Société d' Opéra National Capital de la Capitale Nationale Opera Society Fall 2016 NEWSLETTER : BULLETIN Automne 2016 World Premiere of a Canadian Opera! by Shelagh Williams Summer Opera Lyric Theatre (SOLT) in Toronto cele- fashioned yet timeless, and the English men sported brated its 30th anniversary season of summer opera stylishly tied neck scarves to distinguish French and festivals with its first world premiere: Victor Davies English characters, especially when one singer, bari- and Eugene Benson’s Tale of Two Cities. This is tone Austin Larusson, played three roles. Michael Benson’s 6th opera libretto, his second for Davies, Rose as musical director elicited good performances while Davies has written four other operas, 8 musicals, from his singers, but his piano playing was, I felt, and many film and TV scores and hundreds of songs. uniformly loud and somewhat lacking in subtlety. Their experience showed in a well crafted, very mov- In the leading role of Carton, James McLean ing exposition of the well-known Dickens classic story successfully and sympathetically developed his role of English lawyer Sydney Carton and exiled French from that of the SOLT photo aristocrat Charles Darnay. Both are in love with Lucie hard-drinking, Manette, in London, at the time of the French Revolu- nonchalantly tion and Reign of Terror, in Paris. brilliant lawyer SOLT’s production was also of the high stan- to the self-sacri- dard necessary to successfully create this work as a ficing hero. In grand opera. SOLT’s General Director and here direc- our cast, bari- tor, Guillermo Silva-Marin, chose an experienced and tone Stuart Gra- proven cast. The headliner, as Sydney Carton for both ham had a rich casts, was special guest tenor James McLean, with 20 voice and force- years resident in Germany singing as first lyric tenor in fully portrayed opera houses in Nurnberg and Essen, plus elsewhere in the nasty, self- Germany and Europe, and recently appointed to the ish Marquis St. voice faculty at Wilfrid Laurier University. Silva McLean Evremonde, the Marin chose most of his other principals from singers epitome of the whom he had already engaged as General Director of evil French aris- both Toronto Operetta Theatre and Opera in Concert! tocrat taking advantage of his social inferiors. Mezzo (see Summer 2016 Newsletter) Eugenia Dermentzis got Madame Defarge to a T, her Silva-Marin is a good and experienced direc- voice and manner memorably embodying her impla- tor, and immediately caught our attention in the open- cable antipathy to the upper classes in general and ing ball scene with the cast in masks and hatred of the Marquis St. Evremonde, and all of his multi-coloured swirling capes, as the French aristo- family, in particular, for what he had done to her sister crats blissfully ushered in the New Year of that fatal and brother. Strong support from tenors Stefan Fehr as year, 1789! With swift changes of furniture, we were Charles Darnay, ne St. Evremonde, and Sean Catheroy transported to London and back to France, from scenes as a limping Dr. Manette, and young soprano Alexan- in comfortable surroundings to the courtroom and to dra Brennan as Lucie Manette, enabled the family jail. The cast was well deployed throughout, and the group saved by Carton to be sympathetically portrayed. singers’ excellent diction (in English) and good acting No doubt further work will be done on this kept the story line clear. Costumes were suitably old opera before its next performances, but this was a most Fall 2016 Automne 2016 President’s Message – September 2016 We were back at the Pflug’s for our annual summer arrives before events take place and is thus valuable to meeting. Perhaps it was the work of the special quality our readers. One coming event that I hope you will want of the food and wines consumed but it seems to me that to attend will be my tribute to Gerald Finley done in the we accomplished much more at this meeting than usual. “High C’s and High Tea “style of the Opera Lyra Guild. More likely it was the great amount of advance prepara- This will take place on November 6 at 1:30 p.m. The tion that was made for the next Brian Law Competition location is still being finalised. Contact me or check the to be held at Southminster United Church on October web site for information. 14th, 2017. Finally I feel obliged to appeal to you, our mem- Also there’s good news for our Opera alla pasta bers, to be generous in your support especially in this enthusiasts. We have added another session to last coming year when we celebrate another milestone in the years’ five and, as a result, can present now what our history of our beloved nation. Having recovered from selection of DVDs will be and when they will take the financial setbacks of three years ago the Board is place. We certainly did miss Elizabeth Meller not only determined to continue cutting expenses so that most of for her delicious contributions of food but also her vast the money raised from contributions will go to those knowledge of opera lore and performances. Thanks to talented young singers who aspire to thrill us and the her the number of people attending showings has in- world with the wonders of opera. creased substantially over the years. As far as our bulletin is concerned we are deter- Murray Kitts mined to see that information about coming events Board of Directors 2016-2017 Editor’s Corner President Murray Kitts Hopefully you enjoy reading the 1st Vice President Ute Davis articles in the NCOS Newsletter. However, as you will have noticed, 2nd Vice President Vera-Lee Nelson the articles are mainly submitted by only three or four contributors. I Secretary Lesley Robinson would encourage all of our mem- bers to consider submitting an arti- Treasurer Mark Robinson cle, especially if you have attended Members at large Pat Adamo an opera performed in a distant location. Comments on books or Peggy Pflug DVDs related to opera are also welcome. If you have anything to Newsletter David Williams say, pull out your electronic devic- es and hit the keys! Tom McCool David Williams Webmaster Jim Burgess For information on the National Capital Opera Society or the Brian Law Opera Competition contact Murray Kitts at 613-830-9827 or consult www.ncos.ca 2 Fall 2016 Automne 2016 World Premiere of a Canadian Opera! (continued) enjoyable production, very dramatic, yet touching,and work, it exists in several forms and can be played in as Sydney Carton at the end sang the famous lines - It is different orders! We enjoyed a version with the Venice a far, far better thing I do, than I have ever done; it is a tale coming after that involving Olympia, the doll, and far. far better rest I go to than I have ever known - I before that with Antonia, the singer. Stella, Hoffmann’s found myself in tears! love, never appeared, and the epilogue was short and SOLT’s offerings are more usually established sweet! operas, both well known and not so, and we started our Silva-Marin gave us a most entertaining produc- opera immersion weekend with Handel’s Julius Caesar, tion. Clever use of mirrors in the Venice scene made us sung in English. We were apprehensive when Silva- see Hoffmann, but not his reflection, while colour cod- Marin’s introduction had an addendum: the music di- ing the courtesan Giulietta and her friends in red was rector and pianist Maria Jung, who was pregnant, had most appropriate. Similarly, the sad scene with the her baby arrive early! Fortunately, the harpsichordist, dying Antonia was set in blue. Raisa Nakhmanovich, Amy Lee, was able to learn the piano part in 10 days, the music director and pianist, was very good, playing and so the show went on, tho’ without harpsichord! with expression and not covering the singers. Silva-Marin managed to conjure up Ancient The role of the story-teller Hoffmann was well Egypt using six chairs and a throne, with drapes of sung and portrayed by Patrick Jang, interestingly, also a leopard print falling down to each, and a fancy pedestal! lawyer - one hopes he keeps on with his singing. Mezzo He obviously had a surfeit of excellent female singers, Sway Chen sang both the important trouser role of and so Julius Caesar, double cast as usual, had six Hoffmann’s friend and protector, Nicklausse, and also females and only one male in each cast, with four of the Antonia’s mother in the final act. Three different sopra- male roles being sung as pant roles! nos played Hoffmann’s past loves. Young Eun Yoo, in We especially enjoyed mezzo Catharin Carew a beautiful costume, managed, with a touch of humour, as a strong Caesar and soprano Sydney Clarke as a the high coloratura of the mechanical doll, Olympia. feisty young Sesto, set on avenging his father Pompey’s Kari Abraham sang the sultry Venetian, Giulietta, and assassination. Armenian-Canadian soprano Lynn Isnar Claudiane Moreau the touching young singer, Antonia. as Cleopatra looked marvelous in a regal red gown Three of Hoffmann’s four evil antagonists were engag- when she was being queen, and changed into a sexy ingly sung by bass-baritone Korin Thomas-Smith, and purple number when she was disguised as Lydia, trying the higher Dappertutto by baritone Stuart Graham (also to ensnare Caesar! She also sang beautifully, especially in Two Cities). Tenor Edward Larocque played the her Piangero, while tied up by her brother Tolomeo! various servants, including the hilariously deaf Frantz, Baritone Austin Larusson (also in Two Cities), the only and bass Mikhail Shemet sang Antonia’s caring father.