The Opera Tattler

La fille du régiment at San Diego Opera

* Notes * 
San Diego Opera's 2013 season opened with La fille du régiment last night. The production, directed by Emilio Sagi, is set in France during the final days of World War II, rather than in 19th century Swiss Tyrol. This made the sung or spoken text go against the super-titles at times. Otherwise, Sagi seems rather detail oriented, it seemed that all the scenes were rife with activity. The audience appreciated the sight gags and various jokes interpolated in the dialogue.

The orchestra sounded buoyant under Yves Abel, but were not always with the singers. There were rough moments for the brass. The chorus was entertaining. Carol Vaness was a funny Duchess of Krakenthorp, and even sang a little. Kevin Burdette was a charming Suplice. Ewa Podleś was a perfectly haughty Marquise de Berkenfield and her acting is convincing. Her voice is still beautiful, though not as smooth as in former days. Stephen Costello sang with a great deal of power, his high C's were a bit raw in Act I. Costello's second act aria was plaintive without being cloying. L'úbica Vargicová was cute as Marie, and was impressively awkward in Act II, persuasive embodying the role. Her sound has a slight tendency to be shrill, and is pleasantly fluttery, but has a fullness to it.

* Tattling * 
The audience laughed a lot, and kept conversations to a minimum.

Don Pasquale at San Diego Opera

* Notes * 
At first glance, the revival of Don Pasquale (Act II, Scene 2 pictured left, photograph by Ken Howard) at San Diego Opera simply looks like someone took a set and costumes for Fanciulla del West and used it for Donizetti's work. Thankfully, there is much more to director David Gately's elaborate production, which is quite funny. This Wild West version of Don Pasquale works because the essentials are still true to this opera buffa. The characters are all believable, and this rendering has a lot of charm. The gags just keep on coming, and perhaps at times this felt somewhat overwrought. The sets, from Tony Fanning, descriptive and painstakingly detailed, as are the costumes from Helen E. Rodgers.

Conductor Marco Guidarini made his San Diego debut with yesterday's performance. The orchestra played with the necessary fleetness, and were often rather loud. The trumpet made a brave effort at the beginning of Act II despite a few raw moments. The chorus moved well, and though not precisely together, sang nicely. The principal singers were cast evenly. Jeff Mattsey was an entertaining Dr. Malatesta, and his singing was fine aside from some of the patter in the duet "Cheti, cheti, immantinente." Charles Castronovo (Ernesto) had a pretty lightness and the right mournfulness for the role. His voice sounds slightly metallic when he pushes it too hard. Danielle de Niese's Norina was completely convincing, her gestures and expressions were faultless. Though her breathing is noticeable, her voice is deft and bright. John Del Carlo was hilarious in the title role. His sound is warm and his enunciation was excellent throughout, especially in the aforementioned Act III duet with Mattsey.

* Tattling * 
There was light talking throughout the opera, and a watch or phone alarm rang during Act III Scene 2.

Casting Change for San Diego Opera's Moby-Dick

Jay Hunter Morris (pictured left in the State Opera of South Australia's production of Moby-Dick) will replace Ben Heppner as Captain Ahab in the San Diego Opera's Moby-Dick on Tuesday, February 21, 2012. Heppner is ill. Morris had been originally scheduled for the San Diego performances, but withdrew to sing Siegfried in the Metropolitan Opera's Götterdämmerung last month.

Moby-Dick at San Diego Opera | San Diego Opera's Press Releases

Moby-Dick at San Diego Opera

* Notes * 
The West Coast premiere of Jake Heggie's Moby-Dick (Act I pictured left, photograph by Ken Howard) was given by San Diego Opera last night. This production was first seen two years ago at Dallas Opera, and has also had runs at the State Opera of South Australia in Adelaide and Calgary Opera. The opening performance in San Diego was impressive. Gene Scheer's libretto is paced well, skillfully arranged and rather more spare than Melville's novel. Heggie's music is also adroit, the ensembles and choruses sounded particularly lovely. Robert Brill's sets are cleverly enhanced by lighting designed by Donald Holder (revived here by Gavin Swift) and projections designed by Elaine J. McCarthy (revived here by Shawn Boyle). Only a couple of the visuals were awkward, specifically the flying harpoon ropes and splintering whale boats. However, director Leonard Foglia pulled together this opera as a coherent, vital work, without being mawkish.

The orchestra was lead by Joseph Mechavich, who also conducted this opera in Calgary. The 63 musicians crowded in the pit produced a lot of sound, occasionally overwhelming the singers. The chorus seemed at ease with the music, and the dancing in the second half of Act I was surprisingly good. The rest of the singing was likewise fine, Robert Orth (Stubb) had a hearty duet in Act I with Talise Trevigne (Pip). Trevigne's subsequent aria when lost at sea was splendid and as the highest voice in the opera, was both striking and haunting. Jonathan Boyd was the wide-eyed Greenhorn, he seemed momentarily strained in the beginning of Act I, but sang nicely for the rest of the evening. Jonathan Lemalu sang Queequeg with a certain dry quality, his duets with Boyd were balanced. Morgan Smith portrayed Starbuck beautifully, with sensitivity and humaneness. Ben Heppner made a grimly determined Captain Ahab, the effort in his voice seemed tangible, which was effective for this role.

* Tattling * 
A cellular phone rang on the right side of the orchestra level during Act I. There was a lot of talking between a child in Row P Seat 46 and her guardian in Seat 44, but they were silent after being hushed. The child must have switched seats with someone, as she did not return for the second half. There was also much talking during Pip's aria in Act I from the couple in Row N Seats 42 and 44, rather unfortunate given how beautiful it was, and how lightly orchestrated.

Salome at San Diego Opera

* Notes * 
Yesterday evening's opening performance of the 2012 season at San Diego Opera was Salome. Seán Curran's production (pictured left with Irina Mishura as Herodias and Lise Lindstrom as Salome, photograph by Ken Howard) was seen in San Francisco two years ago, with the same sets and costumes designed by Bruno Schwengl, and elegant lighting by Christopher Maravich. There were some differences from the earlier performances in 2009, most notably in Salome's dance. The San Diego version sounded strong, the orchestra seemed restrained under Steuart Bedford, the brass only a bit ragged.

The principals were all impressive. Sean Panikkar sang Narraboth with a painful loveliness. Greer Grimsley gave a powerful performance as Jochanaan. Allan Glassman acted and sang the role of Herodes with complete conviction. As Herodias, Irina Mishura was both visually and vocally complementary to Lise Lindstrom in the title role. Lindstrom was viscerally disturbing, with devastatingly gorgeous high notes. Her movements were rather girlish, and her dancing, aside from a slight awkwardness with her second veil, was graceful.

* Tattling * 
There was some limited whispering from the audience. Two chirps were heard when Salome was singing without much accompanying orchestration.

Casting Change for The Met's Götterdämmerung

Jay Hunter Morris (pictured left in the title role of Siegfried at the Metropolitan Opera, photograph by Ken Howard) will replace Gary Lehman as Siegfried in the Metropolitan Opera's new Götterdämmerung, which opens January 27, 2012. Lehman has withdrawn due to a viral infection. Morris himself has withdrawn from performances of Moby Dick at San Diego Opera, and the role of Ahab will be sung by Ben Heppner.

The Met's Press Releases | San Diego Opera's Press Releases

San Diego Opera's 2012 Season

January 28- February 5 2012: Salome
February 18-26 2012: Moby-Dick
March 10-18 2012: Don Pasquale
March 24 2012: Renée Fleming Concert
April 21-29 2012: The Barber of Seville

San Diego Opera recently announced a 2012 season. Lise Lindstrom, Greer Grimsley, Alan Glassman, and Irina Mishura star in Salome. The West Coast premiere of Jake Heggie's Moby-Dick features Jay Hunter Morris as Ahab. John Del Carlo, Danielle de Niese, and Charles Castronovo sing in Don Pasquale. The Barber of Seville concludes next season, with Lucas Meachem in the title role.

2012 Season | Official Site

Faust at San Diego Opera

* Notes * 
The opening performance of a Faust revival at San Diego Opera occurred last night. Seen last season in San Francisco, the sets and costumes were designed by Robert Perdziola, with lighting from Michael Whitfield. Apparently the production, owned by Lyric Opera of Chicago, was actually designed for Tancredi. In San Diego, it was redesigned for Faust 10 years ago and the staging this time around was done by David Gately. It was striking how distinct this performance was from the San Francisco performances last June, despite having the same sets, costumes, and even one of the same singers. There was much more ballet in San Diego's version. The choreography for the chorus was simpler and had the singers remain onstage for more of Act I, Scene 2. The chorus did well, and were, for the most part, together. Karen Keltner had the orchestra sounding pretty and legato. The brass had a few evident vulnerabilities.

Scott Sikon was perfectly fine as Wagner, and Jane Bunnell was amusing as Marthe. Sarah Castle looked perfectly boyish as Siébel. Her voice was clean and bright, both her "Faites-lui mes aveux" and her scene with Marguerite at the end of Act III, Scene 1 were very sweet. Baritone Brian Mulligan was strong as Valentin, his "O Sainte Medaille" garnered the first ovation of the evening. Greer Grimsley looked and sounded like a convincing Méphistophélès. His voice has a certain husk-like quality to it that lacks prettiness and works for the Devil. Ailyn Pérez made for a fitting contrast, a lovely Marguerite indeed, especially for "Il était un roi de Thulé." Pérez possesses a wonderful effortlessness when she sings. Stephen Costello may have a slightly harder time as Faust, one or two high notes betrayed strain, but not constriction. Costello did sound plaintive, his voice is pleasant and has enough squillo to cut through the orchestration. Pérez and Costello made an attractive pair.

* Tattling * 
The talking and whispering during overtures was unrelenting, at least on the right side of Row S on the orchestra level. No mobile phones were heard, but there were those who used them to check the time between scenes.

Nabucco at San Diego Opera

* Notes *
The opening of Nabucco this season at San Diego Opera was last night. The production was directed by Lofti Mansouri, the former General Director in San Francisco, and was as expected, nothing wild or crazy or new. Micahel Yeargan's set stayed essentially the same throughout the performance, though the backdrops were switched out for the different scenes. Something about the geometry about the projections used looked dated, but transitions were clear and straightforward.

Edoardo Müller had a good handle on the orchestra, for the most part they were together and the volume was robust without overwhelming the singers. The brass was competent, only a few mistakes were heard. The first cello solo was a bit severe, but sounded less grating over time. The chorus shone from the beginning, and "Va, pensiero" from Act III, Scene 2 was moving.

Mezzo-soprano Susana Poretsky was both harsh and shrill to begin with as Fenena. She managed to sound very pretty at times though. Raymond Aceto's creakiness worked excellently for Zaccaria, the High Priest of Jerusalem. He could have been somewhat stronger in the very end, but sang proficiently otherwise. Arthur Shen (Ishmaele) had a bright, pleasing sound, but lacked heft. He was, at least, not difficult to hear. As Abigaille, Sylvie Valayre strained for her top notes, and could only reach some of them by wavering quite a lot. She did have her more comely moments, especially in "Anch'io dischiuso un giorno," and she acted with conviction. Richard Paul Fink sang with occasional tentativeness, and perhaps a want of beauty, but overall he does have a fine, vigorous voice. Considering he stepped in at the last-minute, one can hardly complain, and the emotions of the character came through believably in his singing.

* Tattling * 
The audience spoke more than one would like, especially when reading the verses from Jeremiah projected onto the scrim before acts. There was no electronic noise, no mobile phone rings, and no watch alarms.

At the second intermission a person in a tuxedo was overheard to say "Did you get a load of that one over in that number with her big fake titties hanging out. She's got to be in her fifties and it's been a long time since she could've pulled that off." I leave it to the reader to make out exactly what such a comment or what elicited it indicates, if anything.

San Diego Opera Layoffs

San Diego Opera reportedly laid off 8 employees.

The Daily Transcript (Subscription Only) | Official Site

San Diego Opera's 2010 Season

January 30- February 7 2010: La Bohème
February 20-28 2010: Nabucco
March 13-21 2010: Roméo et Juliette
April 17-25 2010: La Traviata

San Diego Opera is only having four operas next year instead of the usual five, but the casting remains strong. Piotr Beczala sings Rodolfo in Bohème, as he did in San Francisco last year. Željko Lučić sings the title role in Nabucco, with Sylvie Valayre as Abigaille. Ailyn Pérez and Stephen Costello star in Roméo et Juliette, and Elizabeth Futral and Marius Brenciu star in La Traviata.

2010 Season | Official Site

Madama Butterfly at San Diego Opera

* Notes * 
A revival of Madama Butterfly closes San Diego Opera's 2009 season. Musically, the opening last night was very strong. Edoardo Müller roused a vigorous performance from the orchestra, the tempi were never sluggish, but never overly taxing either. The chorus was together and created a straightforwardly lucid sound.

The principals were also quite even. Tenor Joseph Hu had just the right amount of simpering and unctuousness to suit the role of Goro. Suzanna Guzmán rushed in her vocal entrance as Suzuki, but was impressively ferocious later on. Malcolm MacKenzie had warmth and heft in his sympathetic portrayal of Sharpless, but did not overwhelm Carlo Ventre as Pinkerton. Ventre is not exactly the brash embodiment of an American naval officer circa 1904, but he sang well. There was some constriction in his higher register, but his appealingly reedy voice did cut through the orchestration and even sparkled at times. His duet, with Patricia Racette in the title role, at the end of Act I was particularly lovely. Racette's performance was consistent, though she started off with much vibrato, is occasionally shrill. Her pianissimo can be sublime and her "Un bel dì" was magnificent.

On the other hand, Francesca Zambello's production, directed here by Garnett Bruce, was fairly incoherent. Often scenes were set in the American consulate, rather than the "casetta" of the libretto. Even with my poor Italian, it was surreal to hear text so at odds with the scenery. This was especially strange for the first scene of Act II, when Sharpless is dismissed by Butterfly, but it is she that has come to the consulate. However, there was never a dull moment and Michael Yeargan's airy set was attractive. Anita Yavich's costumes suited the production, the turquoise haori worn by Butterfly over her Western dress in Act II was rather eye-catching. In the end, Alan Burrett's lighting did unify the production, and the last scene is striking.

* Tattling * 
At least 3 watch alarms were heard at 9pm, though no cellular phones rang. There was very little talking, and this was restricted to the instrumental segments.

The hall looked quite full, and there seemed to be a few issues at the box office, as far as tickets purchased online not showing up at will call.

Peter Grimes at San Diego Opera

* Notes *
A revival of Peter Grimes opened at San Diego Opera yesterday evening. The production was originally built for San Francisco Opera and the Lyric in 1973, and the set has a certain grey brutality. Gary Marder's lighting was appropriately stark and moody. The costumes, from the Met's old production, are also perfectly traditional.

Steuart Bedford conducted straightforwardly, the orchestra was together, but not always with the singers. The musicians had some lovely, delicate moments during the overtures. The chorus likewise was not quite together in the beginning, but did focus in at the end of the first act. Their vigor flagged after this, and the following two acts were less precise.

The casting was apt, up and down the line. Priya Palekar and Priti Gandhi sang prettily as the nieces, and their auntie, Judith Christin, certainly embodied her role. Rod Gilfry was a stern but sympathetic Captain Balstrode. As Ellen Orford, Jennifer Casey Cabot began rather coldly, her voice is metallic and a bit light. However, her acting was strong, and her scene with the apprentice in Act II was beautiful. Anthony Dean Griffey proved convincing in the title role. His voice is exceedingly sweet, his volume is good, and yet he can be quite forbidding.

* Tattling * 
There were more young people than usual at San Diego Opera for Peter Grimes. The audience spoke aloud during the music, though more so in the beginning than at the end. There was significant attrition in attendance, a couple next to us left at the first intermission, as did 6 people in front of us.

Don Quichotte at San Diego Opera

* Notes * 
Massenet's Don Quichotte opened at San Diego Opera on Valentine's Day, after a nearly 40-year absence from that opera's stage. Ralph Funicello's scenic design for this production is much in keeping with a very traditional aesthetic and Missy West's costumes invoked the ineluctable Gustav Doré illustrations of Don Quixote, though the influence of Velasquez and Murillo was also evident. Each scene began with a relevant quote from Cervantes translated into English and projected on the scrim. This was interesting in that the libretto of this opera is fairly different from the novel, for one thing, Dulcinea does not exactly exist in the latter, whereas she is quite present in the Massenet.

Denyce Graves is an arresting Dulcinée, though her voice is breathy and not smooth, she is incredible. She certainly does not sound like anyone else. Likewise, Ferruccio Furlanetto was fully engaging in the title role, completely embodying the long-faced knight. The duet in Act I between the two leads was quite effective, and Furlanetto was plaintive in Act III's "Seigneur, reçois mon âme, elle n'est pas méchante."

The rest of the singing was perhaps not as amazing, but perfectly fine. Eduardo Chama was charming as Sancho Pança, though his French diction was unclear and he did lack a certain resonance. Bryan Register started off sounding a bit distant as Juan, but did well. The French of the chorus members as bandits in Act III left something to be desired.

The choreography from Nicola Bowie was strong, the dancers were together and on beat. Only their hand movements were not completely exact. Karen Keltner kept the orchestra synchronized with each other, though not perfectly with the singers. There were moments that were somewhat sluggish, though the overture to the last act was exceedingly pretty.

* Tattling * 
Though there were no watch alarms or mobile phone rings, some audience members seemed to have difficulty being silent. The scene changes took some time to complete, and during the first one the ladies behind us in Row S of the orchestra commented that they should have played music. Naturally once they did play music for the second scene change, they expressed their approval aloud, but once the music stopped, everyone was perfectly quiet.

More alarmingly, the couple in Row Q Seats 7 and 9 not only spoke when Denyce Graves was singing and whenever else they felt like it, but also kissed rather loudly throughout the evening. They left before Act V.

Tosca at San Diego Opera

* Notes *
Last Saturday San Diego Opera opened with a revival of Tosca. The production is distinctly Jean-Pierre Ponnelle's, and he originally designed it for San Francisco Opera in 1972. Everything looked utterly traditional and as one would expect, as Suzanne Mess' costumes were in keeping with the sets.

The singing was strong. Sylvie Valayre was lovely as La Tosca, her voice as a surprising warmth to it. Her "Vissi d'arte" was fine, though strangely metallic near the end. Ms. Valayre's acting, though, left something to be desired, particularly when she overzealously stabbed Scarpia. Greer Grimsley certainly was able to project unctuousness as the villain. He sang the role of Scarpia with more verve than some of his Wagnerian roles and his volume was good. Marcus Haddock was most impressive vocally, his "Vittoria!" in Act II was riveting, as was his "E lucevan le stelle."

For the most part, the orchestra was unobtrusive under Edoardo Müller. The horns sounded ragged in the overture, and there were a few times when the orchestra and singers were slightly off in Act I.

* Tattling * 
Ian Campbell addressed the opening night crowd with mention of the economy, the reduced 2010 season, and a pledge of commitment to artistic excellence.

There were no electronic sounds from the audience, nary a watch alarm nor a mobile phone. However, there was quite a lot of talking at times, and applause for the third set.