'Ariadne auf Naxos' by Utah Opera is must-see
Casting, direction and conducting make it one of troupe's best
With Richard Strauss' "Ariadne auf Naxos," Utah Opera has a sure-fire hit.
First-rate casting, excellent direction, intelligent conducting and wonderful playing by the orchestra mark this staging, making it one of the best productions by this company in years.
"Ariadne" isn't frequently performed, yet it sparkles with some of Strauss' wittiest music, and also some of his most profound and expressive writing for the stage.
This is also Utah Opera's premiere of this captivating comedy-cum-tragedy, and one can only hope it has found a permanent place in the company's repertoire.
The story is a wickedly delightful satire on opera, with an everyman composer struggling to have his music heard and fighting for the loftiness of his noble art against bourgeois entertainment.
Strauss and librettist Hugo von Hofmannsthal concocted an engaging yet complex tale in which the young composer's first opera is to be presented at the home of the wealthiest man in Vienna, to be followed by a harlequinade. But due to time constraints (and a fireworks display to begin promptly at 9 p.m.), the nobleman has decreed that the opera and the harlequinade are to be presented simultaneously.
Jane Giering-De Haan gives a superlative performance as Zerbinetta. Her vocal prowess is matched equally by her consummate acting. Her coloratura aria "Grossmachtige Prinzessin" is a showstopper. But vocal pyrotechnics aside, Giering-De Haan's voice is also wonderfully lyrical and fluid.
Her counterpart, Brenda Harris, emotes pathos as the tragic figure of Ariadne, abandoned by her lover Theseus on the island of Naxos. Hers is a richly colored soprano, and her voice lends itself naturally to the drama of her role.
Patricia Risley is superb in the trouser role of the Composer, singing with conviction. She brings credence to the plight of the young man, who sees his work destroyed.
Keith Phares (Harlekin), Aaron Pegram (Brighella), Gustav Andreassen (Truffaldin) and Todd Miller (Scaramuccio) were wonderful and display fine comic acting.
Kathryn Skemp (Najade), Jessica Bowers (Dryade) and Camille Zamora (Echo) are touching as the nymphs as they commented in Ariadne's pain and suffering.
Donald Sherrill shows himself to be a fine comic actor in the speaking role of the Majordomo.
The supporting singers are equally notable and lend their vocal and acting talents to the success of the opera.
Tenor John Horton Murray as Bacchus is a major disappointment, however. During Saturday's performance, he seemed uncomfortable in the role, his voice was alternately nasal and screechy, and his acting was stiff and mechanical.
Stage director David Gately's pacing in both the prologue and the opera was fluid, allowing the action to move seamlessly. Likewise, conductor Klauspeter Seibel's tempos were well chosen, and the members of the Utah Symphony in the pit played with wondrous articulation and expression.
This "Ariadne auf Naxos" should definitely be on everyone's must see list this week.
E-mail: ereichel@desnews.com
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