The Opera Tattler

Reviews of Performances and their Audiences

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  • Tannhäuser at the Bayreuther Festspiele


    Tannhaeuser-2013* Notes *     
    The current production of the Bayreuther Festspiele's Tannhäuser is unsatisfying. Sebastian Baumgarten directed a busy and tedious staging, relying on lots of projected text. There were also giant stuffed animal-like rays, menacing ape people, and assorted funny characters. The set, with its multiple levels, could have been used much more cunningly, but instead blocked the back projections. All of the singers showed a deep commitment to the direction, but the many unconnected ideas never cohered. The action did not go with the music in any way, and in the end, the spectator was left bored.

    The orchestra was lead by Axel Kober, whose tempi were measured. Although not bad, the playing lacked sensuousness. On the other hand, the chorus sounded great. The most formidable part of the evening was certainly the end, where the set was put to best effect with chorus members on different stories. The volume alone was quite impressive.

    Singing was the redeeming factor in the performance on Tuesday night. Katja Stuber (Ein junger Hirt) was exacting in her choreography as some sort of drunken hoodlum, and yet sounded brilliant and unreal. Günther Groissböck was a commanding Landgraf Hermann, his voice has a lovely richness. Michelle Breedt may not have been the most alluring Venus, but sang with power.

    Camilla Nylund (Elisabeth) was occasionally shrill, though has a certain vulnerable quality that is appealing. Michael Nagy did a beautiful job with Wolfram von Eschenbach. His "O du, mein holder Abendstern" was exquisite, he sang with sensitivity and warmth. Torsten Kerl was fine in the title role, never pushing his voice too hard, yet always audible.

    * Tattling *
    Someone tried clapping after the overture and one could feel the disapproval of the other audience members. A grey-haired woman next to me (Row 20 Seat 27 on the right side of the theater) collapsed on me during Act I. I was afraid she was having a seizure, but she had simply fainted from the stuffy heat, and recovered in a few minutes.

    Before Act III there was some sort of mass acted on stage, and when some of the audience clapped at the end of this, others booed to express their contrary opinion of the production. Likewise, there was a segment of the audience that was vocal in ridiculing the staging at final ovation, and I was surprised to hear my companion join in, as I have never heard him boo before.

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  • Lohengrin at the Bayreuther Festspiele


    Lohengrin-2013 * Notes * 
    Last night’s performance of Lohengrin at the Bayreuther Festspiele was compelling. The orchestra sounded clear and fresh under the baton of Andris Nelsons, without ever being dull or devoid of passion. The brass was perfectly clear, as did the strings and the woodwinds. Nelsons also struck a fine balance between the instrumentalists and singers, and only rarely overwhelmed the latter. The chorus also sounded remarkably beautiful and in unison.

    The rest of the singing was even. Samuel Youn has impressive hair as Der Heerrufer des Königs, and sang nicely. Petra Lang was an impassioned and insistent Ortrud. Thomas J. Mayer (Friedrich von Telramund) does not have a particularly rich voice, but was suitably threatening. Wilhelm Schwinghammer was not the most commanding König Heinrich, but gave a satisfactory perforrmance. Annette Dasch made for a sweet-voiced Elsa von Brabant. Klaus Florian sounded bright and pleasantly brassy in the title role, his voice cut through the chorus and orchestra with ease.

    The production from Hans Neuenfels certainly appears to have an internal consistency, featuring chorus members dressed as laboratory rats. Said rodents were a skillful combination of cute and creepy. Everyone moved elegantly. At various times the treatment of the swan used taxidermy, bathtubs, and sculpture. It was all entirely entertaining, though it was not clear to me what any of it had to do with Wagner’s opera, despite the fact it was all splendidly coordinated with the music.

    * Tattling * 
    There were scattered whispers when only the orchestra played. The audience laughed when the lab rats did funny things, especially the small pink ones that must have employed child supernumeraries. A couple in front of us in the middle of the twenty-second row read the vocal score.

    A very nice couple from Düsseldorf let Axel Feldheim and I practice German with them at our shared table during the second intermission.

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  • Schwabacher Summer Concert 2013


    7.18.13_Merola-2600* Notes *     
    Last night’s Schwabacher Summer Concert began with a sparkling overture from Der Schauspieldirektor. The orchestra, conducted by Kevin Murphy, was on the stage and there were subsequent synchronization problems with the singers starting with Act I, Scene 5 of Don Giovanni. Aviva Fortunata made for a dramatic Donna Elvira, while Rhys Lloyd Talbot struggled to stay with the orchestra in “Madamina, il catalogo è questo.” The excerpt of Don Carlo from Act IV, Part 2 went better, and Alex Desocio sounded solid as Rodrigo.

    The most delightful part of the evening was certainly from Act I, Scene 3 through 5 of L’Italiana in Algeri. Matthew Newlin was humorous as Lindoro, his light voice sounded somewhat constricted at the top, but is quite pretty. Zanda Švēde made for a wonderfully sassy Isabella, and her scenes with Pene Pati and Issachah Savage (pictured above, photograph by Kristen Loken) were charming. The direction was somewhat overwrought, but this was easy to ignore.

    Pene Pati (Edgardo) impressed in Act II, Part 2 of Lucia di Lammermoor. His voice is pleasantly metallic and generally appealing. The singers of the chorus did not sound cohesive because of how slowly they walked to the foot of the stage, and how spread out they were. Pati was also strong in the excerpt of L’Amico Fritz, singing the title role of the opera. Zanda Švēde sang Beppe quite beautifully as well.

    The performance ended with the end of Otello. Aviva Fortunata sounded nearly ideal as Desdemona, but having her simply stand completely still for much of her singing was rather dull to watch. Issachah Savage was arresting as Otello with his full, lovely voice.

    * Tattling * 
    Latecomers were loud and obnoxious, stamping down the aisles and aggressively swinging down seats. Watch alarms sounded a every hour and a cellular phone rang after the words “Oh! Gloria! Otello fu.”

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  • Merola’s The Rape of Lucretia


    7.9.13_Lucretia-4747* Notes *     
    Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia was performed last night by the Merola Opera Program at Everett Middle School in San Francisco. The production (pictured left with Katie Hannigan as Bianca, Alisa Jordheim as Lucia, Kate Allen as Lucretia and Chris Carr as Tarquinius; photograph by Kristen Loken) directed by Peter Kazaras, is elegant and contemporary. Donald Eastman’s scenic design is essentially just platforms, furniture, and blinds, but comes to life beautifully with Chris Maravich’s lighting. The production complements the music, and the dramatic moments of this opera held together nicely. The proceedings seemed altogether fresh and vibrant.

    Mark Morash conducted the small ensemble to fine effect. Though there is no pit in the theater of Everett, the situation seems better than at Cowell, as the musicians sounded robust, vivid, and synchronized. The harp playing was especially lovely, as was the oboe and English horn.

    The singing was impressive all around. Alisa Jordheim (Lucia) sounded perfectly sweet and bird-like. Katie Hannigan made for a protective Bianca. David Weigel’s pain as Collantinus was palpable. Efraín Solís was quite disturbing as Junius, particularly when goading Tarquinius at the end of Act I Scene 1.

    Linda Barnett sang the Female Chorus with a certain calm, while Robert Watson was more rousing as the Male Chorus. Chris Carr’s Tarquinius was expressive and disquieting. Kate Allen was a magnificent Lucretia, with gorgeous low notes.

    * Tattling * 
    There was very little talking, except when a super-title error occurred during Act I. The J Church light rail street cars were clearly audible from inside the auditorium.

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  • Plácido Domingo Concert in Berkeley


    7-placido-8849Plácido Domingo is performing at UC Berkeley's Greek Theatre on Saturday, September 7, 2013 at 8pm. He will be joined by guest sopranos Angel Joy Blue and Micäela Oeste and guest conductor Eugene Kohn. Presale tickets are available Tuesday, July 9, at 10am until Saturday, July 13, at 11:59 pm online only through Another Planet Entertainment and Ticketmaster. The presale password is "GREEK."

    APEConcerts | Ticketmaster

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  • Auditions for the General Director 2013


    Merola-general-director-auditions-2013* Notes *
    The Auditions for the General Director of San Francisco Opera occurred last night after the matinée performance of Les Contes d'Hoffmann. The twenty-three singers in the Merola Opera Program performed, each accompanied by one of five apprentice coaches. There were some interesting tenors and mezzo-sopranos. The baritones, though all very loud and competent, seemed a little bland this year.

    Mezzo-soprano Rihab Chaieb, tenor Issachah Savage, soprano Maria Valdes, mezzo-soprano Zanda Švēde, tenor Pene Pati, and mezzo-soprano Daryl Freedman were called back. Both of these tenors had a robust warmth and their own particular sound. Švēde was most distinctive of the these female singers, her voice is quite deep. Pati and Freedman were especially praised by David Gockley.

    Of those not called back, Gockley seemed most enthused about baritone Chris Carr, soprano Aviva Fortunata, tenor Matthew Newlin, and bass-baritone Thomas Richards.

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  • SF Opera’s The Gospel of Mary Magdalene Media Round-Up


    Mary-magdalene-act-2-2013Production Web Site | SF Opera's Blog

    The reviews of San Francisco Opera's The Gospel of Mary Magdalene (Act II pictured left with William Burden as Peter and Sasha Cooke as Mary Magdalene, photograph by Cory Weaver) are varied, but mostly fair to middling.

    Performance Reviews: Civic Center | Los Angeles Times | New York Times | San Francisco Chronicle | San Francisco Classical Voice | San Francisco Examiner | San José Mercury News

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  • The Gospel of Mary Magdalene World Premiere


    Sfopera-mary-magdelene-2013* Notes * 
    The world premiere performance of Mark Adamo's The Gospel of Mary Magdalene (Nathan Gunn as Yeshua and Sasha Cooke as Mary Magdalene in Act I pictured left, photograph by Cory Weaver) was held yesterday at San Francisco Opera. The overture had a interesting convoluted quality to it, and in general the orchestra, conducted by Michael Christie, shimmered. The music had labyrinthine moments, but was often straightforward and tuneful. Adamo wrote his own libretto, which seemed quite earnest but had wry glimmers of humor. The best of these may have been when the chorus sang "Ibid." when citing a reference for the second time in Act I.

    This opera showcases the beautiful voice of mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke in the title role. Her clean, well-supported sound has an ethereal sublimity. Nathan Gunn (Yeshua) was a bit wobbly in comparison, but his acting was fine. As Miriam, Maria Kanyova was pointed and piercing, but this did not seem inappropriate for the role. William Burden (Peter) sounded as sweet and lovely as ever. His performance of a particular bridal song at the end of Act I is moving, as was his singing with Cooke in Act II.

    The rest of the cast included many young singers in the smaller roles. Current Adler Fellow A.J. Glueckert sang one aria as Levi quite nicely. The chorus sounded solid.

    * Tattling * 
    Someone who probably has a mental-illness was in Orchestra Standing Room. He talked to himself, fidgeted, repeatedly scratched himself, velcroed and unvelcroed his man-purse for no apparent reason, and managed to scare off four people sharing the railing with him, including me.

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  • Next General Director of Seattle Opera


    130618rdAidanLang-7Aidan Lang (pictured left) has been named Seattle Opera‘s third General Director effective September 1, 2014. He will replace Speight Jenkins, who became General Director in 1983. Beginning immediately, Lang will be included in planning for the 2015-2016 season, working towards his first fully programmed season in 2016-2017.

    Seattle Opera’s Official Site | Press Releases

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  • SF Opera’s Così Fan Tutte Media Round-Up


    08-CosiProduction Web Site | SF Opera's Blog

    So far, the reviews of San Francisco Opera's Così fan tutte (Act I pictured left with Philippe Sly as Guglielmo, Christel Lötzsch as Dorabella, Ellie Dehn as Fiordiligi, and Francesco Demuro as Ferrando, photograph by Cory Weaver) are mixed.

    Performance Reviews: San Francisco Chronicle | San Francisco Classical Voice | San Francisco Examiner

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