Moby Dick And Amelia Make Me Anticipate The Arrival Of Lillian Alling

It has been my privilege to experience many world premiere operas. From Dead Man Walking to Dr. Atomic, Nicholas & Alexandra to Anna Karenina, Cold Sassy Tree to Cyrano, seeing new additions to the operatic canon has been something that I have relished over the past 15 years. While some have thrilled and others frustrated, I am always eager to experience something new. That is why I went on a recent journey to see two world premieres in a week.

Photo credit: Karen Almond

The first stop was to Big D to experience Dallas Opera’s Moby Dick composed by Jake Heggie. While I had not read the Melville classic, the opportunity to see the work and how the story would translate to the stage was most enticing. It promised to be a great evening of theatre. Thankfully, the novel was pared down to a manageable tale to tell - one that made sense and didn’t require an understanding of the entire book to appreciate. The physical production was quite impressive with an innovative set, amazing video projections and an effective wooden peg leg for Ben Heppner as Captain Ahab. In fact, it was most often for something technical in the production that the audience erupted with appreciation. That was quite telling about today’s audiences and through which points they most readily connect with live performances.

The artists delivered some spectacular performances that evening. Ben Heppner was an amazing Ahab. His physical appearance along with vocal power made it clear that he could command this extensive crew of men with a combination of respect and intimidation. Among my other favourites were Stephen Costello as Greenhorn and Morgan Smith as Starbuck. Robert Orth was wonderful as Stubb. After 3 different productions, it was nice to see him in a role other than Nixon. Given what a transformation this role was to my mental perception of him only made me more impressed with his ability to embody the former president of the U.S. It was one of Stubb’s arias that stuck in my head and had me humming as I left the theatre. As far as music was concerned, it was not the vocal lines that connected me to the tale as much as the rich orchestration. The score was beautiful and epic in feeling. The imagery and colours it evoked were rich. It’s great to know there were several co-producers meaning this work will make more appearances around North America.

Photo credit: Rozarii Lynch

The next stop was in Seattle for their conclusion to the season, Amelia by Daron Aric Hagen. The company had put out some wonderful material to familiarize audiences with the piece, but it still took until I read the synopsis to fully understand how complex a tale I was about to experience. The opera was not focused specifically on the well-known aviator but rather was a weaving of stories that took place in different eras. Some were presented simultaneously, and I found that interesting and intriguing. The technique for telling the story became more interesting to me than the story itself. The physical production was impressive. It was, in fact, what I most heard audiences talking about at the intermission. I was two for two on being impressed about how the companies had invested significant resources to develop captivating sets, and again it confirmed how much of the audience was accessing the piece.

As I looked at trying to connect with the work, I found that I was really drawn to some impressive performances. William Burden, Nathan Gunn, Luretta Bybee and Jane Eaglen were as captivating as ever. Through the work, I was introduced to Kate Lindsey in the title role and Jennifer Zetlan as the female aviator evoked by the name. Again, incredible performances - especially by Ms. Lindsey whose acting chops were put to work with the complex story line. Musically, the work did not grab me in the same fashion as the week’s previous offering. As is often the case with newer operas, I left the theatre not offended by the melodies used to sing the dialogue, but not having a sense of repetition that would have allowed any of them to linger in my head much beyond when they were initially uttered. The orchestration was effective for what it needed to accomplish, but felt like it was as much about creating interludes for scene changes as it was for informing us about the tale that was unfolding onstage.

I realized through this that I tend to look at operas - particularly new ones - through five different areas. In doing so, I have found an ability to really identify and share the joy that I found in each evening with a new creation. The areas in which I focus are:

1. The story/libretto
2. The vocal line
3. The orchestration
4. The physical production
5. The performances

Illustration credit: Leonard Dente

Why am I so excited for the arrival of Lillian Alling? Looking at these five areas the answers would be:

1. The story is accessible and interesting. It is character driven and it unfolds in a manner that is consistent with many plays and films. Thus, audiences can enter it pretty rapidly and not spend too much time as an analytic observer. Plus, I have already experienced sympathy for the characters and teared up at sing-throughs in a church hall with only piano accompaniment. Imagine what will be possible with a full orchestra, sets and costumes.

2. From the musical workshops that we have done for this work, there are already some vocal lines that stick with me. I think that the composer is using a mix of sung dialogue and repetition to give audiences hearing it for the first time some musical handles to hold on to. That is something that I appreciate.

3. I haven’t heard any of this yet, but John Estacio’s other works seem lush and evocative. The answer to this will be revealed in the fall I guess.

4. Again, time will answer this one. However, the design renderings that I have seen seem to be an effective mix of the literal and those elements that allow us as audiences to use our imagination - creating in our minds the production that we each individually need and want to see.

5. We have seen many of these performers on the Vancouver Opera stage already, and they deliver. It has also been a joy to see some of them working on the evolution of their roles throughout the workshop process for the creation of the opera. There is already a depth to the characters they are portraying that comes through in their performances.

Like most audiences, I don’t expect to love everything equally. I am just always excited to experience something new that allows me to appreciate more fully what is possible with the art form. Sometimes that comes by experiencing something that was truly effective, and sometimes it comes from seeing something that didn’t quite work but reminded me of a prior experience that was successful. Thus, it solidifies my appreciation for the former. Having a chance to see two world premieres in short succession was a unique opportunity - especially when neither was lacking in resources to ensure a good quality product. It just goes to show that opera is a pretty powerful story-telling tool. When you have successfully assembled characters, with music and creative visionaries, one can cross vast seas, soar the skies or even scale mountains.

~ Jeff Sodowsky, Chief Development Officer