Dec. 1, 2003.
Big Verdi opera
gets concert touch
ROBERT CREW
ARTS WRITER
While much of the
music is familiar, Giuseppe Verdi's I Vespri Siciliani (The Sicilian
Vespers) is the least performed of his mature operas.
The impressive
overture is deservedly well-known, for example, and "O tu Palermo" is
undoubtedly one of the most beautiful of all bass arias. But productions tend
to be few and far between.
Kudos, therefore to
Guillermo Silva-Marin's Opera In Concert for giving us the chance to hear this
dramatic work in full, albeit in a scaled-down version.
The production, at
the St. Lawrence Centre's Jane Mallett Theatre, is not staged (the original,
which premiered at the Paris Opera in 1855, would have been highly visual, with
grand processions and ballets in the style of French opera).
The singing is
strictly stand and deliver, a single piano (in the capable hands of music
director Dixie Ross-Neill) replaces the orchestra and only the chorus has a
conductor (in the person of Robert Cooper). The result is occasional raggedness
when chorus and soloists interact.
And if you don't
know the story — or Italian — you would undoubtedly be struggling
to make sense of it all. There were no surtitles here.
The story, based on
a historical incident, is set in Palermo, Sicily in 1282 and centres on four
people.
Giovanni da Procida
(bass Marcel Beaulieu) is the leader of a group of revolutionaries, which also
includes Arrigo (tenor Darren T. Anderson) and the Duchess Elena (Maria
Knapik).
They are planning an
uprising against the hated French, who, under the tyrannical viceroy Guido di
Monforte (baritone Jeffrey Carl), are occupying their country. Arrigo, however,
turns out to be Monforte's illegitimate son and saves dad from an assassination
attempt by Procida and Elena, who are then dragged off to prison.
Arrigo persuades Monforte
to pardon the conspirators and prepares to marry Elena. But the sound of the
wedding bells turns out to be the signal for the Sicilians to massacre the
unarmed French.
Pretty violent
stuff, only a whiff of which comes through in a concert version.
What we do
experience is the music, which is wonderful.
Beaulieu acquits
himself well in one of the more challenging bass roles in the repertoire. If he
doesn't wrestle the music to the ground in his big aria and elsewhere, he
emerges with honour and dignity.
Anderson, a young
American tenor, has a huge voice and certainly proved a crowd pleaser with lots
of vocal gymnastics and dynamic shifts, which, to my ear, were somewhat
jolting. But there was no gainsaying his passion and commitment to the role
Knapik, too, has
power to spare although the voice is not always beautiful, particularly at full
volume. And Carl has a pleasantly musical baritone but finds himself a little
stretched at the higher end.
The chorus work is
generally tight and tuneful and you don't miss an orchestra as much as you
think you might, thanks to Ross-Neill.
Opera Review - December
01, 2003
OPERA
IN CONCERT - "I VESPRI SICILIANI"
Opera in Concert attracted a full house at the Jane Mallet Theatre to Sunday's
thumping production of Verdi's "I Vespri Siciliani" conducted from
the piano with gusto by the always energetic musical director Dixie Ross Neill.
As usual, Robert Cooper did his excellent job with the chorus, particularly the
men who had more to sing, and who produced a relatively even tone. "I Vespri
Siciliani", originally written as a French grand opera in 1855, is from
Verdi's middle period, and contains all the complexities of a mature composer.
While there certainly were some wild and woolly notes, the cast was able, for
the most part, to rise to the occasion and give this dramatic opera its due.
The
men walked away with the honours. Bass Marcel Beaulieu as Procida continues to
impress with his rich, commanding sound and technique. Jeffrey Carl as
Monforte, while still on the light side, proved to be adept at Verdi's
difficult baritone high notes and coloratura, showing an attractive, expressive
voice. Developing American tenor Darren T. Anderson as Arrigo is certainly one
to watch, with his Italianate sob, beautiful phrasing and great money notes. Soprano
Maria Knapik, while very dramatic in delivery as Elena, was thin in texture and
uneven in pitch. Among the comprimario singers, bass-baritone Giles Tomkins as
Bethune was a stand-out.
Finally
- a stern note to artistic director Guillermo Silva-Marin. The time for
surtitles has arrived. Everyone is providing them and so should you.
I'm Paula Citron, arts reviewer for CLASSICAL 96.3 FM.