Figaro's wedding, L.A.-style

By Truman C. Wang
Saturday, May 22, 2004

The Marriage of Figaro
(Le Nozze di Figaro)

Comic Opera in four acts by
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART
Libretto by LORENZO DA PONTE
Sung in Italiano with English titles

STEFAN ANTON RECK, conductor
Ian Judge, stage director
Sergio Trujillo, choreographer

Performance of Saturday, May 22, 2004
at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles

All photos by ROBERT MILLARD, courtesy of Los Angeles Opera

 big-house production of Mozart and Da Ponte’s intimate human comedy often  suffers from what I would call the hyperfalutin syndrome – oversized servants quarter, diluted orchestral colors, inaudible singers, etc.  Fortunately, the Los Angeles Opera’s new production of Le Nozze di Figaro succeeded admirably in bringing home the core human drama with a strong cast of singers and dancers, under the superb musical direction of conductor Stefan Anton Reck. 

(Left to Right:) Sandra Piques Eddy as Cherubino, Darina Takova as Countess, Isabel Bayrakdarian as Susanna

Originally conceived by Jürgen Flimm, who bowed out for undisclosed reasons, the production was completed by a British team of designers and choreographers, with mostly happy results.  A few kinks and oddities remained – poorly-lit Act IV Garden Scene, supertitles that failed to appear in key moments, and questionable props (e.g., a telephone).

Nonetheless, this Le Nozze is the hippest, most highly charged production ever assembled in recent memory.  The dynamic young cast, looking suave and sexy in Deirdre Clancy’s modern costumes (circa 1920), were led by bass-baritone Erwin Schrott, who created a frisson as Don Giovanni last year, here portrayed Figaro with the same devilish deftness and incisive singing.  As Susanna, the fast-rising star soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian did not command the low notes in her Act IV solo, “Deh vieni non tardar”, but proved a spirited and spunky actress throughout.  Baritone David Pittsinger’s Count Almaviva hit some rough patches in Act III  (“Vedro mentri’io sospiro”), probably due to first night jitters.  Bulgarian soprano Darina Takova displayed a soft rounded tone, somewhat dark-hued, as the long-suffering Countess (while looking alluringly like Rita Haywarth in “Gilda” in bed holding the telephone).  Her duet with the bright-voiced Susanna in Act III (“Canzonetta sull’aria”) was perfectly blended and enchanting.  Mezzo-soprano Sandra Piques Eddy delighted as the perpetually amorous Cherubino.  Veteran artists and young L.A. Opera Resident Artists made up the rest of the bubbly cast – Greg Fedderly’s meekly comical Basilio, Michael Gallup’s imposing Bartolo, Anna Steiger’s hilariously hammy Marcellina, and Jessica Rivera’s perky Barbarina. 

The bright, colorful sets (red in Act I,  green in Act III, shimmering gold in Act II) by Tim Goodchild move smoothly in paneled partitions between scene changes.  Stage director Ian Judge also has some bright ideas of his own, which don’t always work – such as turning the Countess into a sex kitten frolicking in bed with Cherubino.  The Act III wedding march and fandango, largely skimped over in other productions, here received dynamic choreography from TV/Broadway veteran Sergio Trujillo.  The Los Angeles Opera Chorus  proved adept at singing while dancing up a storm in white-hot Spanish rhythms.

Mozart’s operas are an equal division of labor between the singing cast and the orchestra.  The extended finales and many intricate ensembles demand an excellent rapport between the stage and the pit.  There were a few minor mishaps (“pace pace mio dolce tesoro” in Act IV), but overall, the ensembles were faultlessly and precisely executed under the tight rein of maestro Stefan Anton Reck -- currently music director of Teatro Massimo in Palermo, Italy -- who took the Romantic view of the score, allowing no break between the overture and the first act, and few liberties for singers (no appoggiatura or ornamented repeats, with the exception of the embellished “Se vuol ballare Signor Contino” for star singer Erwin Schrott).  The slow modulated passage in Act IV leading to the festive final chorus, sounding dangerously Wagnerian, might worry some Mozart purists.  But for this listener, the effect was as electrifying as the gradual lifting of dark clouds to reveal the bright sunny landscape and, incredibly, the exploding fireworks at the end.

Fireworks in Act IV Finale

To attend Figaro's wedding, which runs through June 19, RSVP by calling (213) 365-3500 or visiting www.losangelesopera.com
 

Truman C. Wang is the Editor-in-Chief of Classical Voice.

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