The production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro, directed by Barbara Gaines and first featured during the 2015-16 season, has returned to Lyric Opera of Chicago. While audiences are now able to experience a noted production, they are also able to sample a number of performers new to the Lyric stage. The roles of Figaro and his betrothed Susanna are sung by Peter Kellner and Ying Fang. The Count and Countess Almaviva are portrayed by Gordon Bintner and Federica Lombardi. The young page Cherubino and Barbarina are portrayed by Kayleigh Decker and Gemma Nha. Marcellina and Dr. Bartolo are sung by Sarah Mesko and Nicholas Newton. Don Basilio and Antonio, the gardener, are performed by Brenton Ryan and Matt Boehler. Don Curzio and the two peasant girls are performed by Daniel Espinal, Emily Richter, and Lucy Baker. In addition to Ms. Gaines the production team includes James Noone, Susan Mickey, Robert Wierzel, and John Metzner for set, costume, and lighting design, and as wigmaster and makeup designer. The Lyric Opera Orchestra is conducted by Erina Yashima and the Lyric Opera Chorus is prepared by Michael Black. Debuts in these performances are being made by Mmes. Lombardi, Mesko, and Yashima, and by Messrs. Kellner and Bintner.
The varying consequences of love and desire are suggested by a depiction of Cupid with arrow on a scrim before the start of the overture. During that orchestral introduction, led with variable tempos and individual emphasis on brass and woodwinds, the Countess is seen in pursuit of the Cout at the left front section of the auditorium. Once they gain the covered stage toward the close of the overture, the Countess releases a cord causing the curtain to drop and to expose her husband’s latest dalliance. Of the major players in the opera the Countess is introduced vocally only at the start of Act Two. Yet this supplementary, dramatic touch during the overture assures that the image of the Countess will not be forgotten during the many proceedings throughout the introductory action.
The loving banter between Susanna and Figaro at the start of Act One shows here a jovial and unconcerned Figaro, while his partner busies herself with details. Mr. Kellner’s strong vocal projection matches his role’s character and mood in this early scene. Susanna’s growing apprehensions are evident in Ms. Fang’s transition from initial understatement to marked vocal intensity. Fang’s continued insistence coaxes her Figaro to appreciate the dangerous proximity of their future bedchamber to access by the Count. Her pointed delivery finally brings Figaro to this altered assessment of the Count, before she is called to attend the Countess. In his solitary response Kellner’s “Se vuol ballare” draws on clear diction and a well-rounded sense of melodic line. High pitches in the cavatina tend to run flat, yet a well-placed appoggiatura in the final repeat seals Kellner’s determination to thwart his master’s lascivious behavior. The entrance of Marcellina and Dr. Bartolo will, of course, complicate Figaro’s intentions because of the woman’s legal claim and Bartolo’s demand for vengeance. Ms. Mesko projects a nervous and fussy presence in keeping with her character’s personality. Mr. Newton’s Bartolo exemplifies a resolute temperament in his determination to apply legal code to Figaro. In his aria “La vendetta” Newton sails convincingly though the rapid patter of legal terminology with decided and repeated emphasis on his earnest plan at “serio.” culminating in Figaro’s downfall with “vinto sarà.” The subsequent duet, sung with combative charm by Mesko and Fang, sets a tone for the longer or more involved ensembles in the following scenes of the opera.
The sudden entrance of Cherubino and his dialogue when alone with Susanna details the integral sub-plot of his uncontrollable attraction to women and the anger already garnered from the Count. Ms. Decker acts in a fashion expected of the mercurial Cherubino, even jumping athletically onto a sofa while proclaiming devotion to womankind. Given the laudable intensity of such portrayal, one might expect an equivalent approach to the iconic aria, “Non so più,” during which Decker remains oddly reticent until near the close. In the scene introducing Count Almaviva Mr. Bintner communicates authority in his exchange with Susanna while relying on an oily, domineering tone. Bintner participates well in comic, rapid scenic movements – concealment behind a sofa, greeting the unexpected entrance of characters – yet his monochromatic delivery does not permit sufficient depth of his character to develop. Upon his return Figaro holds together the increasingly complex strands of interpersonal relations while taking on the direction of Cherubino’s assignment. Kellner dispatches Figaro’s second aria, “Non più andrai,” with lyrical spirit and accuracy, as he sends the “amorous butterfly” Cherubino allegedly off to military service.
The clever scenic transformation to start Act Two shows now, instead of the crowded antechamber from Act One, a spacious boudoir with enormous bed and wardrobe. The beginning of the act with the first official appearance of the Countess establishes Ms. Lombardi’s command of her role as well as the ability to draw her listeners into the heart of her character. Lombardi’s rising lines shading gracefully into piano in the cavatina “Porgi amor” express the noblewoman’s wistful thoughts on a love that was; a silver-like tone fills the soprano’s final lines with a sense of openness, while the hint of a trill toward the close of the aria seems to invite whatever fate may bring. The entrance of Susanna after the lyrical plea indeed distracts here the Countess sufficiently to foster the sequence of lighter scenes. Fang takes the lead with expressive lines until her betrothed enriches this scene even further. At Figaro’s return Kellner presents with smooth assurance at “Ecco il progetto” his plan to trap the Count at his own game. Kellner’s departure parallel to the appearance of Cherubino provides the hinge for the remainder of this act and the dramatic moves beyond it. Decker’s aria “Voi che sapete” is now decidedly forthright and moving; Cherubino’s devotion to women is here amplified as Decker kneels before the Countess. The set-up for a sharp change – the clamorous demands at the Count’s unexpected arrival – is staged here with ideal, comic timing. Clumsiness causing the near revelation of Cherubino’s concealment evolves rapidly to accusations until the noble couple returns with a key to the wardrobe. In the trio between Susanna, the Count and the Countess Fang leads her master and mistress with bright pitches to a virtual reconciliation while Bintner’s character emerges confusedly contrite. The announcements of Antonio from the garden simply revives suspicions and maintains them at a simmer for the remainder of the opera.
Acts Three and Four show an appropriate change of scenery with – at first – a receiving hall lit by wall-sconces as candelabras. Fang and Bintner perform the dreamy dialogue intended to entrap the Count with her cleverness and his gullibility. The Count’s infatuation is here visibly shattered upon overhearing the conspirators’ delight in their progress. Bintner acts and sings a lyrically moving “Vedrò mentr’io sospiro” with only several pitches reflecting undue force. The grand scene and aria for the Countess, “Dove sono,” is performed by Lombardi with nobility of tone and memorable vocal control. Lombardi’s voice here recalls the great Mozart sopranos of the past while preserving still an individual timbre. Extended lines are sung with clarity and even pitch, transitions respect the integrity of the text, and trills toward the close are performed with facility and grace. The ultimate scene of the act features the Count’s declaration of the forthcoming wedding to be held that evening. Although everything seems to be under the aegis of the Count, a final comic gesture by the Countess – a messy morsel of pastry applied to her husband’s face – establishes her control to be asserted in the final act.
The resolution of conflicts and misunderstandings by the end of Act Four affords both Figaro and Susanna the opportunity to express their emotions in solo pieces. Kellner sings Figaro’s”Aprite un po quegli occhi” with lively and expectedly rapid, emotional lines at the repeats. Aside from an untypical embellishment at the close the character of Figaro is well charged for further developments with Susanna. In that latter role Fang gives a meltingly touching performance of “Deh vieni, non tardar,” using rubato on rising top lines that sound, as a result, angelic. The final scenes then unravel the folly of this special day and likewise the intricacies of this special production.
Salvatore Calomino
Top image: The Company of The Marriage of Figaro.
All photos by Liz Lauren.