To watch the development of young operatic singers is one of the great pleasures of an opera enthusiast’s life; competitions, master classes, recitals and performances by small opera companies offer just some of the many opportunities to do so in Melbourne. Within little more than a week, Melbourne Opera mounted a very fine performance, with orchestra, of The Marriage of Figaro featuring young artists from the Richard Divall Program for emerging and developing opera singers, the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra gave three young singers the opportunity to work on arias with Raehann Bryce-Davis in a masterclass, and the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music presented a Mini Opera Festival.
What stands out from all of these is the input of budding professional singers into the creative process. The Mini Opera Festival began with a performance of The Storm, a twelve-minute work based on the violent flooding of Creswick in 2022. The project was guided by Gillian Howell, Sarah Woodland and Professor Jane Davidson with Meta Cohen from August to September 2023 when the students – 13 are listed in the publicity notes along with creator/percussionist Brynn Jacka – explored the impact of the storm and the team interviewed affected residents. Incorporating the valuable aspect of community outreach, so important to the health of both performers and regional audiences, The Storm will be performed again at CresFest 2024 in April.
As with all four operas comprising the Mini Opera Festival, stage design was fairly minimal. The back of the Hanson Dyer Hall stage was transformed only by lighting, while furniture and props were generally confined to the bare essentials. For The Storm only a dominating bass drum, a grand piano and several percussion instruments were placed onstage. It began with a quiet conversation about the weather between three townsfolk as the chorus filed on behind them. A slapstick exclamation led to a gradual build up of intensity with the dramatic violence of the storm heard in booming drum, crackling thunder sheet and huge piano clusters. Lighting effects created an orange fireball as the townsfolk frantically tried to rescue what they could, the scene of chaos made even more striking by being performed in slow motion. As the crisis subsided, the sound of finger clicking emerged and the chorus gradually lined up along the sides of the hall. Layers of chanting in contrasting tempos to slow piano chords were both beautiful and very well coordinated. On stage, a featured singer subtly conducted the group of townsfolk who had come together for mutual support and reassurance, appreciative of what had remained. The only reservation the audience might have felt regarding this admirable collaborative piece was that it was over all too soon.
Almost an hour longer, the second work was The Old Maid and the Thief by Italian-American composer Gian Carlo Menotti. It was originally conceived in1939 to be performed as an opera for radio, and director Jane Davidson included that format for this performance. As the stage was re-set (a bed replacing the percussion) a mood of yearning was also set with a recording of a female blues singer and piano. After making reference to the Vietnam War, The Radio Announcer (Callum Rigg) introduced the 14 scenes – a particularly helpful device considering that it was not always possible to understand what was being sung. The plot itself is opera buffa in nature, and the ridiculous, rather seedy misogynistic plot depends on exploiting the comic element for success. Fortunately, this was very much to the fore in this production, and laughter often rippled through the audience. Saskia Mascittti as the “The Old Maid” Miss Todd, Lisette Bolton as her young maid Laetitia, Sofia Imperatore as the nosey gossip Miss Pinkerton and guest alumnus Nicholas Sheppard as Bob, the object of the Miss Todd’s and Laetitia’s amorous designs, all gave animated well-projected performances. Probably the most familiar song of the festival was Laetitia’s aria “What curse for a woman, is a timid man (Steal me, sweet thief)”. Lisette Bolton’s performance was one of the highlights of the evening; her acting was confidently exuberant and her coloratura relaxed, accurate and sweet. As accompanist, pianist Jem Herbert’s contribution was outstanding, deservedly attracting enthusiastic applause.
The second opera pairing, this time directed by Beverly Blankenship, also featured Menotti – as composer of The Medium (1946) and librettist for A Hand of Bridge, composed by his partner in life and art, Samuel Barber. The Medium required more stage preparation, which appeared to be the reason why it was presented first. This was a shame as many members of the audience left before the ten-minute A Hand of Bridge that concluded the evening. Giant transparent plastic sheets shrouded furniture and covered the singers as they hid and became disembodied voices during the séances. In the title role, Maria Wooldford gave a remarkably mature performance, both vocally and theatrically, as the cruel, drunken Madame Flora. As her daughter Monica, Chloe Taylor sang with appropriately fresh crystal clarity, and Noah Straughan gave a physically agile and expressive performance as the mute servant boy Toby. They made a touching couple in all their interactions. Qiulian Axtens, Isaac Burgess and Erin Absalom also gave solid performances as grieving parents willing to suspend disbelief in order to contact their dead children. A roving ghoul, perhaps suggesting Madame Flora’s stricken conscience, increased the horror component of Menotti’s disturbing one-hour-long opera in two Acts.
Red lighting and red-themed clothing were visual significant elements in this production of A Hand of Bridge (1959). Within a ten-minute timeframe, each of the four card players reveals frustrations and closely hidden desires in specific arias. Sally (Qiulian Axtens) complains about “being a dummy” and yearns for a hat of peacock feathers, Bill (Mitchell Sanders) thinks jealously about his mistress and wonders whether his wife Sally knows about his affair, Geraldine (Ashley Chua) bemoans a lack of a love life, regretting how she neglected her relationship with her dead mother, and David (James Billson) fantasises about what he would do with his life if he were rich. The self-absorbed characters are not at all appealing, but the young singers differentiated them well and successfully negotiated their arias, ensembles and some tricky choreography that included freezes and slow motion sequences. Unfortunately, even given a great deal of repetition in the lyrics, understanding the text was sometimes difficult.
Providing the sole accompaniment in these two operas, pianist Julian Wade gave the singers reliable and sympathetic support.
With alternating casts in most roles for repeat performances the following day, this Mini Opera Festival was a formidable undertaking for performers and creatives alike. Then there was yet another concert of mainly different repertoire for the Melba Hall Lunchtime Concert Series the day after. Our budding opera singers and their teachers are working extremely hard and to excellent effect.
Image supplied.
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Heather Leviston reviewed the Mini Opera Festival 2024 presented by The Faculty of Fine Arts & Music on March 22, 2024.
