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A bouncy and brassy Barber
AVA's "Barber of Seville' (1st review)
Steve Cohen
Rossini's significant innovation was the expansion of brass in his orchestra and the writing of loud orchestral sections in his stage works. Those notions were honored in the Academy of Vocal Arts' season opener, an extroverted performance of Rossini's The Barber of Seville.
Right from the overture— with its bouncy, happy melodies reinforced by more brass than composers used in operas before this work's premiere in 1816— singers and orchestra performed forcefully without neglecting the quick grace notes and all the scores' other intricacies.
Conversely, in the second act storm scene, conductor Richard Raub drew sustained soft playing from the orchestra, as in the perpetual-motion strings that accompanied Figaro's shaving of Dr. Bartolo in the next-to-last scene.
No coloratura, but….
The boisterous acting mirrored the brashness of the score and channeled the youthful energy of the AVA's resident artists. Baritone Steven LaBrie, with his rich yet flexible voice, good looks and charismatic personality, proved an ideal Figaro the barber.
Sydney Mancasola made a charming and attractive Rosina. This is a part written for a coloratura mezzo, while Mancasola's voice is higher. She sang the big aria, "Una voce poco fa," in its original key of E major rather than one key up, as other sopranos favor.
Nevertheless, she encountered no problems with the bottom notes, and she added many high unwritten but traditional flourishes. In the AVA's additional performances the role will be sung by mezzos Chrystal E. Williams and Shelley Jackson in the same key, but they'll make it sound different due to the lower ornamentation and the darkness of their sounds.
Menacing foe
The sweet-voiced Diego Silva demonstrated superb breath control as Count Almaviva, who falls for Rosina at first glance. (His character later will marry her, and she'll be the neglected wife in The Marriage of Figaro.)
Musa Ngqungwana, who has played the salesman of love elixirs in L'Elisir d'Amore and Hoffman's nemesis in The Tales of Hoffman, here convincingly portrayed a much different character: Rosina's guardian, who wants to marry her. His powerful bass-baritone rendered his Dr. Bartolo a menacing adversary for the young lovers, not just a bumbling foil. It also was a pleasure to hear how he modulated his large and dramatic voice when he handled rapid fast passages.
Margaret Mezzacappa brought her rich voice and presence to the smallish role of Berta.
Some of stage director Marc Verzatt's dramatic choices went too far. Patrick Guetti played Don Basilio with over-the-top broadness. His towering presence and booming bass voice were impressive but bereft of subtlety. There was too much fussiness in the show's action, but all the singers displayed pleasing personalities.
Peter Harrison's sets were attractive once we got past a dull opening scene dominated by laundry hanging on lines.♦
To read Steve Cohen's follow up review of the same production performed in the suburbs, click here.
Right from the overture— with its bouncy, happy melodies reinforced by more brass than composers used in operas before this work's premiere in 1816— singers and orchestra performed forcefully without neglecting the quick grace notes and all the scores' other intricacies.
Conversely, in the second act storm scene, conductor Richard Raub drew sustained soft playing from the orchestra, as in the perpetual-motion strings that accompanied Figaro's shaving of Dr. Bartolo in the next-to-last scene.
No coloratura, but….
The boisterous acting mirrored the brashness of the score and channeled the youthful energy of the AVA's resident artists. Baritone Steven LaBrie, with his rich yet flexible voice, good looks and charismatic personality, proved an ideal Figaro the barber.
Sydney Mancasola made a charming and attractive Rosina. This is a part written for a coloratura mezzo, while Mancasola's voice is higher. She sang the big aria, "Una voce poco fa," in its original key of E major rather than one key up, as other sopranos favor.
Nevertheless, she encountered no problems with the bottom notes, and she added many high unwritten but traditional flourishes. In the AVA's additional performances the role will be sung by mezzos Chrystal E. Williams and Shelley Jackson in the same key, but they'll make it sound different due to the lower ornamentation and the darkness of their sounds.
Menacing foe
The sweet-voiced Diego Silva demonstrated superb breath control as Count Almaviva, who falls for Rosina at first glance. (His character later will marry her, and she'll be the neglected wife in The Marriage of Figaro.)
Musa Ngqungwana, who has played the salesman of love elixirs in L'Elisir d'Amore and Hoffman's nemesis in The Tales of Hoffman, here convincingly portrayed a much different character: Rosina's guardian, who wants to marry her. His powerful bass-baritone rendered his Dr. Bartolo a menacing adversary for the young lovers, not just a bumbling foil. It also was a pleasure to hear how he modulated his large and dramatic voice when he handled rapid fast passages.
Margaret Mezzacappa brought her rich voice and presence to the smallish role of Berta.
Some of stage director Marc Verzatt's dramatic choices went too far. Patrick Guetti played Don Basilio with over-the-top broadness. His towering presence and booming bass voice were impressive but bereft of subtlety. There was too much fussiness in the show's action, but all the singers displayed pleasing personalities.
Peter Harrison's sets were attractive once we got past a dull opening scene dominated by laundry hanging on lines.♦
To read Steve Cohen's follow up review of the same production performed in the suburbs, click here.
What, When, Where
The Barber of Seville. Opera by Gioachino Rossini; Richard Raub conducted; Marc Verzatt directed for the Academy of Vocal Arts. Through November 17, 20121 at Helen Corning Warden Theater, 1920 Spruce St. Also November 13 & 15 at Centennial Hall, Haverford School, 450 Lancaster Ave., Haverford, Pa.; and November 17 at Central Bucks South High School, 1100 Folly Road, Warrington, Pa. (215) 735-1685 or www.avaopera.org.
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