Bizet's Carmen at HGO

So, you say, you know CARMEN!

As I know CARMEN? I have seen and heard the Carmens of, among others, Agnes Baltsa (yes..that long ago-see clip ), sexy Julia Migenes (in the famous filmed version at Ronda with a young (and sexy, too) Domingo), leopard clad Denyce Graves,  more classical Beatrice Uriah Monzon, and others. The sole exception is Beyonces attempt as Carmen most recently.
As I much younger opera lover I really liked Carmen. And as I (I confess) like las Corridas a las cinco de las tardes, especially. There is something in los toros, that I also find in Operas and Hockey! The excitement, the music, the individual feats of action, the unrealistic drama.......sorry, I digress!
Aging, gracefully I hope, Carmen became just another popular opera whilst appreciating the rarer gems. And so I went to HGO's Dress rehearsal of CARMEN with pleasant anticipation because several in the cast were 'old' acquaintances, singers from past operas, and studio.
And guess, what...I was captivated again by this Carmen. Ana Maria Martinez simply IS Carmen. With flair, with grace, defiance, come-hither, and repulse. She dances really well, looks ravishing, acts impressively all the while singing sultrily or scathingly.  Using her astonishing voice superbly. One can readily believe all men are at her feet in adulation. Martinez is HOT!
Her Don Jose is Brandon Jovanovich and HE matches her in HOTness ;-) with a clear tenor, flexible and expressive; he, too acts very well.
Ryan McKinny is an energetic acrobatic Escamillo, his voice IMO is a bit too husky for the part. But he acquits himself with pundonor como una famosa espada ought. Natalya Romaniv's Micaela is played and sung quite prettily as it ought to be; she is, after all, goodness personified.
Of the other members in order of appearance:
Morales is Samuel Schultz, a newcomer, he does it well, in this somewhat easily overlooked, cameo, role.
Robert Gleadow returns as Zuniga and sounds suitably officerlike.
Uliana Alexyuk sings Frasquita sweetly with a clear sound,
Carolyn Sproule is Mercedes, who matches Uliana in sound.
As Dancaire, Reginald Smith, Jr., powerfully overshadows his comrade in arms, Remendado, sung by John McVeigh. I recall well McVeigh's somewhat distinct tenor from his time here, and in productions heard on the radio. Here he sounds lost beside the big voiced Smith.
What makes this production so exciting and DIFFERENT were the dancers.
On the, primarily, spare set (by David Rockwell)  and unusually lit brighter than I have seen (by Donald Holder),
the solo dancer, as el toro, was Rasta Thomas. AND HE WAS EXCELLENT!
The costumes (by Julie Weiss) for the dancers outshone the others with the exception of Martinez's which seemed painted on in a most pleasing (or should that be teasing way?)
The children's chorus (directed by Karen Reeves) sing and act prettily, and the HGO Chorus, as we have come to expect, sing well as usual under the direction of Chorus Master Richard Bado. 
Rob Ashford as Director and Choreographer essays several innovative ideas which makes this production better than many I have seen in the past.
HGO orchester is energetically, at times too (lol) energetically requiring the drinking of lots of water, conducted by, a very youthful, Rory Macdonald.
Looks like the whole cast and creative team is YOUNG.
And that, chers readers, gives me hope for the survival of opera into the future. Young singers, young creative teams..  and - hopefully - young audiences. All is not lost on planet Opera, methinks.

The Passenger-a searing musical portrait of (in)humanity

This co-production of Bregenz, Warsaw, ENO, Madrid is currently being performed at HGO.  It is a new(ish) work, composed by Mieczyslaw Weinberg, libretto by Alexander Medvedev which David Pountney translated rather well into English. It is performed with surtitles.  But IMO they are rarely needed, since the enunciation of most singers is outstanding and 96% understandable. I was privileged to attend the final dress rehearsal, which went smoothly. Opening night is Saturday 1/18. I'll be out of town then so am publishing it this morning.

A brief description of its plot: Fifteen years after the end of the war, a German diplomatic couple (Walter and Liese) are on a liner for Brazil where he is to take up an embassy position. On the ship there, too, is a mysterious veiled woman. Liese seems to recognize her as one of the inmates in Auschwitz where Liese (aged 22) served as a camp guard.
Several acts are devoted to camp life.
Female prisoners from all over Europe are found there, each one reacting in her own way to the horrors around her. One apparently has gone mad, another teams up with a very young girl in lieu of her own daughter. Their nationalities are: Czech, Polish, Russian (a partisan), French and Tessalonikan. One is identified as Jewish, some others seem to be catholic, especially Bronka.
The heroine, Marta (that mysterious passenger), by chance, encounters her finance Tadeusz, who, we learn is involved in the camp underground and in touch with Katya, the Russian partisan.
The plot gets a bit thicker. Liese wants Marta to become her confidante vis-a-vis the other prisoners, and offers Marta and Tadeusz a chance to meet. Both are resolved not to give Liese any hold on them.
While these flashbacks to camp life take place, on an upper level we see Walter and Liese attempting to participate in ship's social life. Liese has told Walter now all about her camp life. And Walter, after an initial revulsion, has accepted it and excusing it now supports her.
But then the "Passenger" asks the band (on a 3.level) to play a waltz.
And Liese breaks down completely. It is the waltz the camp commandant has demanded Tadeusz play for him on the violin, which Tadeusz does not do, and so is sent to his death. As - it seemed - is Marta.
The opera ends with the 'modern' Marta's demand 'never forgive nor forget'!

Now the cast requires some very strong performances by 9 female voices.
And HGO found them, voices with convincing acting prowess.

Michelle Breedt -above - (HGO debut) sings Liese with a flexible Mezzo and seemingly personal conviction in the world she inhabits on stage.
Melody Moore is Marta with strong and confident delivery.
Victoria Livengood - quite excellent as the madwoman.
Yvette, the French youngster, is sung with a clear high soprano by Uliana Alexyuk (HGOStudio).
Vlasta is sung by another HGOStudio member, Carolyn Sproule.
Krystyna is performed by Natalya Romaniw (Studio member).
Bronka, the older woman adopting the youngster Yvette is sung with moving expression by Kathryn Day.
Agnieszka Rehlis (debut) sings a few lines as the Jewish girl (is she the one from Tessalonika?).

Kelly Kaduce - above - (debut) whom I have seen and heard in  Anna Karenina, Tan Dun's Tea and as Margaret Garner, sings Katya with complete confidence and beautiful phrasing.. her solo, unaccompanied for the most part by orchestra, of the Babushka song is truly stunning!
Cheryl Parish (also seen in Show Boat at HGO) is the senior overseer who has just a few lines as well.
All other characters, in camp, and on ship, as well as in the, all MALE onlookers in modern dress (why they are there is still, IMO, a mystery, they do not really do much for the plot - perhaps they are to be us, the audience, but why only males?), are taken by chorus members with no solo lines, some are even silent.
As you can see, the females are dominant in this work.

Joseph Kaiser - above as Ravenal in HGO's Show Boat - Walter, is convincing and uses his suave voice well. 
Morgan Smith - debut (of Starbuck fame -Moby Dick seen by me in Dallas) sings Tadeusz with feeling. His orchestra double actually plays the violin.
James Maddalena has 2 cameo roles with a few lines, mostly just spoken.
Robert Pomakov as the first guard, and
Peixin Chen and Kevin Ray (both Studiomembers) as 2. and 3. guard acquit themselves quite honorably.
I am not sure who plays the Commandant, whose brief appearance in scene 5/act 2 is the cause for Tadeusz' death.

 I have searched for some videos.. and found this of another composition by Weinberg

Now to my personal impressions. Not being a musician, I cannot write about the difficulties which lie in the score. I have been told that some seems almost impossible. And yet the orchestra and the singers do it real justice.
It is above all a great theatrical drama with hugely excellent singing.
Maestro Summers knows the score and guides the team well.
Music: mostly accessible, sometimes overwhelming, sometimes very lyrical. IMO, it paints musical pictures of the horrors, but of beauty as well.
Staging and set are impressive, sadly I fear, people in balcony and high Grand Tier seats will not see the third level (orchestra) and maybe even part of the second level. The set is built very tall! Lighting is appropriate to action and scenery. A bit of stumbling around the camp ground makes the prisoners' exhaustion even more plausible.

Was I moved? Yes, to some extent I was, mostly due to the truly superb acting singers.

But having studied this period in history, and read as much as is available in English and German, I was somewhat disappointed. Or maybe, like so many of us, I have become desensitized to violence and horrors by what is thrown at us daily on television and the web. Perhaps.

Did I think the piece biased?  Not really.  The composer, IMO, tried his best to tell the story as seen from the standpoint of a younger Liese, whose experiences must be taken in context of the times.
Befehl ist Befehl - order is order!
And yet, nothing is ever just pure black and white.
But still, it should be seen as grave warning to humanity.  If it works in these days of increasing insensitivity to suffering, of spontaneous killings may they be government sanctioned, or acts by crazed (?) individuals, I simply do not know. And who really can?
Maybe...at least I hope it will open some eyes and hearts!

And here some comments, overheard on the way out:
"High drama but not really an opera".
"Would have liked it better as a ballet."
"How P.C. is that, before HGO is doing Wagner."
"I am surprised that it did not affect me as much."

Well, best you see it yourself. 
I can guarantee the singing and acting is fantastic.

Rau Wows

with the only goal against a very potent and seemingly aggressive Grand Rapids Griffins Team.

Rau is Happy

The first period started rather well, neither team scored against Hackett for Aeros and Petr Mrazek (what a nice Czech- name that is) for Griffins.

Second period, it seemed to me that the Aeros were a bit sluggish, and after the Goal by Ferraro  (not to be confused with Andrew Ferraro of Third Intermission), Landon his first name, they seemed more hesitant and discombobulated. And the passing appeared less decisive.

an epic Hackett stop - series of pics Nr.1

Nr. 2

Nr 3. Saved!

Coach must have done 'some' talking, because the guys came out in the third which is when Rau put the puck into the net with the help of McMillan and Genoway, to even the score.

And there it stayed through OT to the conclusion of a Shoot Out which Hackett, this evening alas, did not win.
Phillips, Coyle, Fontaine and Zucker  tied but Mrazek stopped them cold-or the crossbars did, when they didn't just miss the target at all... tired I guess! The guys were just tired!

While Griffins Smith and Pare scored, although Jurco, Nyquist and Tatar did not.

In the midst of a fray a helmet less  Baldwin prominent

The end result was Griffins 2 Aeros 1,  but at least the Aeros did get to take - or should that be stay - home with one point!
As can be seen by the number of SOGS by both teams (32 for Griffins and 31 for Aeros they were quite well matched.
Neither team could take advantage of the power plays (5 for Aeros one of which took place in last minutes of OT, and 3 for Griffins).

How NOT to score :-)!

McMillan just before Rau scores goal

Rau and Hackett Nrs. 3* and 2*
while Smith of Grand Rapids was Nr. 1 *.




Now it seemed to me that the absence of Granlund was noticeable.
He has been, IMO, the cement that knitted together the team's game plan.. being at the right spot at the right time to pass and/or 'steal' the puck, frequently seeing where the mate is to pass the puck to,  and so on.
Having been injured on Friday, he may be out some time. So IF the NHL resumes playing in December as might-just might, be the case, we can surely say 'Good By' to Granlund, and Minnesota can say"Welcome" to him.

Bulmer photo and more

Bulmer

Hackett's Mea Culpa, Mea Culpa bowed head.. puck in net

Peters going for the puck at all costs?

The "Flying puck" on its way to Hackett's glove:-)

Peters looking impatient.. as officials confer re Palmer Goal!

Bulmer again

Smith Saved that one

The Puck stops there, says Hackett

Battle between Birds and Planes-edited

ended alas, in a SO win for the birds.



Johnson Goal in SO-puck at corner of net.



Rau did not get the goal



Happy Birds Smiling



We're hugging our goalie today!

Am sorry to report a loss to the Griffins in shoot out: Aeros 2 - Griffins 3. Sorry for the Aeros, who battled valianty.
Earl getting a single handed goal on a break away.
O'Sullivan with Di Salvatore and Noreau the 2.
Both in the First Period.
The Griffins got one goal in the first, then evened the score in the 2 period. Neither team scored in 3. and OT.
Aeros had one PP - uneventful.
Griffins had no PP.
But with Smith as the referee we expected just that.
Few penalties called -
only when absolutely necessary as for the Bagnall/Keefe fight-below.




Cuma Down

 






Ouch!



Ministering to Cuma

And of course, he had to penalize Owens for Boarding (Cuma, the target photos above) plus a game misconduct. Happy to report Cuma was back on the ice shortly thereafter.
Scratches for Aeros: Broda,Buck, Fraser, Kalus.



Hackett and CO

 

Matt Hackett in goal did very well. Stopping the onslaught by the Griffins with their 37 shots, only alowwing  allowing 2 in. But also the 3 in SO by Johnson, Tardiff and Minard.

Pearce, the "purple" hatted one, stopped 24 of 27! Not a bad result!
He was agile and on alert and had some spectacular saves, as well.

Pearce

Both teams (thanks to Smith) got away with a few
bad boys' pranks, shall we say:


Scuffle

 Scuffles like these:


More scuffles

 Both goalies did outstanding work. Both teams gave battle. Griffins to the bitter end coming from behind..so to speak.
In the photo below the expression on Ref Smith's face speaks volumes:-)



A knuckle biter decision: Ought I? NOT!



Pearce always watching.



                                  Chilly and the T shirt Toss Hollering

Fans stunned. Some of you might recognise yourselves!

Knights in 'shiny armor'  leaving the battlefield!

Quick hits, Ads vs Rampage, Dallas Stars vs 'Canes'



Montoya saves

 And in case you ask,
Stafford was not on the roster for the Rampage last Sunday.


Here,  Ref the puck!

 



 



Scrambles in front of Ads net

Well deserved sip for young net minder  Jeremy Smith

And some pics from the Versus Canes vs Stars.. which was a GOOD game for the Stars.


Seasoned Neal



Young Jamie Benn

 # 18 Neal and Jamie Benn (who did so well forTexas Star during Calder Cup play offs).

 Only one goal for "Canes" by Eric Staal.. does he look sad or mad ;-)?

A beleaguered Cam Ward (Carolina Hurricanes)

Wild vs Flames - in progress...



Admirals outsail Rampage

One expected a bit more from the number 1 seeded Rampage.

But their production in the first period lacked cohesion, their offense play seemed not just disoriented but simply missing, although "Soft Spot" MB ALMOST got a shorthanded goal.
The Ads netminder Jeremy Smith, soon to be 21 years old, had it somewhat easy to keep the Rampage from scoring in the first period, despite 10 shots on goal. The Admirals sailed ahead with 2 pp goals by Mueller and Begin.

The 2. period started with Admirals 2 up on Rampage 0.
But then the "bulls" stormed back in the 2nd. with 3 goals by Prucha, Watkins and Beaudoin (ppgoal)  whilst peppering Smith with 18 shots to lead 3-2 going into the third.

And that's all she wrote, Admirals bounced back strongly with goals by Bourque, Klasen and an empty net goal to win the game 5-3 in regulation.

Alas a shot by Ebbett (Rampage) hit the post-it would have given the Rampage a 4-2 lead.
Unfortunately, Rampage blew several chances to score on 6 pp.
They managed just the1 by Beaudoin, who now has 24 pts.
They seemed troubled in penalty kills.
That allowed the Admirals to convert 3 pps of 4 into goals.
Montoya was the Rampage net minder, stopping 27 of 31.
Admirals' Smith stopped a respectable 33 of 36!

Otherwise the drive on this sunny cool Sunday morning was uneventful.
We arrived relaxed after the obligatory stop at Buccee's for coffee, fudge and well, you know,
plus 2 stretch stops before that.
Now we'll enjoy a misty-rainy (predicted) day in the Texas hill country.
Correction it is HOT, real HOT, sunny, a real stunner poolside

while sipping a nice Texas Red! LOL

We head back to Cowtown on Tuesday for a meeting of the HGO Lucia Hospitality committee on Wednesday, and the Aeros's Thursday Morning game to 'celebrate' Better Half's birthday ...lol! AND some photos from Sunday's game.
After which we once more head West for (need to stock up on some Texas Reds)  Winery and museum visits and 2 Hockey games (yep, more hockey) in Austin.

BTW.. it seems that young Jared Spurgeon will celebrate his birthday (it was just a few days ago) by being recalled to the Wild! Wow, what a good chance for this 5'8 tall defender.

Back from the 1880's

The Athenaeum Hotel of a gracious era past!

Meeting Hall-'outdoors' full of Sunday worshippers

Lake Chautauqua

A Village Street - cobblestones, 'cottages', Hydrangeas

Temple of Philosophy

The Village Green

The Amphitheater-stage set for Bellini's NORMA

The feeling of being in a time warp followed us wherever we strolled...on cobblestone lanes, across the Village Green, along Lake Chautauqua front...up and down lakeside hills, past a plethora of hydrangeas and other flowers blooming profusely in the shade of old trees.

Children on bikes, trikes and on foot heading for a swim.

Old and Older 'guests ambling towards lecture halls & church services of multiple denominations, brunch at the venerable Athenaeum (at $45 a pop not too shabby -selection and service were great)

and always with the ubiquitous stadium 'tushy' cushions!

well needed everywhere - the seats were church pews! Hard as a rock (not of ages) but creaky and wobbly...well, there was NO way one could sleep through a lecture, service or performance..even WITH the softest cushions : -)! The place: THE Chautauqua Institution.
"The spirit of Chautauqua spread via Independent Chautauqua assemblies, and a series of traveling Circuit Chautauqua assemblies, incorporating many of the program components of the Institution, including lectures, music, nondenominational preaching, and a focus on current issues. Several Independent Chautauquas continue into the 21st century.It was founded in 1874 by inventor Lewis Miller and Methodist Bishop John Heyl Vincent as a teaching camp for Sunday school teachers. The teachers would disembark at Palestine Park, and begin a course of Bible study that used the Park to teach of the geography of the Holy Land."

And so it continues now.

The 'village' is a protected landmark -historic place. There are private residences and public places.

A postoffice, a fire department, a deli, a grocery store, galleries, 'drugstore'...

Minds, and especially souls, are nourished through lectures, services, concerts by Chautauqua Symphony, Theater, Plays, Entertainments, Operas and ever more sermons, and lectures all summer long over 9 weeks.

Every imaginable church has a 'cottage' there as retreat for its adherents!

But there IS also boating, sailing, kayaking and swimming on the lake;

and for lovers of the grape numerous wineries in the vicinity - Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York.

And for "I love Lucy" fans.. Jamestown has a museum and playhouse in her honor!

The reason for our visit was, of course, NORMA.

Bel Canto singing at its best. All 4 principals were outstanding.

Soprano BARBARA QUINTILIANI portrayed the troubled Druid priestess Norma with huge lower register sounds, and astounding flexibility in the upper register.

Her pianos floated upwards with an agility and purity,

her chest voice produced sounds so low almost like growling.

She expressed the emotions superbly! And was well matched in sound and power of delivery by Mezzo Elizabeth Bishop as Adalgisa, Tenor Roy Cornelius Smith as Pollione, Norma's sometime lover and father of her 2 children; and Bass Philip Cokorinos as Oroveso, Norma's Father and Archdruid.

The Chautauqua Symphony under the baton of Joseph Colaneri,and the chorus of mostly young singers did stunning work.

This one only, and first time in the Amphitheater, opera performance in Italian with surttiles, was a 'sell out' (5000 plus attended)..'tushy' cushions and all. It was truly spectacular and a sensational event.

Naturally in this kind of space, there are good acoustics to some extent, but the performers were mic'ed nevertheless. But it was done delicately and did not overpower their natural voices.

Alas, no photography was allowed, so the photo of Barbara Qu. is from her earlier performance elsewhere.

Ambling home after was quite an adventure - no bright street lights...they, after all,

did NOT exist in 1880..;-) - and cobblestones do make for uneven walking!

No cars, just some jitneys for the less mobile among the guests, or the ones overcome by the unusual warmth and humidity for the area! Although owners of houses/condos/ apartments are allowed to park cars. All others MUST park outside the gates at 8 per car per day, and walk/jitney back in.

Day passes are issued at $50 per person to enter the grounds.

It certainly would NOT be cheap to spend all 9 weeks there!!

A night at the Athenaeum would run per person between $299 and 499 plus taxes etc.

The most reasonable inn is from $ 130 t0 300 plus per night-no breakfast, no food.

But is is a haven for families.. kids literally run loose.. no traffic to watch out!