A Digital Trip to Boulder, ColoradoAugust 2-5, 2001Central City and the Opera(Click on Image for Enlarged View) During my visit, in addition to dinners in fine restaurants and the usual round of sight-seeing, Don and I attended two performances of the Central City Opera: The first American staging of Benjamin Britten's coronation opera, Gloriana, and a new work by American composer Mark Adamo, Little Women, based on the novel by Louisa May Alcott. Central City is a charming site to experience opera, and the performances were "glorious". I have been wanting to see Gloriana on stage ever since I acquired a recording in the mid 60's of the Courtly Dances from Act II done by Julian Bream. The performance in Central City did not disappoint. The theatre is very small, about 550 seats I am told, and we were on the 5th row side, very close to the stage. The singers, the sets, especially the costumes, and the stage direction were all first class. Gloriana is a dramatically compelling work, and the final scene with Joyce Castle as Elizabeth was shattering. Many people in my vicinity, including myself, were moved to tears at the end as an aged Elizabeth confronted her dilemma of country vs. love, slowly bathed in a shower of fluttering red rose petals. I hope that, now there is a production around, this opera might begin to have a life in this country. It certainly worked in Central City. I might mention that Timothy Noble as Cecil was a standout vocally, as you would expect. Little Women is a completely different work, and I admit I was somewhat skeptical. But the music was very suitable to the story, and the adaptation of the novel, which I have NOT read, I found very entertaining as it focused on the character of Jo as a surrogate of Louisa May Alcott and her recollections of how "perfect things were." The drama of this piece was Jo, her reluctance to change, and her need to change anyway. As sister Meg reminded us often in her aria: "Things Change, Jo!" Tenor Chad Shelton as Laurie was a standout in a strong cast, and Stacie Rishoi as Jo was perfect for the difficult part. All in all, it was a lovely evening. The Houston premier of Little Women is scheduled to be seen on PBS this fall, and a new recording will be out in late August, 2000. I found a listing on Amazon.com. During the intermission of Little Women, Don and I were able to schmooze a bit with Hal French, the conductor of Gloriana. He is married to Sylvia McNair, and you may know him as a conductor in St. Louis. He was pleased to know that we enjoyed his performance so much. HomeUnless otherwise indicated: |
