Posts Tagged ‘Dean Cassella reviews’

Moby-Dick by Jake Heggie

Dallas Opera, April 30, May 2, 5, 8, 13, and 16

Winspear Opera House, Dallas, Texas

Review by Dean Cassella

Those who liked Fort Worth Opera’s production of Dean Man Walking last year are in for a treat. Jake Heggie’s latest magnum opus, an adaption of Herman Melville’s classic novel, Moby-Dick, reveals a composer who’s depth and sophistication is growing with time, and the music world is the better for it. Heggie’s musical imagination is beginning to approach the sublime, and one can only hope that it will continue on this trajectory.

As I have said elsewhere, Heggie was already a supreme orchestrator with Dead Man Walking. The prelude and finale to Moby-Dick have a magical character that is highly reminiscent of Wagner’s Prelude to Parsifal, and I think it’s fair to say that the orchestration resides in a late Wagnerian frame of reference with, naturally enough, touches of Der Fliegende Holländer put in for good measure. The score successfully generates the atmosphere of the sea, but without resorting to a musical vocabulary that would come across as quaint or hackneyed in a modern context. Heggie and librettist Gene Scheer manage to keep the pacing and action very high; this is all the more remarkable, given the prolixity of its source.

Tenor Ben Heppner and Captain Ahab

The cast is headed by superstar heldentenor Ben Heppner as Captain Ahab. Heppner is perhaps best known to opera audiences for his interpretation of the lead role in the Met’s DVD of Tristan.

This is Heppner’s debut in TDO, and his performance was a knockout, made all the more impressive that he did so while limping around on a stilt for the entire performance. As one could expect, he successfully weds a refined articulation and sensitivity to sheer power; it would, no doubt, be a treat to see him perform Tristan in the flesh.

Foremost among the supporting cast was tenor Stephen Costello as Greenhorn/Ishmael. It is perhaps fair to describe Costello as a regular singer at TDO, who has recently been heard in Dallas in The Merry Widow and Roberto Devereux. His voice still retains the youthful sweetness that can make young maidens’ hearts melt.

Like Verdi’s Otello (another tale of the sea), Moby-Dick depicts a decidedly masculine world. In the case of Moby, though, there is no real love interest, as the work takes place entirely on ship board. Consequently, the only female voice to be heard is in the “trouser” role of Pip, the cabin boy, which places a heavy burden on the singer of the role. Soprano Talise Trevigne meets it square on with a beautiful, yet powerful voice that never falters.

Soprano Talise Trevigne as Pip

As one could expect with a world premiere, the sets and staging were absolutely fabulous. The set consisted of the opera world’s most highly raked stage, constructed of white boards which doubled as a projection screen for some very effective animated projections.

An Animated Sequence of Ahab's Ship, The Pequod

It was also outfitted wit climbing apparatus, which allowed members of the chorus to climb partially up it and become part of the animated sequences.

Veteran conductor Patrick Summers, who has conducted all of Heggie’s premieres, did a fine job at the podium, and can be said to have some unique insights into the latter’s music. Finally, the chorus, headed as always by TDO’s Alexander Rom, really shined in Moby, whose maritime theme lends itself so well to choral flourishes.

All in all, this production is living proof that opera is no longer a “dead” art form, but may actually be heading into a genuine revival. Let us hope that Heggie continues to employ tonality in his new works and positively influences other composers to follow his lead.

Next up: Puccini’s Madame Butterfly< >< ><–>

Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House, Dallas, February 19 21, 24, 27, March 5 and 7, 2010

Review by Dean Cassella

TDO’s mid-season offering is a delightful production of Don Pasquale, Donizetti’s most perennially favorite foray into opera buffa.  The work offers a relatively light breathing space between the comic but musically heavy Così Fan Tutte and what is sure to be heavy melodrama in Jake Heggie’s Moby Dick in April.

Chronologically speaking, Donizetti is the last of the great maestri in the line of Italian opera composers who worked firmly in the opera buffa tradition (Mozart’s comedies are, by contrast, among the earliest canonized examples).  This genre tends to focus on ridiculous, often scurrilous plots in contemporary settings that are full of stock characters, mistaken identities, etc.  Music wise, they tend toward florid vocal acrobatics which goes by the moniker coloratura singing.

The title character in Don Pasquale is a seventy-year old man who decides he is going to marry and produce heirs, in order to disinherit his nephew, Ernesto.  Ernesto, who is in love with a feisty young widow named Norina, plots with her and Pasquale’s physician, Dr. Malatesta, to convince the Don that she is a perfectly demure virginal bride, only to turn into an obnoxious and demanding spendthrift the moment the Don signs a mock marriage contract.  I’m sure my readers can see where this is all heading. . .  In a way, the role of Norina is really a refashioning of Rosina, the cunning, conniving belle of Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia¸ who also shares with Norina the obstacle of an old man who wishes to marry her for all the wrong reasons.

Donato DiStefano in the Title Role of Don Pasquale

Veteran basso Donato DiStefano takes the title role, and his performance is brilliant.  DiStefano is an absolute master of buffa roles, and has graced the TDO stage twice in recent memory: as Don Magnifico in 2004’s La Cenerentola (Cinderella), and in 2006 as Doctor Bartolo in Il Barbiere di Siviglia. He possesses masterful control over a rich, sonorous voice, and is unsurpassed as an actor.  In one of the earlier of his aria’s he performs a ‘strip tease’, as hilarious as it is ridiculous, as he contemplates the first meeting with his prospective bride.

Adriana Kucerova as the Scheming Young Widow Norina

Don Pasquale is a work that has only four heavy singing roles, and only one for a woman.  This makes the role of Norina doubly demanding.  In all honesty, Slovak soprano Adriana Kucerova,  a first-timer to TDO, is one of the most compelling singers I have seen live.  Her voice is at once delicate and powerful, and resonates with a hypnotic vibrato, over which she has absolute control.  She is also a fabulous comic actress and strikingly beautiful, to boot.  We can only hope that she will be returning to the Metroplex soon.

Indianan baritone Nathan Gunn did a fine job in the role of scheming troublemaker, Dr. Malatesta.  In addition to a solid voice, he acted the role with finesse.  Virginian tenor Norman Shankle was solid as the smitten young nephew, Ernesto.  His voice at times seemed thin, though; in his final duet with Kucerova, his voice was sometimes overpowered by the latter’s.

Guest conductor Stefano Ranzani’s conducting was very precise and lively, and the maestro handled the score throughout with grace.    Direction by TDO veteran Candace Evans was solid and sometimes even brilliant; at times, though, the visual pacing seemed to drag and occasionally one got the impression that the singers should have done something more than simply standing while facing the audience and sing.  This was in contrast to the lively direction she has given to TDO in recent years (e.g. The Merry Widow and Ariadne auf Naxos).

The sets, designed by the long deceased Jean-Pierre Ponnelle, are lovely, and just what one could expect: elegant, multi-storied affairs that adhere closely to the librettist’s intentions.  One can hardly ask for more.

To conclude, the production was a lot of fun.  The plot and music is highly accessible and thus Don Pasquale would be an ideal way to introduce someone to opera.  I attended the premiere with a thirteen year old boy, who loved it.  He was especially impressed with DiStefano’s take on the Don.  And as for his impression of the Winspear Opera House: “What a cool building!!!”

The Dallas Opera: February 12, 14, 18, 20, 26, & 28, 2010

Winspear Opera House

Review by Dean Cassella

This second production in the Dallas Opera’s first season in its new home was just what the doctor ordered, especially after the sumptuous and heavy fare served up with Verdi’s Otello at the season premiere.  Although one could certainly could not label Mozart’s last opera buffa collaboration with librettist Lorenzo da Ponte musically light, it does deliver laughs in some of the most sumptuous and delightful music that Mozart composed.

Originally set in eighteenth-century Naples, the plot centers around a case of deliberate mistaken identity between two pairs of lovers.  Two young men, Ferrando and Guglielmo are in the throes of young love with Fiordiligi and Dorabella.  A cynical old man, Don Alfonso, taunts them that it is impossible for women to remain faithful, should the men leave the scene for a while.  The resulting argument ends with a wager: Ferrando and Guglielmo will pretend to be called off for military duty, only to return in the guise of two Albanians and each actively try to court the other’s belle.

Jeffry Jones as Austrian Emperor Joseph II in the famous 1984 movie "Amadeus."

The opera was commissioned by none other than the Austrian Emperor Joseph II, best known in popular culture from the play/movie Amadeus.

This was Mozart’s third and last collaboration with Lorenzo da Ponte, a Venetian Jew who, as a child, converted to Christianity, took holy orders, and was eventually ran out of town for taking . . .liberties . . .with certain lady friends.  He then led a semi nomadic life, cutting a swath across Europe to London, and eventually settling in New York City as a greengrocer, and as the first professor of Italian at Columbia University (he also established the first Italian opera company in New York).  His collaborations with Mozart occurred early in his wanderings, when he was living in Vienna and trying to make his inroads in the Imperial court as a poet and librettist.  The story of Così was a allegedly based on a real incident that was making the rounds in Vienna at the time.

Last time around, the Winspear Opera House demonstrated marvelous acoustics with a full-sized late Romantic era orchestra.  The current production makes use of a comparatively tiny chamber orchestra, which poses a different set of resonance challenges.  I am delighted to report that the new opera house was able to handle these to remarkable effect.  Graeme Jenkin’s stately phrasing was carried with both a volume and a warmth that I have rarely heard in a full-size opera house.

Così is unusual in that there are only six roles which are very carefully balanced.  Soprano Elza van den Heever and mezzo-soprano Jennifer Holloway, as Fiordiligi and Dorabella respectively, have beautifully matched voices.  Miss van den Heever also displays considerable skills as an actress, and Miss Holloway, who graced the TDO stage last season with her interpretation of the love-sick Cherubino in La Nozze di Figaro, treated us to her wonderfully lilting vibrato.  Italian soprano Nuccia Focile sang a beautiful rendition of Despina, the cynical, deadpan maid who serves as a female counterpart to Don Alfonso, and who often reminds me of Alice Kramden on the Honeymooners.  Her petite stature helped to enrich the comic potential when she dresses up as a quack doctor and a notary during Act II.

The real star of this performance, though was the illustrious bass-baritone Sir Thomas Allen who, after almost 40 years on the boards of the worlds major opera houses, boasts a rich, powerful voice and a magisterial presence whenever he is on stage.  Tenor Brian Anderson as Ferrando, and baritone Michael Todd Simpson also did commendable jobs in their roles.

Robert Perdziola’s sets recast the time to around 1910.  The main set resembles an Egyptian-style casino, or hotel, lends itself to the time period it seeks to evoke.  I generally prefer sticking to the librettist’s original intentions, but the change in question does not seriously interfere with the work’s enjoyment in any way.

All in all, this is a fine production and one definitely worth seeing.

Next up: Donizetti’s Don Pasquale!

Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House, Dallas, Oct. 23, 25, 28, 31, Nov. 5 & 8, 2009

Review by Dean Cassella

Well, this HAD to be good, and good it was!  The event in question was not only the commencement of a new Dallas Opera season, but the premiere of the company’s new venue: the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House (see below).

The cast of this new production of Verdi’s Otello (based on the Shakespeare’s play of jealousy and revenge) is perhaps the closest I have ever seen to being perfect.  Dramatic tenor Clifton Forbis, who sings the title role, has a voice that is phenomenally rich and penetrating.  One can dream of hearing him sing Tristan, which has done with distinction in Paris and Chicago.

Baritone Lado Ataneli, a native of Georgia (the country, that is!), in the role of the scheming materialist/agnostic Iago, was the perfect lower register match for Forbis, and their duet at the end of Act II (‘Si, pel cielo marmoreo giuro’) falls short of being described as a “match made in heaven” only because of the subject matter.

Otello is very much a ‘guy’ thing, as it deals heavily with masculine responses to jealousy and ambition.  Consequently, there are only two female roles in the work, and the prima donna part, that of Desdemona, the ill-fated wife of Otello, does not really come into its own until Act III.  There, Montreal native soprano Alexandra Deshorties sang beautifully, although on a few occasions her resonant voice was in danger of being drowned out by the orchestra.  Her duets with Forbis were as well-matched as were Forbis’ and Ataneli’s.

All supporting cast members, most notably tenor Sean Pannikar in the role of Cassio, were outstanding, and no doubt deliver fine performances in heavier roles elsewhere.

Conductor Graeme Jenkins was in generally superb form, and gave the distinct impression of enjoying the sound of ‘his’ new theater—perhaps a little too zealously, at times (heaven forbid that we have been harboring a repressed Herbert von Karajan all this time!!).

The sets, designed by Brit Anthony Baker, update the story from fifteenth-century Cyprus to Verdi’s own nineteenth century.  This is vaguely reminiscent of a similar updating of Wagner’s maritime opera Die Fliegende Holländer by Harry Kupfer at Bayreuth in the early 1980’s (and available on DVD).  The stark, concrete and iron sets are also reminiscent of Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking, done by FW Opera last season.  (N.B. a new Heggie work, Moby Dick, will be premiered later in the Dallas Opera season)

With the Winspear, Opera House, located in the AT&T Performing Arts Center in the Arts District of Dallas (directly across from the Meyerson Symphony Hall), the Dallas Opera has ended over six decades of wandering in the desert (i.e. Fair Park Music Hall), and at last has come to the promised land.  As most of my readers are aware, there has always been a sense of competitiveness between Dallas and Fort Worth.  One area of pride for aesthetically sensitive Fort Worthians has been in the fine arts.  For those of us who patronize both the Fort Worth Opera and the Dallas Opera there could be no doubt that, although the former is a smaller company, there could be no comparison in regard to venues: Bass Performance Hall is a real opera house, while Fair Park Music Hall is a bloated monstrosity, best left to heavily amplified fare.

The new Dallas house now changes that dynamic, and does so in very interesting ways.  The Winspear almost seems to function as an alter ego of Bass Hall in a manner completely in keeping with the two cities’ contrasting outlooks.  Bass Hall, for example, is predominantly white, inside and out, and has a decidedly retro art-deco look.  The Winspear, by contrast, is decidedly post-modern (or post post-modern, if you will).  At night, the predominant colors are deep red and black, and the interior of the hall is very dark indeed.

And whereas the ceiling of Bass Hall sports a fresco of the daytime sky, the Winspear’s ceiling has a chandelier that, when retracted, looks like evening stars.

According to chief architect, Spencer de Grey, the transparency of the building is an attempt to break down the intimidation factor with potential new audience members.  The idea is to make opera more accessible to a wider audience.  I am not convinced that they are successful in this, because even I, a veteran culture snob, found the building to be a little intimidating upon first entering.  And although I am happy to see the giant-sized candy bars and skittles left behind at the Fair Park concession vendors, their replacements: comparatively rarified snacks such as chocolate covered strawberries, etc., only serve to up the ante in the feel of exclusivity.

In regard to acoustics, the Winspear has some of the finest I have ever heard.  During the opening ceremonies, Don Winspear asked the members of the audience whether they had ever heard opera at Fair Park.  In response to the giggles, the orchestra played a very quiet rendition of the opening bars of the Prelude to Wagner’s Die Meistersinger.  This was followed shortly thereafter by an open-throttle replay that, should the theater have been open-air, would have felled birds unfortunate enough to be flying overhead.  I don’t think that I have ever heard an orchestra located under the stage produce such well-rounded volume.  No doubt, this will keep those fortunate enough to sing at the Winspear on their toes!  By the way, the acoustics at the Winspear cry out desperately for WAGNER!!!!  It is definitely the time for the company to strut its stuff with a new production of the Ring cycle and perhaps (hint, hint. . .) the triumphant return of Clifton Forbis as Tristan.

Review: SALVI’s Rusticatio Virginiana Conversational Latin Workshop
Charles Town, West Virginia, 2009

by Dean Cassella

Almost twenty years ago, I asked my first Latin teacher when I would be able to speak Latin. Laughing, he sardonically replied: “Not for a long time.” Year after year went by for me as an undergraduate, master’s student and finally a doctoral student in Classics. Despite having read several thousand pages of Latin literature, and having taught the language professionally for years, that magical moment that I had been waiting for, the Latin conversation, never reared its lovely head.

Well, that has now changed in a big way for me this summer, thanks to an opportunity to attend a week-long workshop designed specifically for beginning Latin speakers. Rusticatio Virginiana (that’s Latin for Virginia Country Life) is run by Septentrionale Americanum Latinitatis Vivae Institutum (English: North American Institute for Living Latin Studies) SALVI an organization dedicated to the promulgation of conversational

Nancy Llewellyn is a Professor at Wyoming Catholic College and advocate of spoken Latin.

Latin in North America. The founder of SALVI, and director of the workshop was Nancy E. Llewellyn, an assistant professor of Latin at the newly formed Wyoming Catholic College. Dr. Llewellyn spent several years studying conversational Latin in Rome- ground zero, if you will- with the renowned Father Reginald Foster and Father Cleto Pavanetto, who teaches classical languages at the Pontificia Università degli Studi Salesiana. Father Pavanetto took part in the workshop, and he was one of the most charming and dedicated teachers I have ever had the privilege of meeting.

The program was held at the Claymont Mansion,an estate built by George Washington’s nephew, which currently houses workshops and conferences such as this one. The site’s isolation was ideal, because the 28 attendees were strictly enjoined not to speak anything but Latin from dawn of the second day.

Reginald Foster, of the recently formed Academia Romae Latinitatis in the Eternal City

The participants ranged from college instructors such as myself, to high school Latin teachers, graduate students, and even a few undergraduates. The common interests of all made the group quick to congeal, and I have no doubt that many lasting friendships have grown out of our week together.

Professor Llewellyn is an absolute master not only of oral Latin, but also of foreign language pedagogy. The various types of classroom exercises she had us do— my favorite was a Latin version of the game show $20,000 Pyramid — in case you’re curious, here’s a YouTube video of the original show.

were a virtual goldmine of material for teachers of Latin- or any other foreign language, for that matter. The informal after-dinner activities were among the highlights of the

David Morgan is Professor of French at Furman University, and a crack shot at spoken latin.

program. These ranged from the frivolous (e.g singing an ingeniously translated version of the Village People song YMCA- “Puer, desperare noli!”) to the high-brow. My favorite in the latter category was a discussion, led by Professor David Morgan from Furman University about the invention of the concept of the “genius” out of late eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Romanticism. Professor Morgan, whose fluency in Latin can make one green with envy, also helps direct an oral Latin summer school for high school students at Christendom College.

Professor Llewellyn told us on the first day that large amounts of passive knowledge would rise up into our active memory as the workshop progressed. Not only can I vouch for this, but I received an instantaneous boost in my ability to write in Latin within days of beginning the workshop. I would even venture to say that my ability to read quickly has improved a bit.

All in all, the whole experience was transformational. In recent years, I have experimented with incorporating some oral work in my Latin teaching at UNT. I have met with some success in this. But since returning from the workshop, I have been able to apply my newfound skills in my own Latin workshop. The result is an astonishing 80-90% of my classes being conducted in Latin, to the great delight and benefit of my students, who are learning their verb forms and retaining vocabulary far more readily than most of my students in the past.

If you have a love of Latin and would really like to become part of the Western intellectual tradition, I urge you to enroll in one of SALVI’s (or any one of the growing number of similar workshops in the US and Europe). I promise that you will not regret it!

By Dean Cassella

I always look forward to seeing new incarnations of the Star Trek franchise, and this latest film, simply titled Star Trek, was no exception.  Although many disliked the last series, Enterprise, I had found it to be a refreshing change from the saccharine characters oft to be found in Voyager and, at times, Next Generation. Enterprise attempted to go back to the early, swashbuckling “cowboy diplomacy” days of the original series. So, for me the idea of extending the theme to a kind of prequel of the The Original Series was appealing. The film seems to have generated a lot of positive reviews (Rotten Tomatoes has given it 95%).

When I took my two older boys (ages 12 and 14) to see it, I was expecting, if anything, a thrilling ride. The opening of the film—it turns out that Captain Kirk was born on an escape pod in deep space—piqued my interest and then . . . it was all downhill from there. 

You may ask why I took to disliking the film, especially when almost everybody else seems to love it? This calls for a bit of explanation, so please bear with me.

Among university teachers today there is a term that is occasionally bandied about: the “digital natives.” These are the current freshmen and sophomores who were raised from the youngest age with the internet, ipods, text-messaging, etc. It has been said that they have a particularly difficult time focusing on anything that is not delivered in an electronic format, and even when it is electronic, their attention span is very short indeed. Such young adults, for example, tend to describe ‘old’ films (i.e. those produced before they were born) as “boring.” I suspect this is a result of constant exposure to video games and film editing that make the two-second-per-cut TV commercials of yesteryear appear glacially slow by comparison.  

I would further add that the hallmark feature of the digital natives’ primary and secondary education has been a steady diet of self-esteem training. Such young people tend to have an aggressively positive view of their supposed academic/professional accomplishments, and often become impatient with anybody who suggests otherwise. With many of these young adults, to insist upon correct grammar or the use of non-internet based sources when writing essays brings frustrated accusations of pedantry against teachers. Learning how to express oneself in an articulate, grammatically correct manner appears to many of them to be a waste of time. Moreover, failure to learn how to do these things supposedly will have no bearing on the exciting, high-paying careers they believe are their due.

Obviously, not every young person conforms to this dreary scenario (I have had some excellent students from this group in my own classes), but the effects can definitely be seen everyday at the State U.

So what, you may ask, does this have to do with Star Trek? Quite simply, I find the film to be mythmaking for the digital natives. The producers of Star Trek want us to believe that James Kirk was essentially a hard-drinking, muscle car/motorcycle driving yahoo with a criminal record, before deciding to sign up with Star Fleet. His recruiter, Captain Pike, explains that this is just the type of person that Star Fleet needs. The situation reminds me of a friend’s wry assessment of Terminator II at its premiere run: “white trash people save the Earth!!” Although the film barely alludes to Kirk’s three years in the academy (how boring!), we are rest assured that his extremely high aptitude scores more than compensated for his deviant misbehavior. 

I have yet to speak to a parent whose child was doing poorly in school that did not claim that said child was ‘brilliant’ but simply lacked the focus and motivation to do outstanding academic work. 

Mr. Spock, as it turns out, was a rebel in his own right. Understandably touchy about his half-human origins in a society as racist as is that of the Vulcans, Spock over compensates by throwing himself into his studies, and by striving to be an über-Vulcan. All this is well and good, until almost everybody, including his own father and his older self (thanks to yet another breach in the time-space continuum . . .yawn . . .) urges him to get in touch with his emotions! One of the most well-defined traits of the Vulcans in the Star Trek universe is that they systematically repress their emotions: to do otherwise results in a return to brutal savagery. Consider what happened to T’Pol in Enterprise when a charming rebel Vulcan talked her into getting in touch with herself and quitting her meditations … she became violent! But in modern ideology, getting in touch with your feelings and ‘letting go’ is a necessary prelude to brilliance.

There are other such problems with characterization throughout the cast of characters. One example must suffice for now: Uhura (who in the Original Series was a refined and genteel lady) is now an alcoholic. I do not see any other way to interpret her first appearance in the film, wherein she walks into a bar and orders several drinks for herself, to be filled all at once. The scene cannot help but remind me of the binge drinking problem that plagues American college campuses. In digital native lore, women are supposed to be able to hold their liquor as well as men can (no matter if this flies in the face of current research in both science and social science) and hedonism never gets in the way of brilliant accomplishment.

The film’s idea of moving into high action is to ask us to believe that a whole motley crew of greenhorns (the only seasoned officer of any note on the bridge is Captain Pike, and Mr. Sulu does not even know how to disengage the emergency brake of the Enterprise!) sets out on its maiden voyage to answer a distress call from the planet Vulcan. Pike is quickly dispatched, which then leads to a power struggle for command of the ship between Kirk and Spock.  It should be added that Kirk is, for all intents and purposes, a stowaway who was barred from participating due to misbehavior at the Academy. In the end, it turns out that the raw recruits save the day, and Kirk is transformed from a court-marshaled lieutenant to captain of the ship literally overnight. 

Now that’s what many people today, particularly, I would argue, young people, want to hear. Raw talent, which, due to self-esteem training seems to be in enormous abundance (think of Garrison Keillor’s Lake Wobegone “where every kid is above average”), will cover any number of follies and indiscretions, and catapult the bearer to superstardom. Although the original Captain Kirk was on the impulsive side, it was also true that he was a very hardworking and disciplined young man (how could he have been otherwise?) I distinctly remember him describing himself as drearily serious at the academy. If I were on the crew of the Enterprise, the new Kirk would inspire no confidence in me whatsoever, simply because it would be obvious that he was going to get himself killed, and me along with him.

The acting in the film was, overall, quite good, but the editing is so fast that it is sometimes hard to focus on the story. Even at those brief moments when two people are merely talking each other, the camera has to swirl around them in a frenetic way. 

In conclusion, the film may well prove to be the perfect symbol of American culture and society as it makes the transition from its Silver Age to its Bronze Age. Let us hope that, for us, there is someone left responsible enough to steer the ship.

Dead Man Walking by Jake Heggie
Fort Worth Opera, May, 2, 9 2009
Bass Performance Hall
Review by Dean Cassella

The Fort Opera Festival’s current production of Dead Man Walking, a relatively new (2006) work, has everything that one could hope for in an opera performance except one. The libretto, based on the memoir of a nun, Sister Helen Prejean, who counseled Patrick Sonnier (Joseph De Rocher in the opera), an inmate placed on death row for the brutal rape and murder of a teenage girl and her boyfriend, is riveting and thought-provoking.

Composer Jake Heggie has a profound gift for orchestration, made evident from the first bars of the prelude. The sets perfectly capture the bleak and somber atmosphere called for by the subject. The singers and musicians delivered a powerful, resonant performance worthy of the best halls in North America.

What is missing is melody.

Although I try not to be close-minded about these things, I do tend to approach new operas with a bit of suspicion. We are, for all intents and purposes, still living in the post-Wagnerian world when it comes to opera, and the last serious exemplar of tonal melody (who was himself half-Wagnerian) was Puccini. I actually love Wagner’s works, but I am one of those who believe that the great master set opera down a path that eventually stripped away the medium’s most enduring qualities, qualities at which Wagner himself excelled, despite his (often spectacularly successful) innovations.

Dead Man Walking narrates the last few weeks in the life of a man condemned to die by lethal injection in a Louisiana prison. Amidst the ordeal of his final appeal and last meetings with his mother and brothers, he develops a relationship with a nun who wrote letters to him, presumably under the Christian injunction to comfort those in prison. Through his relationship with Sister Prejean, he eventually comes to accept responsibility for his crime. The final scene—his execution—is performed in absolute silence as he is strapped to a table and hooked up to a machine that administers the poison. The humming of the machine is harrowing, as was the reenactment of the rape in murder at the beginning of Act I.

The melodies throughout are almost entirely dissonant (but in a mild way) except for a Christian hymn sung by the nun in her first appearance. One could almost think of this music as her leitmotiv—or that of “hope”. Although one could argue that this bleak subject matter calls for such a harmonic treatment, and it does, in fact, work most of the time, I nonetheless believe that the work’s impact would have been greater if the dissonance was balanced by some consonance. Rigoletto, after all, deals with some very dark and seedy subject matter, and even has its own version of De Rocher in the person of Sparafucile. Yet that work contains some of the most powerful song in the whole standard repertoire. Another interesting point of comparison is Carmen, the work which began this season’s Fort Worth Festival. As was pointed out in the program, Carmen caused some problems for its original audience because such unsavory characters were singing such beautiful melodies. In Dead Man Walking, scenes which included De Rocher’s mother, either pleading to the parole board to spare her son’s life, or bidding goodbye to him just before he was escorted to the death chamber, were crying out for even a touch of the sentimentality that made opera the art form that it is. Had Heggie used song-like melody, the impact of De Rocher’s execution would have been three-fold.

Bass Baritone Daniel Okulitch, most recently seen locally in the lead role in Dallas Opera’s Marriage of Figaro last fall, gave an outstanding performance as De Rocher, and his loud, edgy voice captured the character perfectly. He also gave a partial reprise of his recent nude scene in Paris/L.A’s The Fly although this time he only strips down to his tighty whities. But the loss of genitalia shock value is made up for by the large number of tattoos Okulitch sports for the role. So far as I can tell, the operatic  ”naked thing” got its start in the late 80’s with Sir Peter Hall casting his wife, Maria Ewing, in the title role of Strauss’ Salome, wherein she takes it all off during the Dance of the Seven Veils, something that has of late seemed almost de rigeur.

Speaking of nudity, the Fort Worth Opera website gave one of those “nudity and mature themes” warnings that usually turns out to be a type of lurid promotion. This was not the case here, because the proviso referred not to Okulitch, but rather to the rape/murder at the beginning of Act I. Although the stage was so dark that it was hard to tell just how much covering the actors had, it was disturbing, if only because the simulation was being done with live people, rather than filtered through a projector lens or monitor. In any case, there was nothing erotic about it (unless you are as depraved as De Rocher).

Prima donna Robin Redmon played the role of Sister Prejean in a very prosaic, low-key way that makes sense, given the character. Her powerful, lovely singing, however, was anything but prosaic.

In conclusion, I believe that Dead Man Walking is a worthwhile experiment, and certainly was worth the time and effort to see. I would encourage others to give it a chance in future productions. Attending the show with me was someone who has active interest in classical music, but relatively little sympathy for modern composition. Despite her initial reservations, she found the production well worth seeing.

But I still wonder if I will ever get to see a new opera in my lifetime that embraces, rather than avoids, soaring melody and song.

Cinderella
by Gioacchino Rossini
Fort Worth Opera

Bass Performance Hall, 26 April, 1, 9 May, 2009

Review by Dean Cassella

There is no doubt that Fort Worth Opera’s latest incarnation as a spring festival has come of age and warrants national attention by opera lovers,   and its current version of the Rossini’s classic is one of the finest productions I have had the pleasure of seeing. 

Guest conductor Scott Bergeson’s direction was light, delicate and lively from the opening bars of the overture, and sustained the viewers’ attention through a long (three hour) performance.

A real treat in this production is stage director David Gately’s delightful and often hilarious hijinx that match perfectly (in my opinion) with the spirit of the libretto. This includes a large number of carefully choreographed jokes, the most effective which is the old standby “slow motion” routine at the end of act one (used by FWO at the end of Act I of The Barber of Seville back in 2003). I have no idea where this device originated, but it always does the trick. Here, it is employed in the banquet scene, which includes the dreams of Cinderella’s stepsisters wherein the latter is carved up as part of the festivities.

In keeping with modern, Hollywood-influenced trends, the singers in this production have been carefully chosen to match the age and appearance expectations of current audiences. Although this can sometimes create compromises in vocal quality, this was a non-issue here, as all principals had outstanding voices. Prima donna Isabel Leonard, a petite darling of a thing, captivates with her voice from the first scene, and never lets go. On a few occasions her voice had trouble carrying over the orchestra. But generally she could more than carry her own.

Italian Michele Angelini was a perfect match for Leonard as lead tenor in the role of Prince Ramiro. His voice has that firm yet delicate quality that so well suits the “dreamy young man of marriageable age.” The pair’s voices blended perfectly from their first duet together in Act I.

Rod Nelman, in the buffo-bass role of Don Magnifico, the bumbling and cruel step-father, really came into his own in Act II. He did a brilliant job with the rapid-fire patter that is one of the hallmarks of opera buffa. Also worthy of note was the dashing, flamboyant singing of Andrew Garland as Dandini, the valet-turned-prince-for-a-day that helps to vet out prospective brides for his lord incognito. Brandi Icard and Alissa Anderson also sang well, and demonstrated genuine acting skill as the buffoonish, spoiled sisters who will stop at nothing to marry the prince. Finally, Derrick Parker as Alidoro, the prince’s tutor, was commendable both vocally and acting-wise.

The sets, borrowed from Kentucky Opera, and the costumes, borrowed from San Francisco Opera (and designed by Jean-Pierre Ponnelle, whose death over 20 years ago has had no effect on his career as a set and costume designer!), were quite beautiful, especially Cinderella’s black and silver ball gown.

For this production, I brought along a boy of 14 who has a modest interest in opera. He really appreciated the humorous and spirited stage direction, in particular the slow-motion dream sequence mentioned above, and Nelman’s boorishness as Don Magnifico.

All in all, signs point to a distinguished future for the Fort Worth Opera Festival. Kudos to Darren Woods and the whole company!

Next up: Dead Man Walking.

Dallas Opera February 13 15, 18, & 21, 2009
By Dean Cassella

This production of Puccini’s most beloved work is one of the finest I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. It is one of those rare moments in opera when the casting works, not only for each individual role, but the singers’ voices, acting, and even their physiques blend naturally together. Top this off with exciting, dynamic conducting, and you have the making of a night to remember.

The real star of the show is lyric tenor James Valenti, who pulls off the role of Rodolfo, the lovable impoverished poet, without missing a step. Valenti, a native of New Jersey, is performing with the Dallas Opera for the first in this production of La Bohème.  He has a full, fresh voice that is matched by a tall figure and handsome features. Valenti’s face has ‘leading man’ written all over it. His expressive range is broad, and he adeptly pulls off moments that require great vocal power, as well as the subtlety and refinement to handle those tender moments that are inevitable in romantic tragedy.

Now in his sixth year on the boards, Valenti’s personal story is one that may prove increasingly common in the fine arts. He does not seem to have had a background in classical singing. But the nurturing of a astute music teacher led him into opera at age 18. Valenti then became obsessed and seven years later found himself on the professional stage. I haven’t had as much fun listening to a tenor live since Antonello Palombi sang the lead role in Pagliacci at the Dallas Opera in 2005 (oh, how I wish I had a DVD of that production!). 

Kanyova singing in the 2005 production of Pagliachi. NY Times photo.

Speaking of the 2005 Pagliacci, the prima donna of that production, Maria Kanyova, is back in the role of Mimi.  I hate to use a worn out cliché, but from the moment Ms. Kanyova opens her mouth, it sounds like a bird has flown into the theater. Her voice is sweet and rich, and possesses a pleasingly lilting vibrato. She also can act. Kanyova and Valenti are perfectly matched in their duets and the result is thrilling. 

Also worthy of note was Valentina Farcas’ performance as Musetta, the coquettish sometime-belle of the painter Marcello (this time performed admirably by Dwayne Croft).  Like Kanyova, Ms. Farcas has all of the goods, and delivers not only in the voice department, but also in her acting.

The production also marks the U.S. premiere of guest conductor Pietro Rizzo. Although Maestro Rizzo hails from Rome, Italy, he is no stranger to the Metroplex: he is a graduate, in violin performance, from SMU. Under Rizzo’s leadership, the orchestra was bristling with energy, mixed with occasional forays into Levinesque slow pacing. He really seemed to have a natural rapport with both the orchestra and the cast.

Jean-Pierre Ponnelle must hold some kind of world record for the most number of set designs still in use after death.  Ponnelle passed away over 20 years ago, but his beautiful sets just keep coming back (to Dallas and the world). In this case he made use of a raised platform in the middle of the stage for most of the action, around which various backdrops serve as changes of scene.  Kudos also to Thomas C. Hase, whose lighting was unusually effective in this production.

As is usually the case, I took along one of my children.  This time it was my son, a pre-teen opera hound, if there ever was one. He had never seen Bohème before, and genuinely seemed to enjoy it. In particular he enjoyed the finale, with all the reprises of the various themes found throughout the work. He also got a kick out of the clowning around done by the artists in the swinging bachelor pad. La Bohème is, in a way, a tragi-comedy. 

Editor’s note: If you want more of James Valenti singing La Boheme, there’s another, longer YouTube Video, of 4.45 minutes of “che gelida manina” but it doesn’t have action, just stills.

Next up for Dallas Opera: The Italian Girl in Algiers.

The Program:
Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus, Op.43
Piano Concerto N.4 in G Major, Op.58
Symphony N.7in A Major, Op.92

Ang Li, soloist
Matthias Bambert, conductor
Bass Performance Hall, January 30, 31, and February 1, 2009

By Dean Cassella

This performance is a mixed bag. One can hardly complain about an All-Beethoven program, and the great composer certainly makes good, especially with the 7th Symphony, but performance-wise, I came away not quite won over. Beethoven wrote The Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus as part of a ballet that he wrote about the Greek mythological character. Although the rest of the ballet has failed to enter the standard repertoire, is certainly not bereft of charm.

The Piano Concerto N.4 is a meandering work, and 23 year old soloist Ang Li’s understated playing did not really succeed in conveying a sense of urgency. This was disappointing, especially given the rather stunning black and red halter dress she wore to Saturday’s performance.

Beethoven + Symphony = exciting music, and the 7th Symphony quickly gets under your skin. It is unusual in that it does not have a truly slow movement (the 2nd movement is an Allegretto). Matthias Bambert’s conducting was best when dealing with rapid string passages (especially in the 1st and 4th movements), but the orchestra did not always seem securely under his control, and on occasion it seemed that some important cues got lost in the shuffle.

Nonetheless, the program made for an enjoyable evening of Romantic music with a pastoral flavor. It may be difficult to keep children focused on the performance during the first half of the show, but then they may well be transfixed by the melodic intensity of the second half.