Reviews

The Most Happy Fella: a lesson in unconditional love

The Most Happy Fella: a lesson in unconditional love

Written by Guys and Dolls' Frank Loesser, I expected it to be simple and toe-tapping (don't get me wrong - I love Guys and Dolls!). The two grand pianos that served as Skylark's fearless orchestra, music direction by Carson Schneider, provided a sound not of the fun loving Runyon musical, but a mixture of Rodgers and Hammerstein with a dash of Leoncavello.

Callie Cooper
A Parisian Traviata Spectacle

A Parisian Traviata Spectacle

This production is feast for the eyes and ears. So much to see and listen to, full of emotional highs and lows, and a stage full of amazing talent.

Melissa Ratcliff
Joynt angelic in Canadian debut as Gilda in Edmonton Opera's Rigoletto

Joynt angelic in Canadian debut as Gilda in Edmonton Opera's Rigoletto

With Rigoletto, Edmonton Opera connects with a wide spectrum of themes that most people will identify: the danger of power that goes unchecked, the fear when those closest to you are threatened, and the purity of love and being loved. If you've never seen an opera before, this is a production that will definitely get you hooked.

Oliver Munar
The Bohos come home: AtG's Bohème is back at the (dive) bar

The Bohos come home: AtG's Bohème is back at the (dive) bar

For those paying attention, Ivany's libretto only updates details, the kind that are in place to connect character with audience. If we were to strip away the hipster scarves and references to manscaping and BMV, we're still left with the original personalities from the libretto by Illica and Giacosa.

Jenna Simeonov
Cuervo's "sophisticated, lyric" Frida in Atlanta

Cuervo's "sophisticated, lyric" Frida in Atlanta

Frida and Diego encounter many struggles, the communist revolution turning against Diego, the pair travelling to New York, their struggle to carry a pregnancy to full term, and their return to Mexico, which led to Diego’s many affairs.

Daniel Weisman
Luisa Miller a "superbly shaped" start to Chicago's early Verdi venture

Luisa Miller a "superbly shaped" start to Chicago's early Verdi venture

While in the first act, the singers interacted awkwardly, with little to no dramatic commitment to their movements or singing, in the final moments of the show, the principals all rose to the occasion, singing and acting with dramatic impetus that temporarily stopped time.

Michael Pecak
A star soprano and a stellar debut in Oper Frankfurt's Manon Lescaut

A star soprano and a stellar debut in Oper Frankfurt's Manon Lescaut

In Puccini's anodyne libretto however, des Grieux and Manon become unwitting martyrs. Des Grieux's self-pity is sublimated into hopeless romanticism too pure for a cruel world. Manon, mercurial and unparsable in the novella, is given a clearly defined voice and a straight-forward moral compass.

Jeremy Hirsch
A Tosca found wanting in Virginia Opera's production

A Tosca found wanting in Virginia Opera's production

In general, tempos throughout the performance were sluggish, particularly in the first act. The love duet plodded along and the Te Deum was agonizingly slow, as was Mario's third act aria "e lucevan le stelle."

Molly Simoneau
Greek tragedy meets Sunset Boulevard: Minnesota Opera's new Elektra

Greek tragedy meets Sunset Boulevard: Minnesota Opera's new Elektra

With all these different uses of the one dramatic tool, the creative team certainly believed in the effectiveness of the medium. I think it could have been trimmed a bit, because it distracted from the artists on stage.

Callie Cooper
Immersed and captivated by AtG's Bohème in Winnipeg

Immersed and captivated by AtG's Bohème in Winnipeg

Ivany told me that there are always audience members at these performances for whom opera is a new experience, and I think bringing opera to new audiences in this manner is a fantastic idea.

Neil Weisensel

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