Opera Review: Smells Like Teen Spirit

Gotham Chamber Opera presents Eliogabalo.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Decadence dance: Micaëla Oeste and Christopher Ainsle in a scene from Eliogabalo at The Box.
Photo by Richard Termine © 2013 Gotham Chamber Opera.

The Gotham Chamber Opera has built its reputation on the performance of fringe repertory works, sometimes in unusual locations. They may have difficulty topping this season’s first show: Franco Cavalli’s 1677 opera Eliogabalo. In the spirit of its title character, one of the most depraved among Rome’s many emperors, the show was mounted at The Box, a dinky Chrystie Street performing space dedicated to the revival of burlesque theater.

Opera Preview: Eliogabalo

Gotham Chamber Opera goes for baroque.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Medal of the Roman emperor  Heliogabalus.
Collection of The Louvre, Paris. 

In recent seasons, Gotham Chamber Opera has established itself as an advocate of lesser known operas of the classical period. With its new production of Eliogabalo, the final and most controversial opera from the pen of composer Francesco Cavalli, it stakes a claim to the music of the century before.

Opera Review: Anarchy and the Argonauts

Opera Omnia presents Giasone at Le Poisson Rouge

Opera Omnia's poster art for Giasone. Image from Opera Omnia.

The promising Queens-based troupe Opera Omnia ended a three-year silence on Thursday night, with Giasone, the first fully-staged opera of the budding Fall 2011 season. Written in 1649, Francesco Cavalli's opera takes an unlikely comic approach to the myth of Jason and the Argonauts. The fully staged production was sung in English.

Cavalli was one of the most popular of the early Italian opera composers, and this cheerfuly mythology was his most popular work. Leading the Argonauts to recover the Golden Fleece, Jason (Cherry Duke) gets caught between two queens: witchy Medea (Hai-Ting Chinn) and his ex-, good girl Hypsipyle (Katharine Dain.) But unlike most versions of the myth, bloodbath and infanticide are replaced with comic mistaken identity and (failed) murder plots.

These were familiar faces, often seen on New York's smaller opera stages. They were well-chosen for this unfamiliar treatment of the myth. Ms. Chinn was a strong Medea, dominating the room with mesmerizing eyes, a flapper haircut and a pliant, agile voice. Ms. Dain brought a dewy quality to the love-struck Hypsipyle. Cherry Duke, often heard in travesti roles, was a comic, befuddled hero who generated convincing chemistry with both female leads. Sharin Aposolou made the most of her brief opportunities as the maid Alinda, who makes time with Besso (Nathan Baer) another Argonaut.


Each singer was helped by the flattering acoustics of Le Poisson Rouge. The only puzzling element was the inclusion of an old-style condensor microphone, on a stand next to the small orchestra. It was used to make the characters' introductory arias into a series of cabaret-style turns. Puzzlingly, the mic was on, its enhancement clearly audible in some of the numbers. Mr. Singer scorned the mic, and delivered one of the evening's best numbers in the role of the perpetually suicidal Egeus.

As Hercules, bass-baritone Mark Uhlemann strutted a dark, rich instrument and strong diction. Bass Nathan Baer is a less subtle singer. He compensated with good comic timing. Patrick Murray and Isai Jess Muñoz made a memorable Mutt-and-Jeff pair as Orestes and the hunch-backed Demo. In the role of the nurse Delfa, high tenor Karim Sulayman played the part in Max Klinger-style drag with hilarious results.

Crystal Manich's production put firm emphasis on lewd humor and drew inspiration from the Greenwich Village venue. Characters out of myth were in period boho dress. The Argonauts were done up as street toughs with vests, long safety pins and buttons with the Ⓐ symbol and the Batman logo. The Golden Fleece was a fleece-lined denim jacket with a giant Fordham-style ram emblazoned on the back. Medea, Hypsipyle and their handmaidens looked outfitted by the Antique Boutique. Avi Stein led a crisp performance from the seven-piece ensemble, conducting from the harpsichord and occasionally doubling on the portative organ.

Opera Review: Canal Side Story

Vertical Player Repertory Brings Rare Opera to Brooklyn Courtyard

A poster for La Calisto.

Brooklyn's guerilla opera company strikes again!

On Sunday night, the Vertical Player Repertory offered its second of four performances of Franco Cavalli's 1651 opera La Calisto. The setting: a back alley and open space behind a former industrial building on the banks of the Gowanus Canal.

Judith Barnes, a veteran of the New York City Opera, sang the role of Juno and directed the performance. In addition to a regal bearing and a powerful presence as the Queen of the Gods, the diva-turned-impresario brought a wealth of young vocal talent to this production. Most notable: the pert soprano Marcy Richardson, doubling in the role of Diana and as the god Jupiter, who disguises himself as Diana in an effort to bed the nymph Calisto.

Holly Gash made her company debut in that title role, bringing pathos and passion to the unfortunate object of Jupiter's affections who gets turned into a bear for her troubles. The third major company debut was bass Matthew Curran, who sang the role of Jupiter before that god changed genders, and returned to sing a pleasing final duet with Ms. Gash.

Mezzo Hayden DeWitt sang the trouser part: the astronomer Endymion who is the opera's lone human protagonist. Endymion is literally moonstruck, in love with Diana in her role as moon goddess through his celestial observations. Ms. DeWitt's final duet with Ms. Richardson brought their storyline to a smooth, soothing close. The cast was rounded out by Nicholas Tamagna as the drunken Pan, stomping around with two bottles of Chianti to fuel his performance.


Pan's accomplice was the Little Satyr, played by excellent countertenor Joseph Hill. Mr. Hill displayed great physical and vocal agility in this role, leaping and running over the rough industrial space as if it were a ballet theater stage, and using his falsetto instrument to whizz up and down the scales in a baroque depiction of raging lust. Nathan Baer also delivered a fine performance as Silvano, moving barefoot (!) over the rough-hewn space and singing with a pleasing baritone voice.

Ms. Barnes' company specializes in performing operas that take advantage of the gritty industrial corners of lower Brooklyn. This La Calisto was no exception, putting the audience on folding chairs and using a makeshift acting area that included a fire escape, a basement delivery hatch (which doubled as a ramp), a bed and a carpet. The effect is that of a post-modern Venetian piazza, with the stars overhead and the bricked-off windows looming overhead. Greg Goff created effective lighting with LED units mounted on the rooftops around the acting area.

For the most part, the setting worked, despite the occasional siren, airplane or air conditioner that threatened to drown out the bite-sized baroque orchestra. The wrought-iron fire escape worked as a literal stairway to heaven, as the gods Jupiter, Juno, Diana and Mercury entered from the roof of the neighboring building. Other actors entered from the Phoenix Gowanus space (which doubled as a dressing room) or from behind the assembled audience.

La Calisto will be performed on the 14th and the 16th, weather permitting. All shows are at 8pm. For more information visit Vertical Player Repertory.