The Opera Tattler

* Notes*
The Merola Opera Program presented the first of two Schwabacher Summer Concerts (Baritone Joeavian Rivera as Dr. Malatesta, bass John Mburu as Don Pasquale, soprano Chea Kang as Norina, and tenor Tristan Tournaud pictured, photograph by Kristen Loken ) last night at San Francisco Conservatory of Music. The singers who do not fit into the opera production — this year it’s Le Comte Ory —  do scenes from operas at this concert. All these singers were strong and the Donizetti-heavy performance was delightful.

Maestro William Long conducted the orchestra behind the stage, the singers used monitors to stay synchronized. The music sounded sprightly and together. The staging was directed by former Merolini Omer Ben Seadia and Elio Bucky. There were video projections and doors to make the set, and other furniture was brought on stage as the scenes changed.

The first half of the evening was entirely Donizetti. Il campanello seems like it is over-the-top with silliness, it’s hard to fathom coping with much more than the Act I, Scene 4 that we did see. Enrico, sung here by baritone Gabriel Natal Báez, disrupts the wedding night of his former love and the pharmacist Don Annibale (bass-baritone Justice Yates). Both singers are superb actors. Natal Báez’s voice is very loud and rich, while Yates has an appealing warmth.

Both singers appear again in Act I, Scene 9 and 10 of Anna Bolena, with Natal Báez as Anna’s brother Rochefort and Yates as Enrico. It was impressive how well they embodied such different characters. It was good to hear soprano Charlotte Siegel as Anna, her voice is icy and dramatic.

In the second half we had two scenes from non-Donizetti operas. Both Suor Angelica and Il trovatore were rousing and beautifully sung. Soprano Alexa Frankian was moving as Suor Angelica and soprano Ariane Cossette sang Leonora with ease.

We ended the evening with Act II of Don Pasquale. Bass John Mburu was very well-suited to the title role, as was the light pretty tenor of Tristan Tournaud (Ernesto). Soprano Chea Kang makes for a sassy Norina, she also seemed perfect for her role. The acting was all spot on and amusing.

*Tattling * 
It was fun attending this performance, we knew quite a few people there. No electronic noise was noticed nor was any talking during the music.