Dr. Colin Eatock, composer
  • Home
  • About Colin Eatock
  • Composing
  • Catalogue of works
  • Writing about music
  • Eatock Daily (blog)
  • New and upcoming
  • Contact me

COC Gets Ballo Right

2/10/2014

0 Comments

 
PictureA scene from the COC's Ballo. Photo: Michael Cooper
So what’s Verdi’s Un ballo in maschera all about? Is it about [A] the murder of a Swedish king? Or [B] events in colonial Massachusetts? Or [C] is it about other things – and the setting doesn’t much matter?

The Canadian Opera Company’s staging of Ballo (rented from the Berlin Staatsoper), confronts the viewer with these issues. Directors Jossi Weiler and Sergio Morabito have placed Renato, Riccardo, Amelia and the rest of the cast in a Kennedy-era American ballroom. With neon lights and mirrored chandeliers, the stage was bright and colourful, in marked contrast to the gloominess that often envelopes Ballo productions. And the appearance of several dead bodies hanging from the ceiling gave Act II an arrestingly surreal quality.


Having seen the production (on February 8), I’m happy to cast my vote for option C. This opera is about love, loyalty and power – and these three dramatic elements form a sturdy platform for plenty of glorious music. That’s why we’re still doing Ballo, 155 years after it was written.

That said, the dramatic elements must be dramatic, and the glorious music must be glorious, or this kind of production will fall flat on its face. And, happily, the COC assembled a group of strong Verdi singers who found their way into the emotional core of the piece.

It’s a blessing to COC audiences that soprano Adrianne Pieczonka lives in Toronto, and has become something of a fixture on the local operatic scene. With a voice that was both lush and edgy, she was everything one could hope for in an Amelia. Her dynamic contrasts were spine-tingling, her melismas seemed effortless, and every phrase was beautifully shaped.


Tenor Dmitri Pittas gave an engaging performance as Riccardo, portraying him as a young, charismatic leader. (Was JFK his model? So it seemed.) The same confident sense of power was in his voice, too – which was bright, strong and agile. Similarly, Roland Wood was a formidable presence as Renato. However, his stentorian delivery seemed a tad forced, at times.

As Ulrica, Elena Manistina was very effective. Her voluptuous mezzo voice commanded attention – and she even managed to make her rather wide vibrato work in her favour, enhancing her aura of spookiness. And Simone Osborne, as Oscar (a girl, not a boy, in this production), made a fine display of her agile soprano voice.

On top of all this, conductor Stephen Lord made the COC Orchestra and Chorus sizzle with excitement.

In short, this cast never seemed unsure of what to do, or why they were doing it, or how to go about it. It was a satisfying pleasure to see such a secure and committed production. More like this one, please!


© Colin Eatock 2014
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Eatock Daily

    I'm a composer based in Toronto – and this is my classical music blog, Eatock Daily.

    When I first started blogging, Eatock Daily was a place to re-post the articles I wrote for Toronto’s Globe and Mail and National Post newspapers, the Houston Chronicle, the Kansas City Star and other publications.

    But now I have stepped back from professional music journalism, and I'm spending more time composing.

    These days, my blog posts are infrequent, and are mostly concerned with my own music. However, I do still occasionally post comments on musical topics, including works I've discovered, enjoyed, and wish to share with others.


    – CE

    Archives

    March 2022
    July 2021
    June 2021
    April 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020
    October 2020
    June 2020
    September 2019
    October 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011

    Index

    Click here for an alphabetical list of blog entries.

    RSS Feed

    Follow colineatock on Twitter
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.