The Opera Tattler

Reviews of Performances and their Audiences

Recent posts

Akhnaten

Oakland Opera Theater is just finishing a run of performances of Philip Glass’ Akhnaten at the Oakland Metro. This was the West Coast premiere of this work which dates from 1984. Director Ellen Sebastian Chang did not have much to work with, yet she was able to pull it off somehow, setting the opera both in the contemporary and ancient. The singing was pretty good overall, but the music itself sounded like something fit for a movie score.

Cast:
Akhnaten – Paul Flight, countertenor
Nefertiti – Katherine Growdon, mezzo-soprano
Queen Tye – Angela Dean-Baham, soprano
Horemhab – Martin Bell, baritone
Aye – John Minagro, bass
Amon – Alan Cochran, tenor
Amenhotep – Michael Mohammed, baritone

Posted in , , ,

2 responses to “Akhnaten”

  1. tehoullahan@gmail.com Avatar
    tehoullahan@gmail.com

    The Met production was absolutely astounding visually. Sadly, Phillip Glass still hasn’t progressed past 8-10 notes.

    Like

    Reply
  2. Scott G. Lloyd Avatar
    Scott G. Lloyd

    Leaving my wife and infant son alone, I drove from Los Angeles to Oakland–and back again the same night– just to attend this performance. I loved every minute of it. Oakland Opera was performing out of a warehouse with bleacher seats. No formal stage, just a few set pieces placed about as if they were pushed out of the way. I remember being very impressed with Paul Flight as Akhnaten. I had heard the original Sony recordings about 20 times, but Mr. Flight was spot on.
    The costumes were elaborate and full of gold cloth. The set props were spare, but well and imaginatively used. The orchestra was sharp and masterful, and the singers were exceptional to extraordinary!
    After the performance, the singers came out to speak with friends and well-wishers. I spoke to Mr. Flight and he was very excited and relieved. Singing like that without a break for ninety minutes must have been mind-bendingly difficult and stressful. Mr. Flight told me that one of the musicians was on the verge of a mental breakdown and had to leave the show, saying that the music was too difficult and hard on her body!
    My son is in college now, but this memorable evening is one that stays with me. I wish I could go back and see it all over again.

    Like

    Reply

Leave a comment