The Opera Tattler

Reviews of Performances and their Audiences

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  • Merola’s Le Comte Ory

    Merola-comte-ory-2025 * Notes *
    Merola Opera Program opened a delightful production of Le Comte Ory (Eva Rae Martinez as Comtesse Adèle and Minghao Liu as Le Comte Ory in Act II pictured left, photograph by Kristen Loken) last night at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Caroline H. Hume Concert Hall. This funny Rossini rarity has much challenging music but featured a splendid cast that took it on with aplomb.

    Director Garnett Bruce gave us a straightforward production, there was some cheekiness in the tone but very much in keeping with this silly comedy with an incomprehensible plot. Basically Le Comte Ory disguises himself in order to somehow seduce Comtesse Adèle, antics ensue. The stage has a lot of French windows and arches with pretty botanical details to define the space. The costumes are attractive and look of the time period in which the opera takes place.

    Maestro Pierre Vallet conducted a rather enormous orchestra that took up much of the first rows of Hume Concert Hall. There were some issues keeping everyone perfectly together but the humor and beauty of the score came through.

    As always with Merola, best of all were the singers. Tenor Minghao Liu was unreal in the title role, his high notes seemed impossibly easy and his voice is so smooth. It was truly a joy to hear him. As his love interest Comtesse Adèle, soprano Eva Rae Martinez was brilliant and sprightly, she has a strong voice. Le Comte Ory's page and rival, Isolier, was played by mezzo-soprano Meg Brilleslyper whose sound is pure and icy. Ariana Maubach (Ragonde) has a contrasting warm, rich mezzo-soprano and one is curious to hear more of her as well.

    Bass-baritone Wanchun Liang sounded agile as Gouverneur and his physicality was amusing. Baritone Benjamin Dickerson (Raimbaud) was pleasing and when he steals wine for himself and his companions all dressed as nuns, it's very buoyant and fun.

    * Tattling *
    A phone rang just before the start of the overture, but since we were basically in the orchestra pit, it was hard to hear anything else once the music started. A person in Row F Seat 8 was noisy with cellophane at the beginning of Act II, but again, it was easily ignored.

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  • Santa Fe Opera’s Die Walküre

    Walkure-OD2-Curtis-Brown-Photography-2025-10* Notes *
    The company premiere of Die Walküre (Back: Vida Miknevičiūtė as Sieglinde, Jamez McCorkle as Siegmund; Front: Ryan Speedo Green as Wotan, Sarah Saturnino as Fricka, photo by Curtis Brown for the Santa Fe Opera) at Santa Fe Opera last night has spectacular singing. Director Melly Still's production is busy and frentic.

    The cast is exceedingly strong. The Valkyries all sang well, sounding powerful and unified in Act III. Bass Soloman Howard was menacing as Hunding, I found him only the slightest bit grainy at first, but he did well. Mezzo-soprano Sarah Saturnino made Fricka very sympathetic, she did not come off as shrill or hysterical, and seemed quite reasonable.

    Soprano Vida Miknevičiūtė is stunning as Sieglinde, it is a bit ridiculous that so much sound can project from such a tiny person, Her voice is sweet and brilliant, and her last words in Act III gave me chills. Her Siegmund, tenor Jamez McCorkle, has a lovely baritonal sound that has pleasant brightness but perhaps not quite enough weight.

    Soprano Tamara Wilson is a forceful. fierce Brünnhilde and bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green is likewise a potent Wotan. Both have a lot of volume but are able to convey so much emotion in their voices. It would be so interesting to hear these two in a full Ring Cycle, and Green in particular is one of the best Wotans I have heard.

    The staging has a lot going on at all times. There are many dancers that play characters from Das Rheingold and it might have been confusing for those not as familiar with the plot. The costumes did not seem to be from one particular period, so this did not help the audience guess which dancer was which character. The set did use the space well, including the vertical space, and there was much layering above and behind the main action.

    I enjoyed hearing Maestro James Gaffigan conduct, as I haven't heard him much since he was at San Francisco Symphony years ago. His take is stately and elegant, and there were times when the tempi could have been more propulsive. The orchestra was quite moving in Act III, especially at the very end.

    * Tattling * 
    There was much poor-behavior on display in the audience. Someone's cellular phone rang for at least a minute when Siegmund was singing to Hunding in Act I. At the beginning of Act II a man was eating nuts out of cellophane, he made a lot of noise for several minutes and my companion asked him to stop.

    The audience did seem engaged, and they clapped with excitement at the beginning of Acts II and III. People stayed for the entire opera, but we ducked out early before the ovations, as the parking stressed people out and we noticed lots of yelling on our way to the theater.

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  • Schwabacher Summer Concert: It’s Complicated—Love & Opera

    Merola-shwabacher2025* 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.

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  • Merola’s A Grand Night for Singing – An American Songfest

    Merola_Song-Recital_2669_Photo-Credit_Kristen-Loken-scaled* Notes*
    A number of young artists from the Merola Opera Program gave a recital of American songs curated by pianist Ronny Michael Greenberg (pictured, photograph by Kristen Loken) last Thursday evening. Six singer/pianist duos were featured for a very cute performance to kick off the summer's Merola festivities.

    It was fun to hear the pianists, each made the same instrument sound so different. The singers, of course, are all distinct and ran the gambit as far as vocal type. The song selections ranged from Charles Ives and Irving Berlin to music from contemporary films and musicals. Elio Bucky did the stage direction and it was all pretty adorable. Some of the performers can really dance.

    The performance began and ended with Ronny Michael Greenberg playing the piano and all the others singing, which is a very nice way of pulling it all together. I could hear soprano Charlotte Siegel quite clearly in the first number, so when she sang her set with a microphone, I was surprised. Her "Fly Me To The Moon" stuck with me, I am curious to hear her again.

    Bass John Mburu gave a rousing rendition of "Some Enchanted Evening" accompanied by Deven Shah. I also liked hearing Mburu sing the traditional spiritual "Joshua Fought The Battle" arranged by baritone Lester Lynch. Mburu has an interestingly reedy sound for a bass.

    Tenor Tristan Tournaud and pianist Brian Cho were certainly a charismatic pair. Tournaud's voice is perhaps not as powerful as some of the other singing we heard, but his voice is pretty and pleasing. His "Black Max" was particularly compelling, he's a good actor.

    We heard two songs by Leslie Adams sung by bass-baritone Justice Yates and accompanied by Dain Yule Yoon, which were lovely. Yates was even more moving in "I'm Here" from The Color Purple, really emotionally nuanced and effective.

    Both baritone Joeavian Rivera and mezzo-soprano Ruby Dibble have strong voices. Rivera did well with "Pure Imagination" from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Dibble is a fine actress, her songs showed contrasting views rather brilliantly.

    *Tattling * 
    The performance was only 75 minutes long without an intermission. I did not notice any electronic noise or talking.

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  • SF Opera’s La Bohème (2nd Cast)

    MRW_8408 * Notes * 
    The production of La Bohème at this season closed yesterday evening at San Francisco Opera with a competent second cast (pictured, photograph by Matthew Washburn) for three of the main singers. The orchestra sounded clear and lovely.

    The final performance was consistent with the prima, though conductor Ramón Tebar and the orchestra were even more refined. Again, I really loved the string and woodwind soli. The chorus did well in Act II, everything seemed together and strong.

    I had a better appreciation for bass Bogdan Talos (Colline) from the balcony, his voice has a nice weight and ping. when needed but also very amusing when called for. As Marcello, Baritone Lucas Meachem is an incredible singing actor, he is nothing if not reliable. He fits right in as a young person despite the fact he's been singing at San Francisco Opera for around two decades.

    Soprano Brittany Renee (Musetta) is full but has an icy quality that works well for "Quando me'n vo'." Soprano Nicole Car looks delicate as Mimì, but her sound is, at times, rather too robust. She was able to color and shade her notes to sound more frail, but she was occasionally shrill and gasping. Tenor Evan LeRoy Johnson is earnest as Rodolfo with a bright voice. He wasn't completely secure for every note, but there is something very appealing about his brassy timbre. Car and Johnson's duet in Act III was a highlight of the performance, they sang nicely together.

    * Tattling * 
    I noticed quite a bit of rustling of food wrappers and dropping of objects from laps, but no electronic noise in the back of the balcony.

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  • SF Opera’s Idomeneo

    _74A0623* Notes *
    The new production of Idomeneo (Matthew Polenzani in the title role pictured, photograph by Cory Weaver) at San Francisco Opera is effective and engaging. The cast is very solid and the orchestra sounded utterly clear and beautiful under Music Director Eun Sun Kim.

    The 2023 production comes from Opera Australia and is directed by Lindy Hume. Set in contemporary times, the scenery features three walls enclosing a revolving platform and projections of the Tasmanian coast and forest. The opening scene shows seagulls flying around, and the videos switch up the scenes with ease without getting in the way of the music. Anna Cordingley's costumes favor black, very sleek and elegant, but Ilia has a pink trench coat to start and Elettra wears a dramatic purple gown that is offset by an elaborate gold headpiece and collar in Act II.

    Maestra Kim's conducting is ideal for the music of Mozart. The lines are perfectly clear, all the orchestral voices are audible. It's a beautiful, transparent sound. The playing was together and never was overwhelming. The chorus too was cohesive and powerful without detracting from the principals. The end of Act III was particularly beautiful, the mercy of the Neptune feels apparent in the music.

    The cast, with one exception, is strong. Even the small roles filled by bass-baritone Jongwon Han (Voice of Oracle) and tenor Samuel White (High Priest of Neptune) were sung with verve. Tenor Alek Shrader reprised Arbace, which he sang from the War Memorial stage in 2008. His voice has certainly darkened in that time, but seems more suited to the character.

    Mezzo-soprano Daniela Mack (Idamante) clearly was having a bad night, and before Act III General Director Matthew Shilvock announced from the stage that she was indisposed but was graciously agreeing to continue singing. Mack's voice sounded muted and thin, her vibrato exceedingly wide. Hopefully she recovers soon.

    _74A0467Soprano Elza van den Heever (pictured with Ying Fang, photograph by Cory Weaver) is impressive as the witchy Elettra. Her icy voice has heft and drama without being shrill. She sang her Act II aria "Idol mio" with tenderness and her "D'Oreste, d'Ajace ho in seno i tormenti" in Act III was quite terrifying. Soprano Ying Fang (Ilia) had a spectacular San Francisco Opera debut. From the very beginning, her pure, resonant sound was secure and lovely. "Se il padre perdei" in Act II was the highlight of the evening, Fang's pianissimo cuts through the orchestra with ease.

    In the title role tenor Matthew Polenzani is solid. His voice is reliable, it has a good brightness and weight. He is able to emote through both his sound and his body, and he is convincing as Idomeneo. His "Fuor del mar" in Act II was filled with anguish and "Accogli, oh re del mar" with the chorus in the last act had such a calm and plaintiveness.

    * Tattling * 
    There was so much beeping from some sort of medical device on the orchestra level both in Acts I and III. My companion said it was from a wheelchair, I had thought maybe it was a glucose monitor. A cellular phone was also heard, perhaps in the first rows of the orchestra level during Act III, just before Elettra's aria.

    There was noticeable audience attrition after each act. I found it a bit dumbfounding as the performance fully held my attention, and I intend to hear it again as many times as I can manage. I was in tears for much of Acts II and III.

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  • La Bohème at SF Opera

    _75A3727* Notes * 
    Last night’s opening of La Bohème at San Francisco Opera was rather charming with great physical comedy, some lovely singing, and beautiful playing. The revived production is efficient and keeps the timing to a spare 2 hours and 20 minutes.

    The production, designed by David Farley, consists of many flat pieces to depict Paris. The scenes change by separating and being able to be turned around and rearranged. Perhaps not breathtaking realistic but scene changes go very quickly and we were never kept waiting. arranged such that a new scene is revealed with simple rotation of the set. Katherine M. Carter’s direction the production from John Caird seemed perfectly suited to the piece, there were lots of laughs.

    Maestro Ramón Tebar had the orchestra sounding together and very pretty. The woodwinds were particularly poignant and the strings sounded lush.

    There was much fine singing and acting. Bass-baritone Dale Travis is always solid as a very funny Benoit and charismatic Alcindoro. Baritone Samuel Kidd sounds sweet as Schaunard, he moves well and is convincing. Bass Bogdan Talos was grave as Colline when needed but also very amusing when called for.

    Soprano Andrea Carroll sang Musetta with a piquant sass. Her “Quando me’n vo’” was a showstopper. Baritone Lucas Meachem is a delightful Marcello, his interactions with Musetta felt very believable.

    Our leads both have strong voices. Tenor Pene Pati’s Rodolfo is endearing and his voice is warm and plummy. His “Che gelida manina” was very pretty, though he seemed to struggle a bit with the duet that followed. He did better with the Act III duet. Soprano Karen Chia-ling Ho sang Mimì with a certain fragility that works nicely. She has some absolutely beautiful low notes, very rich and well-supported.

    * Tattling * 
    The audience seemed engaged and interested. There was an unfortunate amount of mobile phone rings in the center of the orchestra level, three times in Act I and three more for Act III.

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  • Opera Parallèle’s Harvey Milk Reimagined

    _74A2463.JPG* Notes *
    A revised and reorchestrated version of Stewart Wallace's Harvey Milk (pictured, photograph by Cory Weaver) was presented by Opera Parallèle at YBCA Theater in San Francisco Saturday night. Conducted by Nicole Paiement, the high-volume work sounded crystalline and Brian Staufenbiel's production uses the space efficiently.

    The narrative follows the life of Harvey Milk, member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1978 and gay rights icon. We start with his death at City Hall and then follow his life chronologically from childhood in Windmere, New York to his adulthood in New York City and San Francisco. 

    Wallace's music was flattened by amplification. The singers are all quite loud, as was the orchestra. It was disconcerting as there were many characters and at times it was difficult to discern who was singing. Maestra Nicole Paiement, as always, shaped the music beautifully and brought out many colors from each instrument. Because Harvey Milk was a great fan of opera and he attends goes to the Met and San Francisco Opera within the plot, we hear snippets of Puccini and Wagner. It solidified my wish to hear Paiement conduct a Ring cycle. I'm sorely tempted to go hear her conduct Jenůfa in Montreal this November.

    The inventive production, from Brian Staufenbiel, uses the vertical space of the stage. There are a number of stairs that can be combined with each other in different configurations and many doors hanging from the ceiling that could be projected on to change the scenes.

    The singers were uniformly strong. Even the smaller roles were cast meticulously. Tenor Curtis Resnick has a lovely, sweet sound as the Young Harvey and mezzo-soprano Catherine Cook gave her part as Mama an intensity and pathos. I especially liked soprano Chea Kang as Henrietta Wong, her pure voice is very attractive.

    Soprano Marnie Breckenridge has a powerful sound as Dianne Feinstein, as did bass Matt Boehler as George Moscone. Both also sang other smaller roles within the opera but characterized each seamlessly.

    The tenors were distinctive. Christopher Oglesby made for a blustering but also plaintive antagonist Dan White, while Henry Benson is charming as Milk's lover Scott Smith. Baritone Michael Kelly is convincing in the title role, his physicality is spot on and his voice conveys much emotion.

    * Tattling *
    There was a surprising amount of chatter during the performance, at least at the beginnings of each act, but no electronic noise was noted.

    It was a posh crowd for the opening night. Composer Jake Heggie and author Amy Tan were both spotted.

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  • The Lamplighters Present The Sorcerer

    Gs-sorcerer2025* Notes * 
    A run of Gilbert and Sullivan's The Sorcerer (ovation pictured, photograph by the author) from Lamplighters Music Theatre opened last night at the Presidio Theatre Performing Arts Center in San Francisco. Delightfully silly, the cast featured many talented singing actors.

    The piece involves Alexis, a son of a baronet, who wants to level class distinctions by using a love potion from one John Wellington Wells (the sorcerer of the title) to bring all sorts of people together. Antics ensue and the plot goes awry when his betrothed Aline drinks the potion at his insistence, only to fall in love with another.

    The music is bubbly and cheerful. Maestra Lynne Morrow had the small orchestra sounding appropriately jaunty, there were very few noticeable issues in intonation or synchronization.

    The production, from director Nicolas A. Garcia (who also heads Pocket Opera), is inventive and lots of fun. Video projection is used for the backdrops and Garcia was able to employ this very well, especially in a scene when Dr. Daly, the Vicar of Ploverleigh, rides a bicycle through the town. There are lots of sight gags and it is all quite charming. Though the opera is from 1877, it is placed here in 1920, which works perfectly well.

    The consummate performers were amusing to watch in action. The physicality of all of them was spot on. Mezzo-soprano Cary Ann Rosko and baritone Josh Black were particularly hilarious as Lady Sangazure, Aline's mother and Sir Marmaduke Pointdextre. Their duet "Welcome, joy!" garnered much laughter.

    Tenor Eric Mellum did well with the role of Dr. Daly, the lovelorn vicar, his plaintive sound and physical presence were completely convincing. Constance, a young woman in love with the vicar, was sung by Jayne Diliberto, who has an interestingly dark-toned soprano.  Mezzo-soprano Carly Ozard was humorous as Constance's mother Mrs. Partlet.

    Tenor Max Ary has a powerful sound as Alexis, and soprano Syona Ayyankeril sounded lovely as his love Aline. Ayyankeril's "My kindly friends" and "Happy young heart" in Act I were the highlights of the show for me.

    * Tattling * 
    The opening night audience was enthusiastic to say the least. Many patrons were dressed in Roaring Twenties style. Before the performance, audience members were invited to cast spells on the stage using wands and the video projector in the background.

    There was quite a lot of talking, but it was all in reaction to what was happening on stage.

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  • Opera San José’s Zorro

    OSJ_Zorro_4649_Photo-Credit_David-Allen-scaled* Notes * 
    The Bay Area premiere of Héctor Armienta's Zorro (Eugene Brancoveanu and Xavier Prado pictured, photograph by David Allen) opened last night at Opera San José in a crowd pleasing production with beautiful playing and singing. The orchestra sounded splendid under Maestro Jorge Parodi.

    The opera is earnest and heartfelt, the music quite pleasant and unchallenging.  Mariachi, flamenco, and corrido were well integrated in the score and the plot kept moving at a good pace. The two love triangles (love rhombus, perhaps) that anchor the narrative certainly held one's attention. The libretto is in Spanish and English, which could be confusing, I felt like I had to keep my eyes on the supertitles more often than I usually do. 

    The orchestra was very together, the strings sounded particularly good, as did the harp, guitar, and percussion. All the transitions seemed to go smoothly, I didn't notice any false starts or lack of cohesion whatsoever. It was impressive for a prima, especially of a new opera like this one. Parodi clearly prepared well.

    The singers are always the highlight of any performance at this opera house, and this was no exception. From top to bottom it was a fine cast. I liked soprano Arianna Rodriguez in the small role of Luisa and her buffoonish love interest bass-baritone Jesús Vicente Murillo (Sergeant José Maria Gomez). It was interesting to hear mezzo-soprano Deborah Martínez Rosengaus (Toypurina) in a new work, as I've only heard her sing obscure Baroque operas in tiny venues.

    Baritone Eugene Brancoveanu is always so beautiful to hear, his voice is so consistent and robust. His role of Octavio Rivera y Moncada was unremittingly evil, and he was booed by the audience at the end. Mezzo-soprano Melisa Bonetti Luna was the incredibly noble and self-sacrificing Carlota de Obragón, she had a gorgeous Act II aria about the pain of her unrequited love.

    Soprano Maria Brea was lovely and fiery as Ana Maria Soza, the mestiza beloved of the title character. Her high notes were incisive and soaring. Tenor Xavier Prado (Diego de la Vega / Zorro) also sang well, he's plaintive and strong throughout his range. He also was able to effortlessly jump up on a table and was convincing as a swashbuckler.

    * Tattling * 
    The audience enjoyed the performance very much, the patrons of this opera company are devoted and quite warm.

    There was some light talking at the start of Act II, but it died down fairly quickly.

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