Netrebko and Villazon - 'a chemistry lesson' at the Met

Metropolitan Opera 40 year anniversary Gala with Rolando Villazón and Anna Netrebko.

7pm Tuesday 3rd April 2007.

La Boheme Act I

Manon (Massenet) Act III Scene 2

L’Elisir d’Amore Act II, Scenes 1&2

(one interval, between Manon and Elisir)

Ms Netrebko has an enormous and accurate if somewhat innominate voice while Mr Villazón has a distinctly smaller, immediately recognisable, rich, smooth voice with a tight, natural vibrato. However, it would be wrong to suppose that he was out of place in the Met since his voice is more substantial than many Met regulars and is also well focused and projected. There was little doubt, however, that on occasions he was ‘pushing’ which could not be said of Ms Netrebko whose voice sailed out effortlessly to fill this huge house. They interacted to perfection.

Act I of Boheme was as Latin and Bohemian as it could be. Initially an all-boy show, the final three ‘set pieces’ sung by our stars, ‘Che gelida’, ‘Mi chiamano’ and ‘O soave fanciulla’ were incomparable dramatically and vocally. The high passage near the end of his aria left some notes lacking colour and slightly pushed. Some who were listening to the radio broadcast heard these as ‘cracked’ notes which was certainly not the case in the theatre. Despite some diminished beauty, equilibrium was restored for the end of this famous aria and the rest of the night was unblemished.

Partly true to the Boheme libretto, the next scene was also in Paris as we found ourselves transported to the vestry of L’Eglise de St Suplice (rather than Café Momus). Here, a chorus of doting female parishioners praises the new trainee priest, Des Grieux the younger, who told his father that he had renounced the world since his life has been so cruel and unrewarding. As Des Grieux senior, Samuel Ramey had a pronounced vocal wobble of about 2Hz. And in this brief scene he had no full aria to show off his incomparable bass baritone powers and it was a surprise to see him in this walk-on role.

Next, following his soulful solo ‘Ah fuyez, douce image’ Manon arrives unexpectedly and seduces him using a motif first heard in Act I (‘N’est-ce pas la main’).

Like the present Met Julius Caesar, The Elixir of Love is a splendid production from the genius of John Copley. It incorporates the fun and beauty of the piece as well as the charm and innocence of an idyllic Italian village in the 1800’s. And the young lovers gave us another surfeit of mature vocalism and dramatic innocence. Amongst my earliest operatic memories were my father playing Caruso 78’s, including the duetto ‘Venti sciudi’ and solo ‘Una furtiva lagrima’. The latter was taken particularly slowly by Mr Villazón – yet NOT encored as it was in Vienna – to great effect and deserved acclaim. However, he ends with slightly different words: “Si puo morir (pauss) .. morir d’amor … d’amor”. Caruso and Pavarotti sang ‘Si puo morir, si puo morir … d’amor’.

Although enthralled by his recordings for some years, this was my first live Villazón. I may have been happier if it had been in a smaller theatre. The vocal colouring which figures so prominently in his recordings was only evident occasionally during the Gala and mainly when the orchestra was thin. Mr Villazón can bring a slow diminuendo into a full open note it again to full voice. Also, his breath control is such that he takes whole legato brackets where other top singers break. And there always appears to be reserve for more. His stage presence is natural, both comic and serious. Most effective were his interactions with Belcore, his military rival. The emotion conveyed in his voice is impossible to describe in simpler terms. Suffice it to say that his single word in Don Carlo “rubato” (robbed) is as expressive as 1000 pictures of ‘love lost’.

Ms Netrebko took some coloratura options, each of which came off. There appeared to be some extra soprano music in the Elisir but maybe I am dreaming that. While her high C was fully audible in the joyous finale, Villazon was not. He wisely (and correctly) did not take the high C ‘option’ at the end of the Boheme duet.

Another star of this Gala evening was Polish baritone Mariusz Kwiecien who we also saw in Don Pasquale last year. He performed Marcello and Belcore with flare and style. I hope we hear more of him.

Old timer Paul Plishka was an irritating if appropriate landlord, Benoit, in the Boheme. Other soloists were just fine and Bertrand de Billy presided over the wonderful Met orchestra whose members must know these pieces by heart.

The audience was almost as interesting as the performance. Renata Scotto, Barbara Cook and Beverly Sills were all in the audience. I was also told that Mignon Dunn and Lucine Amara were also in the house. Martin Bernheimer, the sometimes caustic critic, was at the ready. The rich and prosperous/idle were there, recognisable in expensive furs and pearls which would not be on show in a ‘normal’ town. The needy and the operatic greedy were also present. There were a few orchestra stalls seats left on the evening at $250 while some premium tickets had been sold for $750, over $1000 including dinner with the stars in the foyer which was all set up beautifully by the caterers, but impeding patrons’ exeunt … and probably contrary to city fire laws.

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

New York La Traviata - Zeffirelli at his best with great singing as well

La Traviata – the Metropolitan Opera, New York.

Sat 31st March 2007 8pm

Role	Artist
Violetta	Krassimira Stoyanova
Alfredo	Jonas Kaufmann
Germont	Dwayne Croft
Cond.	Marco Armiliato
Production & set designs:	Franco Zeffirelli

Dear Colleagues,

This was a superb Traviata performance in an inspired production with world class principals, orchestra and chorus.

Both soprano Stoyanova and tenor Kaufmann started out somewhat weakly but each quickly rose to the substantial occasion.

I was surprised to note that the free Met program now gives over 4 pages to advertising an addictive sleep medication including a free 7 day trial offer. And this is in the country which, like Saudi Arabia, banned alcohol! Some strange harmony of contrasts!

Back to our night’s opera which has spectacularly beautiful sets designed by Franco Zeffirelli who also did the production. He must have been given an unlimited budget, just as the composer was for his later operas. I recall once seeing this production when the overture saw Violetta in her upstairs bedroom preparing for the Act I party scene. As she descended the curved staircase to the parlor, the entire set rose to show the party scene in full swing. The stage is a sumptuous set of three rooms across with a dance floor also visible through glass doors up-stage. We have chairs, cushions, couches, mantelpiece, trays, glasses and all the other attributes of a good party. In this production we only saw use of the Met stage elevator for the last act which commenced in the upstairs boudoir and moved to the eviscerated parlor for the return of the Germonts. It was impressive mechanically and visually but hardly credible in one too weak to get dressed that she could descend a spiral staircase and cross two rooms unaided (but this is the theater!).

Mention should be made of the other two substantial sets. The second act ‘country’ scene takes place in a huge glass conservatory or ‘orangerie’ looking out onto a lake surrounded by mountains. It looked more like Milford Sound than the Loire valley. A charming setting for the wrenching music of act II.

Mr Zeffirelli pulls out all the stops for the casino scene, a tiered festive chamber with curved steps convex and concave surmounted by deep red translucent curtains adorned with jewels. Props include papier-mâché heads on sticks from the theatre of the absurd, mock matadors, mock bulls and mock gypsies (and real castañets). And all making a wonderful foil for the tense scene between the parted lovers.

Bulgarian Ms Stoyanova has a voice which is large and accurate. If ‘white’ in quality, she shades it delicately from finest pianissimo to a broad bellow. She has a serviceable trill and staccato facility. She left out the (unwritten) E flat in ‘Sempre libera’ yet seemed secure on all her other high tessitura. Munich born Mr Kaufmann has a splendid and rare tenor voice, worthy of the part and of the theatre. Once again, capable of taking a loud note back to the softest audible and returning to full voice, all without appearing to show off beyond the requirements of the score. Their ‘Parigi O cara’ duet was taken particularly slowly by Maestro Amiliato to excellent effect. Kaufman looked somewhat awkward in Act I, perhaps just ‘in character’. Unlike most off-Broadway tenors, he is young, tall, slim and handsome.

Baritone Dwayne Croft acts well and he possesses a sublime, warm voice. However, he fell just short on his highest notes which seemed a little uncomfortable. I don’t know why the Met always leaves out Germont senior’s animated cabaletta after his ‘Di Provenza il mar il suol’. This leaves us with a precipitous and unnatural termination of the action as the spotlight suddenly moves to the Paris casino invitation from Flora while the curtain is falling.

An excellent performance, being the final after a long Met season – and three different Violettas.

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

GREAT Pirates! Shame about Flavio and Donna del Lago, also at NYCO

New York City Opera

Final season performance Thursday 29th March 2007

Role	Artist
Samuel	Scott Guinn
Pirate King	Marc Kudisch
Frederick	Matt Morgan
Ruth	Myrna Paris
Mabel	Sarah Jane McMahon
Major General	Mark Jacoby
Sergeant	Kevin Burdette
Cond.	Gerald Steichen
Director	Lillian Groag

Dear Colleagues,

The last performance of this G&S was most enjoyable with a polished and hilarious routine with purpose and vigour. Americans take their G&S very seriously. There were many in pirate shirts, pirate hats, scarves and eye patches. There was even a private reception for fans in the foyer - which I accidentally ‘crashed’. And they had a piano.

It must have been a challenge, especially following the successful modern Broadway version, to do something ‘different’ to this Victorian chestnut. The NYCO decided to go back to the original era – and avoid most modern stage effects in favour of cardboard cut-out illusions, flags, ribbons, ropes, backdrops and simple props, all of which might have dated from the 19th century theatre. According to the program, Maestri Gilbert and Sullivan had travelled to New York to mount a revival of Pinafore in late 1879 while also working on the score for Pirates which was still under wraps for a premiere on Broadway on New Year’s eve.

The overture started with four young ladies watching a stage within a stage of clever imagery displaying nautical themes, Victorian personalities, etc. They were joined by a lone pirate who slid down a rope from the flies. Their responses and the stage antics were hilarious, bringing out the staff to have him ejected for unruly behaviour. We were treated to a sinking galleon, SS Titanic, Wagner, Verdi and even Queen Victoria herself who later poured tea for the maidens in Act II.

The orchestra played superbly with some deviations from the original score on three occasions: Ms McMahon’s coloratura “Poor wandering one” used the cadenza from Lucia’s mad scene, flute included. The Aida trumpet obligato sounded briefly after some Egyptian stage items from that opera were carried across the stage at the start of Act II when Major General Stanley had retired to his draughty dressing room. Next arrived our male chorus on board ship to the strains of Flying Dutchman. These all caused great mirth amongst the regular opera goers but must have flummoxed the rest. The choreography was animated and complex, including three cartwheels done by Mabel in place of a walk off exit!

The Cornish beach front was transferred to Brighton, complete with pier and portable bathing change rooms. The “Modern Major General” song was encored with double time for verse 3 which is normally done lento.

The singing was from good to excellent with a large chorus of both sexes filling the hall which is more than could be said for any of the principal singers, even with microphones. The amplification was still subtle but insufficient for that chasm of a theatre. Somebody dropped their body microphone at one point causing an embarrassing clunking/scraping which took a minute to remedy.

All in all a highly enjoyable evening at the theatre despite these small setbacks.

I wish I could say the same of Flavio and Donna del Lago, both of which I found uneven and boring. It is hard to believe that the same composer wrote Julius Caesar with so much when Flavio has so little. I don’t enjoy counter-tenors in major roles. They are unnatural, strained and nearly always of much less volume than ‘normal’ voices, male and female. From the many descriptions and one recording, they certainly bear little relation to what castrati must have sounded like. It remains to be seen what happens to their vocal mechanism after decades of singing in this manner. My guess is that such singing is not consistent with a long vocal life for most. David Daniels’ smooth and beautiful singing is an exception but even he sounds small and boyish next to Ruth Anne Swenson in full flight.

Despite its lovely score, only one singer did justice to Donna del Lago. Laura Vlasak Nolen as Malcolm was capable of projecting the Rossini bel canto into this vocally unfriendly ‘barn’. In act I she sings ‘Mura Felici’; ‘Elena! Oh Tu, Che Chiamo!’ ‘Oh Quante Lagrime’ as a magnificent scena equal to any in opera. The production started with a snow storm and went downhill from there. The stage was not even swept during the intermission (and the ‘snow’ did not melt). Chairs were moved senselessly and the inside/outside scenes were blurred, rather odd for winter in Scotland. Three out of ten. And not a patch on the Blue Hill Troupe’s production of Yeoman of the Guard which I would have given six!

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

Unique Rusalka at the Sydney Opera House

Rusalka – Wed 21st March 2007, Sydney Opera House.

Wood-sprites – Taryn Fiebig, Domenica Matthews, Sarah Crane
Water Gnome – Bruce Martin
Rusalka (water nymph) – Cheryl Barker
Jezibaba (witch) – Anne-Marie Owens
Prince – Rosario La Spina
Kitchen boy – Sian Pendry
Gamekeeper – Barry Ryan
Foreign Princess – Elizabeth Whitehouse

cond. Richard Hickox
prod. Opera North – Olivier Fuchs
design. Niki Turner

Dear Colleagues,

A packed house was treated to a glorious, long night of beautiful, intelligent and stimulating opera. The season has had its problems with autumn viruses … and to top it off, Ms Whitehouse broke her arm and missed a performance – she was in a sling this time, largely undetectable under her magnificent spreading bright red taffeta gown

Nearly everything in the production came from the text. On literally dozens of occasions there was direct connect between what was happening on stage and the words of the libretto. “Rising mists”; “Goblin’s tangled hair”; “Bubbles rising in the water”; “feet learn to walk”. Incredibly, even when the mute Rusalka mimed, her actions and reactions seemed to come directly from Dvorak’s lush score.

The only disconnect was that the entire production was set within a huge ice block – and there is mention in the score of cool, even ‘icy’ ponds and forests inhabited by the sprites, goblins and nymphs. In fact we were presented with a series of out-sized utilitarian ice cubes, strategically positioned or suspended in relation to the all important small seal hole in the pack ice. Notably, Rusalka performed most of Act I while writhing, mermaid like, atop her 2 metre cube. Her ‘song to the moon’, with its instantly recognizable intervals, was a feast for the ears. At the same time, Miss Barker looked like a latter-day Marilyn Monroe (still without legs or feet at this point). Dvorak left no room for applause as the orchestral line is through written. This also suited the evening’s recording by a private record company. I wondered if there is really still a place for commercial recordings of this nature when the market is flooded with cheap videos and DVD’s showing the ‘whole picture’, some of which seem to be released within days of the event (such as the Olympic Opening Ceremony). It is a shame our operas are no longer televised.

Bruce Martin sat suspended above the ice-hole while the three water nymphs start the action with their rhythmic trio. Their Norn-like commentaries were clever while their movements were engaging and sexy.

I recall the gasping disappointment at the Met when the subtitles first revealed that Renee Fleming would be mute for the remainder of the opera. This left two love duets (on either side of the first intermission) which only contain one voice: the tenor … and each was brilliantly performed by Rosario La Spina who goes on from strength to strength. This time singing in Czech, he looked and sounded a fine eastern Prince. His tessitura, phrasing and high register were all impeccable. This was a rare treat and far superior to Oleg Kulko who sang this part at the Metropolitan in 2004.

Ms Whitehouse used her substantial voice and dramatic presence to divert the Prince’s attentions from poor mute Rusalka whose voice returned at the end of Act 2 when commiserating with her ‘father’, bass Bruce Martin. This part was played by Willard White in New York in two most memorable performances mid-season a couple of years ago (cum Fleming, Urbanova, Zajick).

The transformation scene was performed in hilarious style as our high-heeled sorceress became a part-time session surgeon, complete with rubber gloves, stainless bowl, scalpel and anaesthetic machinery.

Rather than a palace, we were brought into regal company with two intersecting red carpets and a parade of courtiers making no doubt about the setting, imposed on the existing frosty set . Rather than the woods, a few props and a plucked duck clearly indicated where we were. The designer and director deserve full credit for making an almost unbelievable concept “work”.

With excellent contributions from orchestra and chorus this was a special night at the opera indeed. I heard opening night as well – with so few performances, most will have to wait for a return season. Only two performances remain, Monday and Wednesday, this week marking the end of the ‘summer’ season.

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

Alcina at the Sydney Opera House. Flawed fantasy and (seemingly) forever

Sydney Opera House

Friday 23rd February 2007, 7pm

Role	Artist
Alcina	Rachelle Durkin
Ruggier	Sarah Castle
Bradamante	Sally-Anne Russell
Morgana	Natalie Jones
Oronte	Henry Choo
Oberto	Hye Seoung Kwon
Melisso	Richard Alexander
Conductor	Richard Hickox
Director	Justin Way
Designers	Andrew Hays, Kimm Kovac

Dear Colleagues,

This performance was marred by the management breaking some cardinal rules of the theatre. The first rule is to get bums on seats which was successful. However, many of those bums, including mine, were no longer there by the third act which has some of the most enchanting moments in this long work. One reason was the overall length. Apologies therefore, as these disappointments played on my tolerance to stay for the third and final act.

The last time that Alcina was performed here it opened amazingly with not one or two, but half a dozen or more of the greatest talents the country has ever produced (Helpmann, Sutherland, Elkins, Elms, Bonynge, McGregor, Wegner, Pascoe, Neidhardt, etc). The production was lavish and over-the-top, just like this new clever presentation by Justin Way and his team. Yet the company ignored lessons from last time.

From my point of view, the opera was a dismal failure, partly due to the unwillingness of Maestro Hickox to compromise on his obsession with perceived completeness. Alcina is not biblical, nor is it Wagner. Bonynge is a man of the theatre, just like Handel before him. He had no problem cutting ruthlessly to make the evening better for audience and performers alike. It was still a long night and I have the fondest memories of the performances which should have been telecast (there may be an extant recording somewhere).

Apart from Helpmann's glorious production, my main undying memory of Alcina was the show-stopping aria 'Tornami a vaghegiar' with Joan Sutherland. Correctly known as Morgana's aria, it was purloined by her sister, Queen Alcina, showing just why Sutherland was dubbed La Stupenda by her Italian fans. I understand that even in Handel's day such aria swapping was not unknown. To hear this sung by Natalie Jones and not Rachelle Durkin was one of the most disappointing moments in my opera going career which started around 1960 at Rockdale Town Hall. Not that I have any problem with Natalie Jones who I have praised in the past. She sang well. But this is like a mad scene or Queen of Night aria and no sensible impresario would ask the second coloratura soprano to do either of these. Ms Durkin would have been more appropriate for the fiendishly difficult tessitura and dramatic needs of this long piece. Instead we were spoon fed a museum piece.

The production is one of the most elaborate I have seen. It involved a fantasy baroque gilded patina proscenium containing many inlaid figures and motifs almost as varied as Titus's column in Rome. From removable scenery apertures chorus faces and limbs appeared at certain times, some singing, some carrying swinging lights. On the right, a large pond cleverly ran to an imaginary stream which, at the footlights, dipped and dripped into an imaginary earth fissure illuminated all evening evoking a moist subterranean underworld.

Close inspection revealed that huge angled mirrors formed the stage depth. These reflected events on a lowered rear stage populated by dancers in various states of apparently weightless acrobatics. Unfortunately this could only be seen by those in premium view seats. With so many refugees at each intermission, however, others may have seen the marvellous illusion if they upgraded. This was yet another unforgivable part of the evening since even some people in A reserve seats (and most in B and D reserves) would have missed out on the tunnel like kaleidoscopic vista.

The orchestra was reduced and raised with theorbo, harpsichord and 'cello continuo producing an excellent accompaniment to the opera. At one stage a violin solo/obbligato was performed on stage by Huy-Nguyen Bui. While a pleasant diversion, it did not have the same impact as in Julius Caesar.

The quality of the singing went from adequate to exciting and the company should be commended on being able to perform this complex and long work. Yet the final product is a defective and diminutive shadow of its former incarnation on this stage in 1983 and 1987. Perhaps that is just the way the world is. It is only sad that some of the major deficiencies would be simply resolved in my view using red ink which would cost nothing at all (and might even save in orchestra over-time).

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

La Traviata season heavily booked but free open air 'broadcast' still available

La Traviata, Sydney Opera House

Wed 14th February 2007

Role	Artist
Violetta Valéry	Kate Ladner
Alfredo Germont	Aldo De Toro
Giorgio Germont	Warwick Fyfe
Marquis	Barry Ryan
Baron Douphol	Shane Lawrencev
Flora	Domenica Matthews
Gastone	Graeme MacFarlane
Doctor Grenvil	Richard Anderson
Conductor	Tom Woods
Director	Elijah Moshinsky
Designer	Michael Yeargan

Dear Colleagues,

Walking along the waterfront towards the Sydney Opera House is a magnificent experience on a clear late summer’s evening. This week we will be able to see BOTH the QE II and the Queen Mary II ocean liners, one on each side of this city peninsular which used to contain a tram depot. Most of the world’s opera houses were built within their cities. Some are almost underground or in large ‘bunker’ buildings. Sydney’s is not the largest, nor the most modern, not the most steeped in history (although 50 years is older than many opera companies these days). It is certainly one of the most interesting externally.

With Elvira Fatykhova and Rosario La Spina, the ‘first cast’ of La Traviata in January impressed Sydney’s demanding audience … yet this ‘second cast’ was in no way ‘second rate’. I was told that the season is virtually sold out - and there was not an empty seat to be seen on Wednesday night.

Kate Ladner makes a splendid Violetta … while Aldo De Toro was more than adequate as her Alfredo. He has a singular and in some ways old fashioned way of singing, using his modest sized voice to benefit. His note placement and movements from one note to another often seem to be by way of several others in a manner which was quite pleasing and having the effect of unwritten ornamentation. It seemed like a cross between a glissando and vibrato but always finally landing on the note accurately. The timbre is smooth and rounded with a ‘Romanate’ quality, consistent with his Latin sounding name. Mr De Toro took the optional high C in the act 2 cabaletta with good effect. There is a slight ‘gear change’ which would only irritate the perfectionist I suspect.

Kate Ladner has a large voice with an exciting ring (or some say ‘ping’). There is no denying that the crowds LOVE a big voice, especially when it is beautiful and used with emotion. She can also trill, roll her ‘Rs’ and manage a high E flat (even if it is of a slightly different quality). I found her acting to be convincing and the audience response was enormous. A small crowd gave her a standing ovation which is most unusual in Sydney.

As Germont senior, Warwick Fyfe is half way to being a great singer. For unknown reasons he is unable or unwilling to modulate his large and accurate voice … even when it is really necessary, such as on ‘Piangi … piangi … ’ in Act II. It was shouted. We should hope for better things in the future if Fyfe can work on the voice.

The smaller roles were sung most competently by Domenica Matthews, Barry Ryan, Graeme MacFarlane, Richard Anderson and Shane Lawrencev.

Maestro Woods seems to have kept on M. Reggioli’s uniquely slow tempi, used to great effect with the Opera and Ballet orchestra in find form. He also managed some nicely contrasting fast sections … without going to extremes.

I noted a lot of American accents in the foyers and was told by a visiting couple from California that United Air had offered recent cheap fares to Australia as well as free tickets on points. A long way to go to the opera, perhaps!

Booking site for open air performance on Saturday 10th March 7.30pm.

http://www.sydneyoperahouse.com/sections/whats_on/boxoffice/event_details.asp?EventID=2196

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

Sydney La Traviata (are they in competition with the Met?!)

Sydney Opera House

Wednesday 10th January 2007

Role	Artist
Violetta Valery	Elvira Fatykhova
Alfredo Germont	Rosario La Spina
Giorgio Germont	Warwick Fyfe
Baron Douphol	Shane Lawrencev
Flora	Domenica Matthews
Cond	Giovanni Reggioli
Director	Elijah Moshinsky
Designer	Michael Yeargan

Dear Colleagues,

Just as the Met had a La Traviata revival in January, so too did Sydney. And the Sydney Moshinsky/Yeargan production proved an enjoyable outing indeed with several high points.

I thought the orchestral parts were as sensitively played as I have ever heard them whether live or on record. The prelude and third act introduction music were both taken rather more slowly than is traditional - to great benefit musically.

Miss Valery was played to perfection by Elvira Fatykhova. She imparted joy, vulnerability, anger and inanition very well. Looking beautiful in the first two acts, she was suitably morbid by the end. Her voice is large and well focussed yet she is able to use pianissimo to tasteful advantage. Her full-flight ‘Sempre libera’ included a full bodied exciting and sustained penultimate E flat.

Tenor Rosario La Spina started out weakly, I thought, seeming tentative and insecure. By the second act he had come into his own rather well, choosing not only to sing the cabaletta ‘O mio rimoso’, but ending on a stunning high C. I was told that he was thrown by a nasty case of sunstroke, a victim of Sydney's stop-start summer, perhaps. The duets were expressive and credible in my view. Also due to sing Calaf in the Parks Concert in the Domain this month, Mr La Spina is one busy singer. The opera company would be lost indeed without his unique tenor voice. One hopes he is practising his French with upcoming Hoffmann in the winter season.

Our papa Germont was Warwick Fyfe who has a very loud voice. He was a little stiff and failed to impart the warmth we normally expect. Yet the senior Germont character, like that of his son, is far from impeccable. His demands on the behaviour of others are rather high and he could be painted as something of a villain, intent on destroying others’ lives for his own vanity and family pride. So we had a 'Di Provenza' which 'worked' but was not warm and full, but rather dry and superficial, something like good quality advertising, and consistent with the rest of his unusual characterisation (the Germont you love to hate).

Flora, Baron, soloists, guests and orchestra were all just fine to my eye and ear.

The season to date has been packed out and opening night had summer VIPs en masse but without a guest of honour, unless Malcolm Turnbull, Bronwyn Bishop or the annual visitor Geoffery Robinson QC might step into such august shoes in the absence of Vice Royalty.

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

Marriage of Figaro at the Sydney Opera House - fine opening to summer season

Sydney Opera House

Tuesday 2nd January 2007

Role	Artist
Figaro	Joshua Bloom
Suzanna	Tiffany Speight
Dr Bartolo	Jud Arthur
Marcellina	Adele Johnston
Cherubino	Sally-Anne Russell
Count Almaviva	José Carbó
Don Basilio	Graeme Macfarlane
Countess Almaviva	Leanne Kenneally
c.	Alexander Briger
p.	Neil Armfield.

Dear Colleagues,

Having been strongly critical of the national company recently (and there have been some awful gaffs), I also should give credit where it is due. So ten points out of ten for the premiere of Nozze di Figaro in Armfield and Ferguson's 'vinegar and brown paper' revival.

I was told that conductor Alexander Briger is a nephew of Sir Charles Mackerras. He clearly has an excellent 'handle' on Mozart yet he is apparently prepared to countenance some liberties both in tempi and vocal ornamentation. We heard Sally-Anne Russell as Cherubino singing ‘Voi che sapete’, one of the most perfectly constructed arias in the canon. But it was gilded with ever-increasing ornamentation, including grace notes, triplets, runs and possibly acciaccaturas, each to no apparent purpose, and losing some of the grand simplicity and symmetry of the work. For the countess, ‘Porgi amor’ was sung ‘come scritto’ but its parallel number, ‘Dove sono’ was ornamented slightly, once again, one wonders to what effect. Did somebody think they would improve the original Mozart? Some of my knowledgeable correspondants are persuaded that Mozart actually approved these versions, but I am still not used to them.

Yet these are small criticisms of an otherwise marvellous operatic night at the theatre. Figaro, after all, is a moral comedy about sex, fidelity, identity, humiliation and comeuppance. Its first lines are about the placement of a wedding bed, a gift from a rival who lives in the next room! Taken too seriously, this opera's drama, like Magic Flute, can drag on interminably, despite the wonderful music, starting out with one of the best-ever overtures.

José Carbó sang Count Almaviva with great flare. He was bare chested in act I and suitably regal in military black velvet for his formal scenes. He may have also taken some liberties with his third act aria. Joshua Bloom again showed himself to have what it takes both vocally and dramatically with a totally convincing Figaro. Like Cherubino in act I, he was required to simulate sex on stage, lowering his baroque pantaloons more than once in the last act (at least he was married by then!). His dramatic and comic sense were a perfect foil for his substantial and pleasant baritone voice.

Leanne Kenneally played an elegant and conservative Countess (Rosina). Her 2 big arias were creditable - as was her stage sense and recitatives - she is a great asset to the company.

Tiffany Speight, a one-time Cherubino, sang and acted an excellent Suzanna on this outing. Her last act ‘Deh vieni, non tadar’ was admirable. Sally-Anne Russell was fine on this occasion in the gender-bender role of Cherubino. She was especially good in the difficult ‘Non so piu’ aria. The other supporting principals were also finely cast and performed well, as did the chorus and orchestra. For once, the voices, stage, orchestra pit and auditorium all seemed appropriate in size.

Being in two halves, the evening was robbed of an interval, saving some funds for both orchestra and perhaps some contract baby-sitters at home. I think Nozze should have two intermissions but I may be in the minority. I would also not be averse to more cuts in the longer scenes.

Hats off to the company for a great start to another year of grand opera in Sydney and Melbourne.

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

Oops, Gilda's D flat ... and, amateurs in major roles in Sydney Rigoletto!

Sydney Opera House

Friday 1st September 2006

Dear Colleagues,

The high note sung by Natalie Jones at the end of the quartet was an unwritten (at least in my Boosey & Hawkes score) D flat, not an E flat as I quoted in my earlier posting. So much for relying on memory. My apologies.

More important was that this was NOT the last Rigoletto. The company had replaced a previously scheduled Pirates of Penzance with David Hobson on Tuesday with a special performance of Rigoletto in which three principals would be replaced by 'talent-time' amateurs in the last act.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation has run a series of several Sunday night television programs documenting a national talent search beginning in 2005. Some candidates were labourers, tradesmen, teachers, mothers, etc. Few had had much if any formal vocal training. Based on a similar exercise in the UK, the winner was meant to get to sing one role with the company. However, for reasons of 'fairness', they decided to allow the best three to each take part in part or all of the opera.

I was not at the performance, but several others I have spoken to said that it had much to commend it. Those in the know said that the winner, a young bass David Parkin who sang Sparafucile, should have a career in opera if he chooses to take that giant leap. I heard him on the television last weekend and he sounded and acted in a way to be noticed. He is an IT man with a legal firm. Good luck! Or as they say in the trade, 'break a leg!'

Regards, Andrew Byrne ..

Joan Sutherland's 80th birthday and Australian opera company turns 50

Opera Australia 50th birthday concert. Sydney Opera House

Wed 11th October 2006

Dear Colleagues,

This concert was heavily billed and at $400 for the best seats, an impressive cast and the presence of Joan Sutherland, to there were high expectations. But amongst some high quality opera singing there were also disappointments. In some respects, the opera company seems to lack a clear direction, both artistically and regarding human resources. On the night, several simple flaws could have been easily remedied yet other more fundamental defects may require major remedial work. Why, for instance, did Peter Coleman-Wright, an excellent baritone, sing an aria often sung by basses? He was not able to shine on the lowest notes, losing the essence of the raw emotion Beethoven’s score demands in Fidelio.

Equally, why was superlative Wagnerian tenor Glenn Winslade asked to sing a coloratura aria from Idomeneo? After a sub-optimal performance in Clemenza di Tito recently, he seemed out of his fach again. One wonders if there is anyone in the company who actually reads the many professional reviews that are written, letters sent and comments made? One did not need any training to hear the vocal difficulties.

We were told that the company was founded on Mozart who has been a mainstay since the original 4 Köchel operas in 1956. The operas of Donizetti and Bellini catapulted our guest of honour to stardom and yet neither of these ‘greats’ was sung all evening.

The two most popular requests from Australian audiences, we are told, are Pearlfishers and David Hobson. Again, neither was to be heard, despite the latter singing G&S with the company currently. Hobson had excellent notices as Candide in Perth recently as well as high-rating national TV appearances. No sensible opera management could afford to ignore such a popular artist in his prime, just as with latter-day icons Donald Smith, Joan Carden and Joan Sutherland who filled theatres for decades.

While Britten is not my personal favourite, the two excerpts “Old Joe has gone fishin’” and the finale from Midsummer Night’s Dream were certainly well received by those who like that sort of thing. The double Shakespearian end to the night was apposite, Puck and Falstaff.

We heard Elizabeth Connell in the Liebestod, Lisa Gasteen in ‘Dich, teure Halle’ from Tannäuser, John Wegner in ‘Scintille diamant’ from Hoffmann, Emma Matthews in Olympia’s song, Yvonne Kenny in Vilja, Michael Lewis in a declamation from Australian opera Madeline Lee. All were creditable, while Matthews and Wegner gave sensational performances. ‘Va pensiero’ was well rendered by an experienced, talented and very hard-working chorus.

Two other excepts from the popular repertory kept the crowds happy, both featuring the company’s latest ‘hot property’, tenor Rosario La Spina. From Act IV of Rigoletto we heard a gushing ‘La Donna è mobile’ followed by the quartet. Act II finale of La Bohème was also splendid, even if the tenor only has a few big notes at the end after Musetta has taken stage. I find it odd that Pamela Helen Stephen (Mrs Hickox) would be partaking in the Opera Australia birthday function when, until this week, as an excellent Sesto in Julius Caesar, she had never sung with the company. ‘Vissi d’arte’ with Cheryl Barker was dropped without any mention of why.

We had been promised a “surprise” which came after the Falstaff ‘Tutto nel mondo’ in the form of a blackout, followed by a hugely amplified (and rather distorted) second verse of “Ah non giunge” from La Sonnambula sung by a very young Joan Sutherland. This was followed by strains of the entire night’s company singing ‘happy birthday’ to ticker-tape. Joan Sutherland turns 80 next month. She looked radiant and appreciative when the doting audience gave her a standing ovation.

As an encore we were presented with the finale from Midsummer Night’s Dream with counter-tenor Graham Pushee and children’s chorus, concluded by compare Anthony Warlow.

While it is novel to hear the full Opera and Ballet Orchestra on the stage rather then in the pit, it is a shame that Mr Hickox did not tone down the volume for the sake of the singers, some of whom had to struggle to be heard, and in some cases producing a forced sound as in the Rosenkavalier trio. The War and Peace overture seemed lacklustre and was an odd choice to get people into the mood for a Joan Sutherland birthday gala. Yet the Prokofiev opened the opera house in 1972 (and has never been heard of again). Meistersinger overture in the second half also seemed to lack something - perhaps they should have included the opening chorus ‘come scritto’.

If the concert was to be user-friendly and get new people (and keep old hands) interested in the genre, it is essential that patrons can follow the words and drama, which, after all, is the essence of opera. On the night, there were no subtitles, no libretto, no auditorium lighting and in some cases poor enunciation which all conspired to keep us in our respective ignorance. The company should have a birthday resolution that they never perform anything, anywhere unless every member of the audience has access to English titles. This is not rocket science. It was a mercy that the heavy, glossy program was included in the hefty prices of the tickets. A great shame, however, that it did not contain a libretto.

We are lucky to have an opera company in Australia. We are lucky that it puts on high quality opera much of the time. A sign of its maturity, size and scope is that on the very night of this concert, the company put on another concert in the adjoining hall as a tribute to volunteer workers in charitable organisations in the region. Well done to all participants - at least two performed in both concerts on the one night!

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

Top-rate Julius Caesar at Sydney Opera House

Julius Caesar. GF Handel. Sydney Opera House

Thursday 5th October

Role	Artist
Caesar	Tobias Cole (counter tenor)
Cleopatra	Emma Matthews (soprano)
Cornelia	Catherine Carby (mezzo soprano)
Sesto	Pamela Helen Stephen (mezzo soprano)
Achilla	Stephen Bennett (bass)
Ptolomeo	Christopher Field (counter tenor)
Nireno	Daniel Goodwin (counter tenor)
Conductor	Richard Hickox
Solo Violin	Huy-Nguyen Bui

Dear Colleagues,

One would have to travel a long way to find a performance of equal quality, originality and balance. We were privileged to hear Emma Matthews in one of her finest and most challenging roles as Caesar's Cleopatra. The production by Francisco Negrin and Anthony Baker has an eclectic, diverse and yet meaningful series of settings for the alternating love and hate themes of the opera. We start with a decapitated head (Pompey) and 3½ hours later we have witnessed grand seduction, attempted rape, foul murder, conspiracy, treason, slander, assault, breach of promise, exposure, near-nudity and near-drowning, making a veritable text book of the criminal law.

Extraordinary arias of ever increasing difficulty came from the last female pharaoh, starting with 'Non disperar'. "V'adoro, pupille .. " must be one of the best known Handelian moments after the so-called 'Largo') then to a phenomenal "Da tempesta .. " near the finale. Matthews' voice is crystal clear, accurate and pleasing to the ear. Her acting is confident and persuasive.

The production consisted of numerous settings, each framed with four walls of black and white traditional hieroglyph writing. There were shades of a King Tut exhibition and Mme Tussaud's wax museum with stuffed and gilded African animals, snakes, jewellery, gems and clothing housed in glass cases. One scene was bravely set in a steam room (akin to the NYCO Viaggio) while others took place in a tiled bathing pool room, palace halls and ?quay-side. The lighting was ingenious, particularly in the dining scene.

Tobias Cole has a pleasing, youthful counter-tenor voice. In the lower register he sounds distinctly tenor-like which I do not find off-putting at all. But I have always had a problem with the ruler of the known world singing alto. That is my problem, however, and Cole sings in key, sensitively and with a confidence which hardly seemed in doubt on opening night. Apart from his other set pieces, Cole also has a magnificent show-stopping tour-de-force in his 'duet' with the gypsy violin. Singing in counter tenor register, Mr Cole was able to give his violin partner a run for his money, although the strings always 'win', or at least retreat to allow an honorable dead heat.

Pamela Stephen was the surprise of the night. She played this pants role with charm, dignity and vocal fullness which would be hard to beat. Even more challenging, she was required to almost strip naked which she managed while remaining 'boyishly' in character. Few of the mezzos we know could have done this dual feat in my opinion. Australian audiences are accustomed to a diva's husband being on the podium.

It was a pleasure to hear Stephen Bennett again as hapless Egyptian General, especially amongst the sea of sopranos. I think it is high time we heard Caesar himself as a bass-baritone again to more fairly balance the voices in this Handel masterwork. As we lack castratos these days, we can never know exactly what the opera sounded like originally.

Catherine Carby sang well as Cornelia, but like much of the evening, some of her arias could well have been trimmed without loss to the drama. This production is a needlessly long night in the theatre for audience and performers alike (7pm to 11.20pm). In Handel's day few people probably sat through an entire opera uninterrupted. It was Wagner who brought some discipline to such matters. It is a credit to the Australian company that the third act had almost as many seats filled as the first. Some missed the early start, however.

The supporting cast and chorus were also of the highest standard, including the two other counter tenors, Christopher Field and Daniel Goodwin. One must forgive occasional blurts from the brass, especially when they are placed in the auditorium which now seems 'de rigueur'. That aside, the musicians were excellent, ably led by Richard Hickox along with harpsichord and theorbo in keeping with the period. I recall Jane Glover saying that to be successful in Handel, one had to know not only where the important melodic pauses were, but also the REASON why they were put there. It must help to be English.

There are five more performances during October and a better opera experience would be hard to find.

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

La Rondine in concert at the Sydney Opera House on the equinox

La Rondine - Giacomo Puccini.

Concert performance with Sydney Symphony Orchestra at the Sydney Opera House.

Saturday 23rd September (the equinox; day after Rosh Hashana and new moon; day before the start of Ramadan Holy Month).

Role	Artist
Magda	Alexia Voulgaridou
Ruggero	Massimo Giordano
Lisette	Laura Cherici
Prunier	Danilo Formaggia
Rambaldo	José Carbo
Rayonier	Didier Frederic
Sydney Philharmonia Choirs
Conductor	Gianluigi Gelmetti

Dear Colleagues,

This was a splendid performance all round of a neglected masterpiece. The opera (or operetta) needs two top operatic sopranos as well as two top tenors. Tosca could be done in two theatres with much the same vocal input. Most of the main principals in this case were from overseas which seems odd when we have such talent here in Australia awaiting the call from Mr Gelmetti. By contrast, the opera company, I understand, is only permitted to import about 6 singers each year! Here, we heard as many on the one night.

The piece opens brusquely with a full thrust orchestral passage before our characters start introducing themselves individually. There are several such contrasts during the piece going from 'conversation piece' for fortissimo ensemble within a phrase. This well illustrates the best things we are told about being in Paris (or any other vibrant city from Cairo to New York).

Both of our sopranos were top-class. It was a shock to find out early on that "Doretta's aria" is not an aria at all ... and further, that it is not sung by the soprano! At least not initially. We hear the familiar opening arpeggios on the piano as "Doretta's dream" is sung by the poet/gigolo, Prunier. It becomes a duet, or even a duel ... with Magda taking up the poet's offer to supply an appropriate ending to the unfinished 'dream of Doretta'. Everyone has woken up at the most interesting part of a dream. All very clever dramatically: and proof if any were needed of Puccini's paramount skills and of his librettist, Adami.

La Rondine (the swallow) has three acts of half an hour each. One and two were run together with the second taking place at Bullier's nightclub. Here we have drink, merriment, confusion, disguise, mistaken identity and a love scene with myriad opportunities for vocal extravagance.

Act III sees our love birds flown south to the Riviera yet a fatal flaw denies them true happiness, leaving a curtain conundrum. No corpses litter the stage, yet there is to be no happy ending either. Yet another stoke of genius in daring to be different. While in some ways unsatisfactory, this is probably more like real life than any fairy tale operetta. After scintillating romance, life goes on and people just move apart.

The principal singers were all excellent with Ms Voulgaridou giving a sensational performance (especially considering she did the same the night before). She has an icy edge to her voice which she uses to great advantage over a wide range. It is large and well projected with delicate shading. Mr Giordano seemed somewhat casual at times and it was hard to know if it was 'in character' or just 'him'. He sang with flare and taste but seemed a little under-powered compared his role in Mignon at Carnegie Hall last year. Maybe it was jet-lag, another reason to use locals if they are available.

José Carbo sang the relatively small role of Rambaldo, patron and partner of Magda. He sings a creditable Figaro but unfortunately had no real 'factotum' show-piece tonight. I hope he was paid his full fee nonetheless.

The supporting soloists were excellent: soubrettes Penelope Mills, Katherine Tier, Jessica Pratt along with Henry Choo, Didier Frederic and the Philharmonia (massed) Choir.

The orchestra was quite overpowering at times and it was Puccini rather than Gelmetti who resolved the imbalance by thinning the orchestration in the many 'intimate' moments. The sound of orchestra and chorus was most exciting with the excellent acoustic of the concert hall.

Meantime the opera company in the hall opposite on Benelong Point is continuing to produce high quality opera with a revival of Neil Armfield's Jenufa featuring Elizabeth Whitehouse, Jamie Allen, Cheryl Barker and Peter Wedd conducted by Richard Hickox. Jamie Allen has progressed to be able to sing and act flawlessly in diverse roles. I do not understand Janacek and found the raw emotion of the plot unmatched by the music which I just find uninspiring and flat. I know that this is my problem, not Janacek's. However, it must be profoundly disappointing for management to see an opening night so thinly sold.

We look forward to continuing performances of Rigoletto, Julius Caesar and Pirates of Penzance. Also, the company has a promising "50th Birthday Gala Concert" advertised for next month. Like marriages and mortgages, most opera collaborations last less than a decade - so this is an auspicious celebration indeed on the world stage of opera.

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

Class act: Rigoletto at Sydney Opera House

Sydney Opera House

Friday 1st September 2006

The traditional first day of spring in Australia (and 'Wattle Day' in New South Wales) saw a new and worthy outing of Moshinsky and Yeargan's brilliant production of Rigoletto.

I found it thoroughly enjoyable, proving that it is possible to have rape, kidnapping, murder and arbitrary combatant incarceration without having to warn the audience in advance. The Duke's palace is an arched, panelled Victorian hall updated in Pompeii red to the 1950s. Every bit of wall space is covered with greater or lesser master paintings, the sun admitted through a fenestrated sky-light. The opening party scene has an off-stage recorded orchestra which was somewhat off-putting.

The opera company appears to be expecting much from young tenor Rosario La Spina but he is steadily growing in vocal stature and delivered the goods (and more) as the Duke. There were some moments of magnificent aural 'ping' and fioritura filling the hall with glorious Italianate song. After a slightly hesitant start to 'Questo e quella' he seemed to relax and even show off a little, possibly holding some notes just a bit too long for good taste. He did the second act cabaletta, wisely not attempting the terminal high D. 'La donna e mobile' was also excellent. We sometimes forget that it is so famous partly because it is just so difficult.

Jonathan Summers can still pull it out of the bag. He avoids the highest baritone notes and sang the final 'Ah, la maledizione' on the one level. Yet his voice is velvety with exemplary enunciation and projection. His acting is also totally convincing, keeping in character right to the end of the curtain calls, as if he were truly a crippled hunchback with two sticks.

Natalie Jones was a delicate but exciting Gilda. The 'Caro nome' was studied and accurate, possibly closer to what Verdi would have known than the Callas, Sutherland, Peters and other more recent Gildas we may have become familiar with.

All the minor characters were strongly portrayed and well sung, especially: Catherine Carby as both Giovanna and Maddalena; Judd Arthur as Monterone; Arend Baumann as Sparfucile.

Conductor Andrea Licata seemed to be strict about tempi and kept things moving in this non-stop production.

I would recommend this show to anyone: whether novice or veteran opera goer, all should enjoy it.

Also not to be missed is the colourful Graham Murphy Turandot which I saw again on Saturday 2nd September with Jennifer Wilson, Nicole Youl and Dennis O'Neill (Warren Mok is Calaf for the last 3 performances). Get a ticket if you can: if 'sold out' just ask for the restricted view 'loge' seats ('points' if possible) which are almost NEVER fully sold – good sound and excellent value, too!

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

Batavia - an intense, unremitting and negative opera experience

Batavia, an opera tragedy by Richard Mills and Peter Goldsworthy.

Sat 19th Aug 2006, Sydney Opera House.

This macabre story reminds us of all the worst possible things that can go wrong when travelling: transport disasters are nothing new. The opera's opening sees 300 souls leave their native Holland on the good ship Batavia which is wrecked in a storm months later, well off course on an island just north of modern-day Perth, Western Australia. The ensuing drama is something between the Achille Lauro and 'Lost' except that it is based on the historical record from 1628. We set out in the hold of a ship (with 'ribs' reminiscent of the Nuremberg Ring of Stephen Lawless) replete with lined up travelling trunks. The first night on board hosts an unlikely nautical banquet - with stemmed crystal glasses (rather unlikely attributes of 17th century shipping) which become a "window onto the soul". In addition, there is no aural indication that we are on the high seas until we hear hugely amplified crashing waves towards the end of the act with the storm and shipwreck.

Without reading the program notes (which I rarely do) it is hard to work out why the captain keeps singing "I must not fail" when it is clear that he has already failed in his most fundamental duties of going in the right direction and of keeping his ship afloat. It is equally unclear why he is temporarily enfeebled, mind or body, when mutineers take over the survivors' camp. The unities are not observed, nor are the digressions always clear.

A Google search finds the repeated gilded initials 'OC' with interlocking V refer to the "Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie" retourschip (Dutch East India Company ship).

The libretto contains much pleasant poetry, yet this does not seem so much to advance the drama, but to reprise randomly retailed pieces of home-spun wisdom. Some is jagged English which is hard to sing such as a high terminal baritonal "bursts". The opera ends with a needless example of bland moralising, although it is a pleasing major key lullaby sung by Barry Ryan to his two sons who, like us, have witnessed the worst of times.

The story involves numerous bloody on-stage throat cuttings, two drownings, several child killings and a conspicuous down-stage pack rape. In addition there are personal threats, conspiracy, mutiny and numerous other crimes. A note had been sent to patrons warning of the spectacle and offering alternative operas, a service I should have taken up. The extreme 'in your face' violence was gratuitous and unjustified in my view.

One may try to glean what it is the essence of grand opera. Most fundamentally, it needs to contain beauty, vocal and visual. There need not be much, and it can be accompanied by a lot of contrasting ugliness and even depravity and death - yet it was hard to find any Batavian beauty on the night.

But there was some musical beauty in a string quartet perched in the audience 'loges' playing charming chamber music at intervals, apparently taking us back to Holland. For myself, it served largely as a reminder of Mr Mills' ample abilities in recognising tasteful, concordant, integrated concerted music, little of which emerged from the pit. I was told informed that the chamber suit was by Dowling and not Mills. The ego must have been large indeed which decided to place trumpets and trombones in various positions around the auditorium. At one point, they had to play whilst walking up the aisle, and to no particular purpose. Unlike most successful operas, not a single recognisable, discrete melody emerged during the entire long evening to my hearing.

The production involved a lot of hard work and contained some beautiful tableaux. The ship wreck ending Act I was splendid in the theatre, deck planks rising and falling with glistening shafts of light penetrating above and below the encroaching water. The opera's orchestrally silent start and finish seemed, like much of the work, to be attempts to be 'completely different' while only really providing a whole lot 'more of the same'. The influence of Britten could be heard throughout the piece, especially in the recitatives. They remind me of randomly generated cadences on variable note lengths, in this case lacking either poetic meter or alternatively, a speech pattern. Others may enjoy that sort of thing; not I.

As for the individual singers, our captain, Bruce Martin was majestic. Apart from a few minor throaty moments, he kept up the vocal and dramatic tension right to the final kangaroo 'court' scene in which some petitioned clemency eventually softened an otherwise harsh and unremitting story. Amelia Farrugia, Anke Hoppner and Michael Lewis were given vocal scores they should all have declined, so demanding were they in my view. Lewis' role may just have been professionally rewarding, unlike the women who I doubt took home more pleasure than pain from their roles. Lewis' demanding exit aria was sung as he went off to his sentence of amputated hands with subsequent hanging represented graphically in cyclorama silhouette, as if the audience needed a bit more violence. Barry Ryan had some touching tenor singing and was more than equal to the demands. The 4 children singers were placed at an unsatisfactory disadvantage in such a noisy, boisterous opera. This perhaps emphasised their vulnerability but was hardly grand opera as they frequently sounded feeble and flat.

It was most unfortunate that the company did the second performance on Monday, with only one day's break for these heroic vocal roles.

I have rarely had a less satisfying night in the theatre but from the applause, I may have been in the minority.

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..

See Batavia 1629: A seventeenth century shipwreck on http://www.museum.wa.gov.au/collections/maritime/march/shipwrecks/Batavia/batavia.html

New season brochure this week indicates new productions for Sydney Opera House of Streetcar, Rusalka, Barber of Seville, Hoffmann and restagings of Nozze di Figaro, Traviata, Sweeney Todd, Alcina, Trovatore, Seraglio, Trittico, Gondoliers, and Tannhauser. Price for standard 9-opera mid-week subscription in second reserve A$1179 (~US$99 per opera). Artists' names at random: Coleman-Wright, Barker, Tahu-Rhodes, Kenny, Coad, Carbo, Whitehouse, La Spina, Durkin, Connelli, Fatykhova, Bloom, O'Neill, Cullen, Ransom, Summers; Armstrong, Hickox, Darlington, Licata, Bonynge.

Local review of Batavia (text only): http://www.smh.com.au/text/articles/2006/08/20/1156012407949.html

Turandot in Sydney. Third time lucky (and unlucky!)

Sydney Opera House

Friday July 14 2006

Role	Artist
Turandot	Jennifer Wilson
Liu	Hye Seoung Kwon
Calaf	Dongwon Shin
Ping	John Pringle
Pang	Henry Choo
Pong	Kanen Breen
Conductor	Patrick Summers
Production	Graeme Murphy
Designer	Kristian Fredrikson

Dear Colleagues,

After two less-than-satisfactory starts to the winter season (Lakmé and Clemenza di Tito) this Turandot was a night to remember for many reasons. It was a rainy, miserable night but all the finery was out for this show. Opera boss Adrian Collette announced the difficulties of replacing Dennis O'Neill at 3 days notice with Mr Shin flown in from America only the day before and singing without a rehearsal (and without a central stage prompter!). One wonders what would have happened if there was 3 hours notice of illness which occasionally occurs in the theatre.

This performance warmed up with each act improving on the last and a final triumph of voice, melody, movement, colour and drama of which I believe the composer would have been delighted.

Ms Wilson sang creditably. She had all the notes and was dramatic and exciting. Her 'In questa reggia' was a tour-de-force.

src="/opera/_images/turandot-poster1.jpg"
alt="Old poster of a long ago performance of Turandot" />

Mr Shin sang well but seemed under-powered initially, especially in the lower range. He rose to the occasion for 'Nessun dorma', ending on a magnificent high cadence which seemed to go on forever, loudly applauded, but without a musical break. His acting was slightly stiff but one must make allowances as he had never rehearsed this production. He sang the role at Santa Fe, along with many other major roles in minor houses in the US.

Ms Kwon made an excellent Liu, receiving a huge ovation at the end. The Korean ambassador had travelled from Canberra for the occasion with two of his citizens in the operatic lime light.

Mr Murphy's production is a masterpiece of colour and movement. He uses waving ribbons on sticks, extended hands, crowd 'rolls', shadows and many other 'tricks' to move the action along. His genius makes Ping Pang and Pong's scenes bearable and now, subtitles inform us that their 'chatter' could make a good episode of 'Yes Minister'. The opera chorus performed many synchronised stage feats in addition to their fine ensemble singing, as did the children's chorus.

Patrick Summers' conducting was animated, bringing tension, beauty and volume from members of the Opera and Ballet Orchestra. He got straight into the opera without delay or ceremony, receiving huge and appreciative applause at appropriate times. Summers was let down on a couple of minor occasions in the first and last acts with some brass glitches but with an excellent overall effect.

Jud Arthur was well cast this time as Timur, a role well within his substantial abilities. Henry Choo, Kanen Breen and John Pringle played 3 fine public servants while Shane Lowrencev opened the piece as an adequate town crier.

One hopes that the season will settle down, Mr O'Neill will regain his health and that as many Sydney-siders as possible will be able to witness this marvellous spectacle over the next month or so.

Comments by Andrew Byrne ..