As all my readers know, Brooklyn Repertory Opera is producing my next opera in 2010. I have attended three of their past shows and last night, as a birthday present, I attended my fourth production, Ariadne auf Naxos, in an English translation courtesy of the Seagle Music Colony. In the three previous productions I have attended, there has been an unevenness. There would be some really glorious moments sandwiched between several, or even many moments which were less than glorious. This was not the case with this production. All of the singers were at a minimum, more than adequate. In certain cases, they were equal to those of the Metropolitan Opera. This production, in spite of low budget costumes (which worked, however) and the minimal set with masterful background projections of artwork by Barrett Cobb, was in music and staging, equal to any good regional company.
I have seen Ariadne several times, and it has never been my favorite of the Strauss operas. I learned the role of Zerbinetta as a young singer, and later when I came into my real voice worked on Ariadne. Both are fiendishly difficult as are all the parts, at least to learn, if not to sing. The Hoffmannsthal libretto, if you can actually understand the German and all of the many subtle jokes, is, of course, brilliant. However, one needs to be more than fluent. The text flies by like the wind, the singing is often in the stratosphere and the orchestration is often heavy. Just as a personal prejudice, I absolutely cannot tolerate women who moan and groan and the character of Ariadne does plenty. In some productions, that part seems to go on forever until we get to the more lively parts with Zerbinetta and the commedia dell'arte members. However, last night was a revelation. The libretto was witty, much of it intelligible despite the inherent problems, and I for one, was in such a good mood after the Prologue, that the moaning and groaning of the opera portion was actually beautiful. I listened carefully instead of squirming in my seat until it picked up again. I had never heard it that way before, and that my dear friends, is what small opera companies are about. That, and watching the company and individual singers grow.
For those of you who do not know or understand the New York opera scene, there are so many, many superb singers with nowhere to sing because there are just too many for the actual demand. Hence, there are many small opera companies that do opera on a low budget, some on an almost non-existent budget. No company gets to be much without favorable reviews. In New York, there are a small handful of reviewers and many, many concerts and operas to be reviewed. The competition for this review space ends up being between all the small companies, the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, Carnegie Hall events, Lincoln Center events, and so on. Throw in BAM in Brooklyn, and you can see how the chances of getting reviewed are pretty slim. So even though I am peripherally connected to Brooklyn Repertory Opera, I am going to attempt to give a fair and impartial review.
A star on the rise is conductor Francesco Lecce-Chong. He opened the Prologue, conducting masterfully, intelligently, but more importantly, with sensitivity and compassion beyond his years. The orchestra responded in kind. The Brooklyn Lyceum does not have an orchestra pit, so at times, certain singers were a bit overwhelmed, but for the vast majority of the time, the singers were very much adequate to the task of being heard over some of the heaviest of the orchestration in spite of the cavernous, unadorned space of the Brooklyn Lyceum. Yes, there were a few out of tune moments in the orchestra, but only a very few. Orchestra and singers worked together to produce beautiful music as opposed to the usual sometimes subtle, sometimes very obvious, war for dominance. The staging, by company Executive Director Brett Wynkoop, was imaginative, funny and, just plain worked. It was respectful of the difficulty of the singing, the fact that the orchestra and conductor are both stage left rather than center, and allowed the individual personalities to show through their roles, while maintaining a cohesive whole.
Of particular note, was the singing of Kathleen Keske in the title role. I dare anyone to hear the role sung better anywhere. Also, outstanding, and again equal of anyone anywhere was Jay Gould as the Music Master. Lauren Phillips did an entertaining and commendable job of singing the fiendishly difficult role of Zerbinetta. She has a stunning dramatic coloratura voice, is a fine actress and overall, sang very well. The only small quibbles were that the cadenza was a bit rushed and the trill on a high D did not quite come off. To be fair, by the time these two points come, the singer is lucky to still be standing, and the role goes on from there. In this opera, both for Ariadne and Zerbinetta, one needs to be a long distance runner and not a sprinter. They both got a gold medal in this olympics.
Also of note was Shawn Thuris in the helden-almost counter-tenor role of Bacchus. Marissa Tarangelo presented a dashing figure in the role of the composer. She sang and acted the role very well, although at certain times the lower part of her range was covered by the orchestra. Alexander Weaver performed the speaking role of the Majordomo and sang Brighella. Mr. Weaver is an outstanding character tenor and a fine comedic actor. Also very entertaining were John Torres as Harlequin, Ronoldo Appleton as Scaramuccio and Dominique Rosoff as Truffaldino. Exemplary ensemble work was found between the commedia dell'arte characters and Zerbinetta, as well as in the three women, Barrett Cobb, Alison Zwecker, and replacing an ailing singer, Mary Silverstein, in the roles of Dryad, Naiad and Echo, respectively. Noticeable in the small role of the lackey was Scott Andrew Hutchins who has sung several compromario roles with BRO. He has made steady progress forward in both his singing and characterization.
This particular cast can be heard again on December 13, and an additional cast on December 6 and 11. This opera is well worth traveling to Brooklyn to hear.
