Reviews of Performances and their Audiences
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Reviews of San Francisco Opera's Heart of a Soldier (Melody Moore as Susan Rescorla and Koa the Golden Retriever as Buddy pictured left, photo by Cory Weaver) are, to put it gently, decidedly mixed.
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* Notes *
The world premiere of Heart of a Soldier (Act II pictured left, photograph by Cory Weaver) given by San Francisco Opera last night. The opera is about the life of Rick Rescorla, the director of security of Morgan Stanley who lost his life as the in the September 11th attacks after evacuating 2,700 people from the World Trade Center. The first half of this ambitious work covers 28 years of Rescorla’s story, with five different scene changes spanning four continents. The act is only an hour long, so it is great deal of narrative jammed into a tiny space. Basically, this means a lot of recitative and the need for quick scene changes. Librettist Donna Di Novelli’s words seem to take precedence over composer Christopher Theofanidis’ music. The second half deals with Rescorla’s last three years in New Jersey and New York. Here the ensembles, duets, and arias are less burdened by having to tell the story. The ending was particularly strong.
Director Francesca Zambello’s style suits this opera, as the characters are of course very human, being based on real events of recent memory. The set, designed by Peter J. Davison, has some movement, but is transformed by Mark McCullough’s lighting and S. Katy Tucker’s projections. The result was mostly a success, though sometimes the layering seemed overwrought. Also, having the towers so far upstage was a challenge for some of the singers. The choreography seemed natural, everyone moved nicely and with ease.
Maestro Patrick Summers had the orchestra sounding clear and flowing. The chorus sounded together and robust. The rest of the cast boasted many fine singers. Michael Sumuel (Ted, Tom) sang with warmth and nuance. Nadine Sierra was plaintive as Juliet. Melody Moore was convincing as Susan Rescorla, her voice clear-toned and arresting. William Burden too was persuasive as Rescorla’s best friend, his duets with Thomas Hampson (Rick Rescorla) were quite beautiful. Hampson sang enthusiastically, and his charismatic presence is commanding.
* Tattling *
The evening began with “The Star-Spangled Banner,” and a fluttering American flag was projected on the scrim. The audience was impressively quiet, there was no late seating on the orchestra level, and almost no whispering.
* Notes *
San Francisco Opera‘s 89th season opened last night with a revival of Turandot (Iréne Theorin, Marco Berti, and Joseph Frank in Act III pictured left, photograph by Cory Weaver). David Hockney‘s production is as garish as ever, but quite functional, as the sets only move minimally for the scene changes. This keeps the backstage noise negligible, and lighting made for smooth transitions. The choreography was not synchronized, and oddly, the dancers as acrobats made the most glaring errors of this type.
Musically, this performance of Turandot was rather robust, especially in volume. Even still, the orchestra, conducted by Music Director Nicola Luisotti, only occasionally overwhelmed the singers. The playing was florid, but shimmered when necessary. The chorus sounded strong and even.
Our Ping, Pang, and Pong (Hyung Yun, Greg Fedderly, and Daniel Montenegro) were winsome. Yun’s baritone is warm, and for the most part, Fedderly and Montenegro have sufficient brightness to be heard over the orchestration. Raymond Aceto seemed an ideal Timur. Though the staging for his exit with Liù’s corpse in Act III was awkward, Aceto sang with beauty and feeling.
Leah Crocetto (Liù) gave perhaps the finest performance of the evening. Her pianissmi were breathtaking in “Signore, ascolta!” and she sang “Tu che di gel sei cinta” exquisitely. Marco Berti sang Calaf loudly, yet without strain. He sang “Nessun dorma” cleanly, but did not sustain his last note for its full value. In the title role, Iréne Theorin was not particularly sympathetic. Her powerful voice is unsettling, which is appropriate for portraying the cruel princess.
* Tattling *
Opening night’s audience is invariably ill-behaved. The family in front of me in the last row of the balcony, Seats 112-118 passed a pair of binoculars back and forth the entire opera. At least they seemed engaged in the experience. The apparent mother of this family unwrapped a candy for nearly all of Crocetto’s first aria, and spoke during “Nessun dorma” because she was so excited about recognizing the music. Afterward, she said she loved the “theme song” of the opera.
Jan I. Shrem and Maria Manetti Farrow (pictured left) have made a commitment of $3,000,000 to San Francisco Opera in support of Music Director Nicola Luisotti and Italian repertory. Mr. Shrem and Ms. Farrow will assume the volunteer leadership role of Chairs of the Amici di Nicola of Camerata and establish the Great Interpreters of Italian Opera Fund at San Francisco Opera.
Tenor Salvatore Licitra died on September 5, 2011 from head and chest injuries sustained in a scooter accident. He was 43.
Tickets for the next season of the Bayreuther Festspiele will be sold online starting September 15, 2011. One may still send in a written order form by October 18, 2011.
* Notes *
The Adler Fellows for 2012 are likely to be announced next month, so it is time to speculate on which Merolini (pictured left in the 2011 Grand Finale, photograph by Stefan Cohen) will return to San Francisco. Tamara Sanikidze will have completed her two years as an Adler this Fall, so we will get a new collaborative pianist. As for singers, the outgoing Adlers are sopranos Leah Crocetto, Susannah Biller, and Sara Gartland; mezzo-soprano Maya Lahyani; countertenor Ryan Belongie; and tenor Brian Jagde.
This year there were many fine low voices. Bass-baritones Peixin Chen and Philippe Sly were perhaps the most impressive of the 20 singers. Chen does lack in diction and in English proficiency, but his low notes are incredible. All 6 baritones had lovely voices, but Suchan Kim and Johnathan Michie were exceptional. One should, however, note that only baritone called back during the General Director Auditions was Gordon Fang. As for tenors, though they could all sing pleasantly, they all had their various weak points, and none were really up to the bar of other recent Adler tenors.
The strongest soprano was probably Suzanne Rigden, she was the most consistent week over week. However, one suspects she is already in another apprentice program, as she was the only soprano not called back during the General Director Auditions. Marina Boudart Harris had the most memorable performance in the Finale. For the mezzo-sopranos, Renée Rapier has the warmest and darkest sound. Rapier is a Domingo-Thornton Young Artist, which leaves Deborah Nansteel and Laura Krumm. Both have pretty voices, with much brightness. Nansteel's voice is more dramatic, but Krumm has the advantage of being fit.
* Tattler Guesses *
Robert Mollicone
Marina Boudart Harris
Laura Krumm
Deborah Nansteel
Peixin Chen
Philippe Sly
* Notes *
Another Summer of the Merola Opera Program ended with this year's Grand Finale last night at the War Memorial Opera House. Ragnar Conde's staging for the performance was ornate, and the set used was one from Turandot, designed by David Hockney. The costumes were the usual tuxedos and evening gowns, the latter often in a palette of jewel tones ranging from sapphire to pink tourmaline. The dresses were all flattering, which was a nice change from some costume choices at other Merola performances this year. Johannes Debus conducted the San Francisco Opera Orchestra, occasionally the volume of the musicians in the pit overwhelmed the singers. There were also a few synchronization problems. It was nice to hear the overture to Rossini's Semiramide, and the brass was particularly lovely.
"Andiam, fidi, al consiglio…Invida sorte avara" from Ariodante was beautifully sung by Philippe Sly as Il Rè and Daniel Curran as Odoardo. Robert Mollicone's harpsichord playing was pretty here as well. The excerpt from Lucrezia Borgia sung by Renée Rapier (Orsini) and Heath Huberg (Gennaro) that followed was more awkward. Maybe part of the problem was the fussy stage direction, which involved nervous packing and fringed scarves. The first half of the performance did end on a high point, with Jonathan Michie singing "Batter my heart" from Dr. Atomic. Michie was completely convincing, his diction clear, and his voice has warmth and heft.
Ragnar Conde's humor worked well for the staging of "Ich gehe doch rate ich dir" from Entführung, Suzanne Rigden was spunky as Blonde and Peixin Chen a loveable buffoon as Osmin. Another highlight of the evening was "Das war sehr gut Mandryka" from Arabella, with Marina Boudart Harris (Arabella) and John Maynard (Mandryka). Boudart Harris sang imposingly, and without strain. Maynard gamely supported her with his pleasant sound. The last piece of the evening, "O che muso" from L'Italiana in Algeri, was very funny. Everyone eventually came out on stage, including the apprentice coaches, who all seemed to be singing in the chorus. The staging included much choreography, and many parasols were opened and closed. At times it seemed like chaos, but considering the text, it was not inappropriate. Philippe Sly was hilarious as Mustafà, as was Cooper Nolan as Lindoro. Suzanne Rigden managed to be a mousy Elvira, never upstaging Renée Rapier's sassy Isabella. Rapier's full, round sound was marvelous, her timbre is even throughout the ranges of her voice.
* Tattling *
Some light talking was heard when no one was singing on stage. The person in Row O Seat 105 chose to unwrap something during most of "Bel raggio lusinghier" from Semiramide.
Tenor Brian Jagde (pictured left as Pinkerton in Virginia Opera's production of Madama Butterfly, photograph by Anne M. Peterson) is currently an Adler Fellow at San Francisco Opera. He sings Vitellozzo in Lucrezia Borgia and Don José in Carmen for Families at San Francisco Opera during the 2011-2012 season, then heads to Fresno, Bozeman, Munich, Minnesota, and Santa Fe. The Opera Tattler caught up with Jagde on Wednesday.
How did you get into opera?
Last thing I'd thought I would do. I studied computer science and business for 2 years, but I sang in chorus at school at SUNY Albany. I realized that I liked playing around with computers more than programing them. I ended up auditioning for SUNY Purchase College's Department of Opera Performance. My first performance was in The Magic Flute, and I was covering roles, singing, dealing with the sets, and even the lighting. Being on stage was incredible, especially feeling the sound of the orchestra.
Was it in college you discovered you were a tenor?
Actually, I had sung tenor up until college, and when I was there, I thought I had to produce a certain sound. So I went through college as a baritone. I have always had a high speaking voice, and, actually, being a tenor came naturally to me. It was funny, I was booked as Marcello in La Bohème at Virginia Opera, but I ended up singing Rodolfo at Syracuse. I really developed as a tenor in the Adler Program though.
How has the Adler Program been? I really liked your performance in Makropulos, but I know you have been covering a lot of roles too.
It has been really great, and I have learned so much. In Makropulos, the role of Janek is more of an acting role, playing someone so virginal and with such a problem of confidence. His father does treat him very badly, obviously. It was great working with Karita Mattila, she is just otherworldly. Covering roles has been eye-opening as well. Last Summer I was covering Brandon Jovanovich as Froh, and he is just the nicest person, so down to earth, but he has a great voice for the War Memorial, which is obviously such a huge space.
Was San Francisco Opera's Ring your first?
Yes, and I am so grateful. Of course was the singing amazing, not only with Brandon, but Mark Delavan as Wotan and Nina Stemme as Brünnhilde. But the production really was fantastic. I loved how human Francesca Zambello made the characters.
Speaking of which, how has your summer been going?
Well, I started off here covering Das Rheingold, and then headed off to sing Bohème at Castleton. It really is in the middle of nowhere, there is hardly any cellular phone service or Internet out there. I had to get a phone card to even be able to make calls. But it was good to disconnect for a bit. I ended up rediscovering tennis while I was there, and it has been the best exercise. It is fun, and it is good to find physical activity that isn't a chore to do. After Castleton, I went to Italy for 10 days, and there is just such warmth there. I have been there before, but they just embrace opera singers. Rome is my favorite city in the world, so far.
Now you are back, covering Heart of A Soldier. How has that been?
That's right, I am covering Bill Burden (Daniel J. Hill) in Heart of A Soldier. The life of Rick Rescorla suits opera very well, his life involved a lot of singing! I think the biggest challenge of the opera is that a lot of time is covered, so it is up to the director (Francesca Zambello) to make those transitions make sense.
I understand you are also singing in the Stern Grove concert on your birthday this Sunday with Dolora Zajick. Are you excited?
Absolutely! I cannot think of a better way to celebrate my birthday! I am lucky that my voice and repertoire, with all the Puccini I am studying, because it affords me opportunity to sing the tenor/mezzo duet with her from Il Trovatore. Dolora has been very helpful too.
She is so good at that role, the first Trovatore I heard was with Dolora.
She said something really great, that there are two kinds of singers, regardless if you are famous or not. You can either sing 9 roles, and be the absolute best at those, or you can take on a wide variety, and sing 240 roles. She's obviously the former.
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