it requires two intervals, plus additional stops for scene changes, which makes the performance too long. In short, it’s a very attractive, old fashioned (and plain old) production which continues to please the audience.

Conductor Gianluigi Gelmetti is steeped in the Italian great opera tradition. On this occasion he convinced with energy, passion, and dramatic force, making orchestra and chorus play excellently, for their standards.

In a theater as small as the Teatro Regio, Francesco Meli could easily cope with he can cope with Riccardo, Earl of Warwick, something that he might find difficult to pull off in a large house; the house’s remarkable acoustics were very helpful in this regard. But even if Meli is a bit light for the character, he is a remarkable singer with an attractive voice and only the high notes tend to be thin. Provided that the repertoire and the theater are appropriate, he’s a very fine tenor, indeed.

American soprano Kristin Lewis was, save for that costume, a disappointing Amelia. In the last three years I had the opportunity to see her several times and the state of her voice has me worried. Far from progressing, she only gets worse. Her biggest problem is that the top register is out of control, with notes screamed and sometimes off-pitch. Amelia further requires important low notes, which Mlle. Lewis lacks, too. At least the middle range is still intact, although that’s not quite enough for satisfying in this or many another role.

Vladimir Stoyanov was a remarkable Renato, also much aided by the characteristics of the theater. He sang his arias with taste and elegance, particularly “Eri tu” which he turned into a sort of personal triumph.

Elisabetta Fiorillo’s Ulrica had good intentions that were met harshly by a different reality. The low notes were fine, granted, but the center was unstable and her high notes are too tight. She would have been better off cast as Mrs. Quickly in Falstaff (S&H review here). Serena Gamberoni (a.k.a. Mrs. Meli) was a perfect Oscar. It’s one of the most grateful characters in the repertoire, (along with Micaela or Liu), but even so it will be difficult to see a better Oscar than hers. The secondary characters were well covered, especially by Filippo Polinelli as Silvano.

Production: Teatro Regio di Parma

Direction: Pierluigi Samaritani (Original), Massimo Gasparon (Revival)
Sets and Costumes: Pierluigi Samaritani
Lighting: Andrea Borelli

Cast
Riccardo: Francesco Meli
Amelia: Kristin Lewis
Renato: Vladimir Stoyanov
Ulrica: Elisabetta Fiorillo
Oscar: Serena Gamberoni
Sam: Antonio Barbagallo
Tom: Enrico Rinaldo
Silvano: Filippo Polinelli
Judge: Cosimo Vassallo

The Requiem at Parma’s Teatro Farnese

From Seen and Heard International
By: José M. Irurzun
G. Verdi, Requiem:: Soloists, Orchestra and Choir Teatro Regio di Parma, Yuri Temirkanov (conductor), Parma’s Teatro Farnese. 08.10.2011 (JMI)

Parma’s Verdi Festival is no exception among opera theatres and festivals these days; the economic pressure is felt all around. This year the final program of the Festival wasn’t known until the beginning of September and one of operas (Il Trovatore) will be given in concert form.

The Verdi Festival takes place between October 1st and 28th and stages Un Ballo in Maschera and Falstaff this year – with two performances of the Requiem at the beautiful Teatro Farnese thrown in. The Farnese is a theater in the Palazzo della Pilotta and was built in 1618. The theatre is a semicircle with bleachers, with chairs added to the ground floor. It is a place of great beauty, built with wood and stucco (and so reconstructed after destruction in World War II), with a capacity of around 1,200 but rather deficient acoustics. From the stalls, all at the same level, it is difficult the view of the stage, especially if you are seated at the back. In short, it’s a more interesting theater to visit than to attend an opera performance in.

Yuri Temirkanov, music director of the Orchestra of the Teatro Regio di Parma, conducted. At almost 83 he is still—or rather again—in great shape and he was able to transmit energy to his musicians that defied his age. His reading was remarkable, particularly the beginning of the Requiem, which he attacked in breath-taking pianissimo, full of mystery and emotion. That level wasn’t quite upheld, orchestra and espeically the splendid chorus never contributed anything less than notable.

The quartet of soloists was not at the same level, no doubt affected by the flawed acoustics of the theater which takes a toll on voices that are not perfectly projected. Dimitra Theodossiou was not particularly noteworthy, except for a few beautiful soft touches in “Liberame, domine”. Sonia Ganassi was also adversely affected by the acoustics. Her voice is smaller than what is needed to sing this Requiem. If she fell short in terms of raw power, she made up for some of that with sheer gusto.

Francesco Meli replaced Roberto Aronica and he was the only one in the quartet whose voice came freely into the theatre. Meli’s voice is not large, but he projects it very well. His tenor is at the limit of the lyric voice, having widened his instrument during the last years. He was quite good at “Ingemisco” with only the top notes getting thinner. Riccardo Zanaellato was the weakest singer in the quartet, less than what one can expect from a true bass and unrefined.

Soloists:

Dimitra Theodossiou (soprano)
Sonia Ganassi (mezzo soprano)
Francesco Meli (tenor)
Riccardo Zanellato (bass)