Friday, October 30, 1998
Italian opera "Falstaff" comes home after 16 years
REVIEW: Verdi’s comedy from 19th century still wins laughs from
crowds
By John Mangum
Daily Bruin Contributor
Giuseppe Verdi’s "Falstaff" occupies a special place in the
world of opera.
It’s the last grand statement from a tradition of Italian comic
opera that stretches back to Mozart and Rossini. "Falstaff" is also
Verdi’s final opera. Premiered in 1893, the work brought the
composer’s career, which spanned more than 50 years, to a
close.
But for the Los Angeles audiences, "Falstaff" represents a
beginning, not an end. It was the first home-grown production of
any opera in recent memory, presented under the auspices of the
L.A. Philharmonic Association and lovingly prepared under the
watchful eye of the orchestra’s then-music director, Carlo Maria
Giulini, in 1982.
Since then, the Philharmonic’s "Falstaff" has traveled the
world, appearing in such storied venues as London’s Royal Opera and
Florence’s Teatro Communale. On Wednesday evening, the production
had its homecoming, returning to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
after a 16-year absence. And what a homecoming it was.
The production, now the property of L.A. Opera, shows few, if
any, signs of its age. The sets and costumes have been lovingly
refurbished, and the broad humor and gentle philosophy of the opera
were, for the most part, conjured up successfully by director
Stephen Lawless.
The work, based primarily on Shakespeare’s "Merry Wives of
Windsor," presents the misadventures of Sir John Falstaff, the
quixotic knight and self-styled Don Juan. Naturally, the ladies he
tries to seduce make a fool out of him in the end, but getting
there is more than half the fun.
Of course, the wonderfully talented cast made the most of
Falstaff’s bumbling and everyone else’s scheming. While it lacked
the superstar names that the original production had in abundance,
the singers – mostly L.A. Opera regulars – made the most of the
riotous work.
As Sir John, baritone Gregory Yurisich brought a feisty spirit
to the role. His interplay with Stephanie Blythe’s delightful
Mistress Quickly at the beginning of Act Two was especially
memorable, not only for its vocal detail, but also for Yurisich’s
comic abilities.
In fact, Act Two’s entire first scene revealed the strengths of
this production. Although it lacked the manic, Three Stooges-style
mayhem that made the close of the second and third acts so
hilarious, this scene displayed Yurisich, Blythe and the Ford of
baritone Robert Orth at their best. The cast as a whole presented
carefully detailed interpretations that enlivened moments of less
obvious comedy.
As Meg and Alice, the women whom Falstaff tries to seduce,
Suzanna Guzman and Ashley Putnam also created winning portrayals.
Jamie Offenbach’s whiny Pistol and Charles Castronovo’s laid-back
Bardolph were right on target as Falstaff’s goofball sidekicks.
But the evening’s most memorable performances, alongside
Yurisich’s Sir John, came from Ashley Putnam and Greg Fedderly as
the young lovers Nanetta and Fenton. Verdi gave both characters
memorable arias in Act Three, some of the opera’s only solo
sections. Putnam and Fedderly brought these off with aplomb, the
soprano glowing in her invocation of the spirits of Windsor Forest
and the tenor elegant in his paean to love.
The L.A. Opera Orchestra played the score with the requisite
measure of delicacy and care under the baton of conductor Gabriele
Ferro. During their brief appearance as the demons, devils and
sprites of Windsor Forest in Act Three, the members of the L.A.
Opera Chorus seemed to enjoy themselves.
The production itself boasts some evocative period sets,
originally designed by Hayden Griffin and rebuilt specifically for
this revival. The scene change in Act Three, from behind an inn to
Windsor Forest, used a particularly remarkable effect. The entire
inn folded in on itself, turning into the trunk of an old oak tree
and revealing the lights of Windsor twinkling in the distance. This
inventiveness made the production as much a treat for the eye as it
was for the ear.
Only one moment in the evening jarred, just before the end of
the opera. Everyone joined to sing a rollicking fugue to the words,
"All the world’s a jest, and man is born a fool," sort of the final
moral of what, thus far, had been a good-natured tale.
But on this occasion, the lights in the theater slowly
illuminated and the singers moved like predators to the front of
the stage. They pointed at the audience, some of them almost
snarling the words, and for a moment, the whole thing took on an
uncomfortably self-righteous and accusatory tone. Maybe that was
the desired effect, but it certainly wasn’t what Verdi would have
wanted.
Thankfully, the lights dimmed again, the performers drifted back
into the dreamy world of Windsor Forest, and the opera concluded as
playfully as it had begun.
OPERA: L.A. Opera presents Verdi’s "Falstaff" in five
performances through Nov. 14. Tickets are $25- $137, $20 student
and senior rush tickets may be available. For more information,
call (213) 972-8001.Photo by Ken Howard
Gregory Yurisich (as Sir John Falstaff) and Ashley Putnam (as
Alice Ford) star in Verdi’s "Falstaff", which is running through
Nov. 14 at the L.A. Opera.
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