On Wednesday November 20th at 7:30, Hill Auditorium will play host to the Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal, featuring Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin and superstar Mezzo-Soprano, Joyce DiDonato. This is not the first appearance at Hill for either Nézet-Séguin or DiDonato. They performed a collaborative recital last year with Maestro Nézet-Séguin accompanying Ms. DiDonato on piano. Maestro Nézet-Séguin is also the music director of the Philadelphia Orchestra and he conducted them here last fall. On this concert, Ms. DiDonato will perform arias from Mozart’s La Clemenza di Tito, one of the last operas he ever worked on. They will follow the Mozart up with Anton Bruckner’s 4th symphony in E flat Major. Bruckner’s works have become more widely recorded as of late. Maestro Nézet-Séguin and this orchestra actually released a recording of his 4th symphony in 2011. This concert promises to be a great night of serious music making with some of the best musicians in the business right now. Tickets are still available and can be purchased on the UMS website or from the ticket office in the League.
Tag: opera
REVIEW: La Bohème
The School of Music, Theatre & Dance’s production of the opera La Bohème was certainly a treat. Featuring the University Opera Theatre and the University Symphony Orchestra, it was a chance to go to the opera without leaving campus!
Though La Bohème was first performed in 1896 (the music is by composer Giacomo Puccini, and the libretto, or words, is by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica), this performance was set in the post-war era. This allowed for more modern costuming and set design, and in my opinion, it also made the entire storyline seem more relatable, as the characters were not in the distant past. The addition of English captions over the stage was also a welcome addition, since the entire opera is in Italian (which, unfortunately, I am not fluent in).
If you know the musical Rent, the plot of La Bohème will be familiar, as the musical is a modern adaptation of the opera. However, though the storyline contains themes of youth, romance, poverty, and realities of the “Bohemian” existence, the plot seemed rather underdeveloped to me. In particular, the ending seemed abrupt, and I would have liked more closure (though perhaps this serves to further the opera’s themes).
That said, the simplicity of the plot allows the opera’s music to shine through. The University Symphony Orchestra performed the score spectacularly, and the leads and the chorus were also wonderful. I enjoyed the fact that the design of the Power Center allows the orchestra to be largely visible, rather than hidden under the stage. Sometimes, however, this was to my detriment, as I was watching the orchestra and listening to the music rather than watching the on-stage action and reading the captions!
In the area of set design, the opera production was also stunning. There was a short intermission between each of the opera’s four acts to allow time for elaborate set changes, and they were certainly worth the wait. I can only imagine the time and effort that goes into designing and constructing the sets. My personal favorite was the set for Act II, which took place in Paris’s Latin Quarter on Christmas Eve. Featuring a nearly full-scale two-story building façade, streetlamps, and Christmas wreaths and garlands, it was a work of art. On a separate note, this scene also featured members of the University of Michigan Marching Band, as well as the Ann Arbor Youth Chorale! I also enjoyed the set for Act III, which featured falling snow and a moving train.
The School of Music, Theatre & Dance’s production of La Bohème was an excellent opportunity to see a high-quality performance right here in Ann Arbor, and I am glad that I had the chance to attend!
REVIEW: Here Be Sirens
Before tonight, I had never been to an opera. The idea of attending one has always felt like a faraway dream; so alien to me is the concept of high society, or even adulthood, that I could never really picture myself amongst Opera-Goers. Not sure how to dress, I assumed a hyper-formal ensemble: a blazer and starched white blouse, dress slacks and sensible kitten heels I’d bought for a funeral last year.
I was shocked to find that the Kerrytown Concert House is an actual house. The place wasn’t the cathedral-like, built-in-the-1800s monster of a building with an elaborately painted ceiling that I was for some reason expecting. I’ve probably seen Phantom of the Opera too many times to realize opera can be performed on a stage of any size. The room was shining though, with a beautiful Steinway front and center and a smooth hardwood floors. Though I was definitely the youngest attendee, I felt at home in the audience, if a bit overdressed for the occasion. Again, I have not so much as dipped a toe into the opera world, so I had no idea what to expect.
This opera was not at all what I expected.
Much of the tone was humorous, even whimsically off-beat. While singing, melodic and haunting in its trio harmony, comprised much of the performance, there was far more dialouge than I had thought there would be. This is refreshing; many musicals I’ve been in and attended have been overpowered by song, which despite its vocal quality is typically incomprehensible. The speaking sections add the dimension sirens are denied in literature.
Kate Soper (writer of the opera as well as the actress playing Polyxo) relates her characters to links in an evoluntionary lineage. Polyxo needs escape, from the literal island but also the prison of the stereotypes of her kind; Peitho is younger and more naive, full of love for sailors that pass her way, but beginning to question how she’s viewed; Phiano is the cavewoman of the group, incapable of thinking beyond the island and what she’s been made out to be. Led by Polyxo, the opera investigates what it means to be so severely misunderstood that those around you begin to internalize the message they hear repeated over and over.
This idea does not end with Greek mythology. Its meaning extends out through the larger world: just as the sirens have been framed in a negative light, so do we draw caricatures based on gender, race, religion, sexual orientation. And those whose faces are drawn with exaggerated features might begin to think like Polyxo, or maybe Peitho, and some, sadly, like Phiano.
If you are interested in upcoming performances at the Kerrytown Concert House, check out their website www.kerrytownconcerthouse.com.
PREVIEW: Here Be Sirens
Were you the weird kid in middle school who was obsessed with Greek mythology? Can’t believe that anyone hasn’t seen the Percy Jackson movies? Love listening to people scream-singing while wearing large wigs and formal clothing?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you’ll just love Here Be Sirens, an opera telling the tale of the lives of a trio of sirens. Oftentimes, these creatures are made out to be one-dimensional monsters, evilness being their only characteristic. Composer, performer, and playwright Kate Soper approaches her main characters with a more open mind, giving them internal desires and dreams that conflict with the caricature that outsiders typically see.
Come on down to the Kerrytown Concert House this Thursday, November 29 at 8 PM to experience Soper’s masterpiece. Tickets are absolutely FREE with your passport to the arts ticket, or $10-35 if you are PTTA-less.
REVIEW: Rossini’s William Tell
For four hours on Tuesday night, I was not an undergraduate student driven by pre-exam stress in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Teatro Regio Torino Orchestra and Chorus, coupled with phenomenal acoustics at Hill Auditorium, made me feel like I was in an opera house in Italy. It was one of the most memorable concert experience I have ever had.
Teatro Regio Torino Orchestra and Chorus hail from Turin, Italy, under the baton of Maestro Gianandrea Noseda. First led by Maestro Arturo Toscanini at the end of 19th century, they are one of the most historical and prestigious opera companies in the world. I was very excited when I found out that the entire opera company was travelling overseas to give a performance in Ann Arbor. (Fun fact: Teatro Regio Torino’s first-ever North America Tour included only 4 cities: Chicago, Toronto, Carnegie Hall in New York, and Ann Arbor.)
This was my first time seeing an opera performed unstaged, in concert setting. While it was sometimes difficult to follow the plot because they did not act or wear any costumes, I liked watching an opera this way because I got to observe everyone involved in the performance — orchestra, chorus, and soloists — react to each other’s music-making. The soloists were truly amazing, too. Special shoutout goes to Ms. Angela Meade, who played the role of Matilde. She has a resonant voice that fills up the large auditorium, expressivity that truly shows, and ability to do some crazy virtuosic passages with no difficulty at all. To all performers, “wow” is all I can say.
It was really unfortunate that the performance was on a Tuesday night during the last days of classes. I couldn’t help but notice many seats in the auditorium empty, while they totally deserved a full house. I hope they come back to Ann Arbor again with some other amazing operatic repertoires!
REVIEW: Dead Man Walking
If you ask me, “Did you enjoy the performance of Dead Man Walking?” I’m not sure if I can say yes. “Enjoy” would probably not be the right word. However, it was a performance that I truly appreciated and would never forget.
The storyline of Dead Man Walking, an opera by Jake Heggie, is based on a book and a true story from Sister Helen Prejean. Sister Helen served as a spiritual counselor to a death row inmate, Joseph De Rocher, who is convicted for raping and killing a high school girl.
To me, the staging of this performance made the story feel very real. Granted, I have never been involved in any situations where death penalty was involved. However, the cast and the musicians in pit orchestra portrayed the intricate feelings surrounding deaths, which made me — and many, many others in the audience — cry, if not sob. It made me examine the effects that murders and death sentence have on the families, supporters, and the convicts themselves, and it served as a conversation-starter for such topics with my friends in the following few days.
All of the singers expressed their characters very well, but one cast that has done an exceptional job was Ms. Lani Stait, who played the role of Mrs. De Rocher, or Joseph’s mother. This role was a difficult one to play – from receiving demeaning comments from the victims’ families to dealing with the dilemma of knowing how kind her son actually is compared to the terrible crime he has committed, this character is loaded with emotions that are difficult to act out, especially for a college-aged singer. She truly became the character, and sang her heart out. Her strength and struggles truly hit my heart.
I did not “enjoy” the performance in terms of having fun — that wasn’t the point of this opera. Instead, I left the theater thinking more about criminal justice, religion, and family — all of which I need to think about, although I don’t get to on a daily basis. It was not an easy opera to watch. This performance combined well-written music and libretto, extraordinary talent of all singers and instrumentalists, and effective lighting, to make the audience seriously reflect on themselves.
