Soprano Aline Kutan
…A Soaring 'Queen of the Night'…
Photo by Twin Photographie, Bordeaux
Aline Kutan:
Official Site
Shannon Mercer:
Official Site
Orchestra London:
Official Site
The Magic Flute: Brilliant Production from Orchestra London
by Brian Hay
Orchestra London gave the score an inspired reading. Conductor Timothy Vernon chose tempos that were brisk without being hurried. They emphasized the lightness of the music without sacrificing its depth. They also captured the pure fun Mozart injected it with and their interaction with the performers was very good.
The singers were all stellar. Joseph Schnurr was an excellent 'Tamino'. His tenor vocal was controlled and effortless. His acting was very good and he was an excellent foil for a very funny 'Papageno'. Uwe Dambruch has a gentle bass baritone voice that projected the calming influence of the character 'Sarastro' to a 'T'. His work was strong in both the sung and spoken segments. Michel Corbeil was a hilarious 'Monostatos'. He was able to inject just the right touch of the diabolical into his singing. His handling of the physical comedy was excellent as well. It might have been the best in the production. Bruce Kelly gave a strong reading as the speaker. His voice is a gentle baritone which complimented the character of 'Sarastro' nicely.
The young women cast in the roles of the three ladies (Lucia Cesaroni, Leticia Brewer and Erin Lawson) were great. They were particularly strong through the sublime 'farewell' section in the first act. Not enough can be said about the youths cast as the three boys. Ben Cookson, Joshua Rosedale and Thomas Samson Williams sang their roles with control and maturity that belies their years. Even the 'Papagena' was strong in this production. (which isn’t always the case). Marilyn Arsenault's few seconds of singing helped to flood the stage with the joy of the union between her and Papagena. She was excellent.
The Bird-Man Gets the Laughs …
And a girl too. It's easy to see that (the original librettist) Emanuel Schikaneder wrote the part of 'Papageno' for himself and that he had a great deal of influence with Mozart. The character has a huge amount of time on stage, sings catchy songs and gets most of the laughs. He also gets the part of finale that leaves the audience in both stitches and heartfelt tears. Hugh Russell sang with just the right amount of bluster, chicanery and pathos the role demanded. His delivery of the one-liners was great. And his physical conveyance of the character was exceptional.
A Soaring Queen of the Night …
The soprano singing this role spends most of her time waiting in the wings. On stage she’s talked about more than seen. But her work is cut out for her. Those soaring coloratura passages in her songs are minefields for even the best of singers. Aline Kutan made most of them seem effortless! Her control from her surges of low (but still high) growl through to cries of raging anguish was magnificent.
A Delicious 'Pamina' on Another Stage …
Shannon Mercer might have been made for this role. She gave a fabulous performance with Opera Hamilton last fall and gave another one here. Her voice is fills the room when she sings. She shades her voice with an array of colours and brings passion to each note. Everything she did flowed well. Her acting, her singing and complete "sense of her “character" rounded everything into a beautiful 'whole'.
The work behind the scenes was exceptional. Director Glynis Leyshon emphasized the philosophical qualities of the work without losing the humour inherent in the work. The action flowed beautifully. Credit for that goes to Kelly Luft. The sets (by John Ferguson) were minimal and allowed plenty of movement by the performers. The costumes he designed updated the work nicely. The graphic projections at the rear of the stage were a brilliant touch. The lighting was sensational. Gerald King used warm tones that lit the stage vividly. His use of contrast and shadows kept the eye focused on the action.
The Grand Theatre apparently has spots in the orchestra seating where the sight lines to the surtitles are obstructed but, other than that, it's great. The seats themselves are comfortable and close to the stage. The acoustics are excellent. It's unfortunate that the cost of mounting these productions makes the idea of running them in a small venues prohibitive. Theatrical productions, musical or otherwise, are best experienced in places where the audience can be as much a part of things as the performers. They need to be seen in intimate settings. The Grand Theatre offers this.
This production was a gem from start to finish. It’s a work for people who love opera or for those who may be curious about it. Whatever the case, it should be seen.
Orchestra London's production of the Magic Flute ran on Saturday May 30, 2009. It runs again on Tuesday June 2, again on Thursday June 4 and finishes on Saturday June 6, 2009. This review covers the performance that took place on Saturday May 30, 2009.
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