THE MAGIC
FLUTE, K.620
Opera
in Two Acts by
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Sung in English using Andrew Porter's translation
Pamina:
Elyse Nakajima
Queen of the Night: Jean Marie Perchalski
Papagena: Kristen Del
Rio
First Lady Ashley Roof
Second Lady: Julia Rosen
Third Lady: Eva Patil
First Sprite: Rebecca Price
Second Sprite: Mary Ann Kochenderfer
Third Sprite: Missy Tate
Tamino: Tapan Bhat
Papageno: Brian Ball
Sarastro: Eric Coyne
The Spokesman: Sasha Zamler-Carhart
Monastotos: Dan Fink
Second Priest/1st Armed Man: Justin Meyer
First Priest/2nd Armed Man: Andrew Hui
Giancarlo Aquilanti, Conductor
Stephen Sano, Choral Coach
Jennifer Lane: Director
Michael Gottlieb, lighting designer
Performance of
Sunday, April 21,
2002, 2:30pm at
The Dinkelspiel Auditorium, Stanford University
PALO
ALTO, CALIF - The Stanford Department of Music’s lively
production of The Magic Flute was a joy to behold.
This timeless, mature Mozart work captivated a near-capacity
audience which included toddlers to seniors.
The story of the young Tamino‘s
quest for wisdom and love through trials of separation, silence,
fire and water was skillfully brought to the stage by Stanford
Lecturer Jennifer Lane. The
ingenious production masterfully overcame the limitations of the
auditorium with inventive scenic elements providing trap doors,
grand entrances, whimsical gardens and a harem.
Student
productions can sometimes be a mixed-bag of voices, but the cast of
students and some veterans proved up to the task.
Foremost in the vocal highlights of the production
was the Tamino of Tapan Bhat.
Bhat has a supple light lyric voice and he sang with a sweet
and elegant belcanto style. Elyse
Nakajima's plush voice matched well with Bhat to create a believable
pair of love birds. The treacherous vocal gymnastics required for
the Queen of the Night were made to sound easy by Jean Marie
Perchalski. Ms.
Perchalski had all of the high notes nailed and thrilled the
audience to thunderous applause.
The glamorous and witty Three Ladies Ashley Roof, Julia Rosen
and Eva Patil, sang in sweet harmony and acted with surprising
naturalism. The
audience was thoroughly won by baritone Brian Ball as the bird
catcher Papageno, and his perky bride Papagena, Kristen Del Rio.
The principals in the cast were rounded out by a suitably
menacing Dan Fink as Monostatos, the authoritative bass of Eric
Coyne and the encouragement of Sasha Zamler-Carhart as the Speaker.
The sets were
accompanied by truly amazing lighting effects, which greatly
enhanced the sets and even served to create scenery on their own. The costumes were among the most ambitious I’ve seen and
would serve as models for any major opera house, especially the
final initiation scene which was resplendent.
I would have loved to see this production fully fleshed out
on the stage at the War Memorial instead of the thread bare, shop
worn production that they attempted to revive last season.
The orchestra
sounded thoroughly professional.
It was obvious to these ears that they rehearsed and their
hard work paid tremendous musical dividends.
The musicians were expert in navigating the score and were
lead with authority by Maestro Aquilanti and coached by the St.
Lawrence String Quartet. This
production was dedicated to the memory of the late Dr. Jess Shenson.
The music community of the Bay Area would scarcely be what it
is today but for the generosity of Dr. Shenson.
This performance truly honored him.
Terri Stuart
is a Martinez-based Classical Voice.correspondent.
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