Opera Atelier’s Orpheus and Eurydice, at the Elgin Theatre, April 14, 2015.
Hector Berlioz arrangement: The words imply a chorus of hundreds, brass in the balcony and a minimum of 60 strings. In fact the French romantic approached Gluck’s Orpheus and Eurydice with restraint and respect for its 18th-century character. Opera Atelier could have performed this new Bärenreiter edition without attracting the notice of anyone but hardcore experts.
Which is to say it was stage business as usual Tuesday in the Elgin Theatre, or perhaps even more so, given the prominence of ballet in this opera (which existed in two established versions before Berlioz got to it in 1859) and the eagerness of Atelier choreographer Jeannette Lajeunesse Zingg to make the most her opportunities. Dance fans with classical tastes will not be disappointed.
Opera and theatre types should be happy too, at least during Act 3, in which the mythological proceedings liven up considerably. Here the dilemma of the sweet singer of the title, who cannot look his wife in the eye despite her exasperation, generates real dramatic tension. Not to mention musical exchange, earlier conspicuous mostly by its absence, although the excellent Tafelmusik chorus shouted “no!” to chilling effect when Orpheus approached the gatekeepers of the underworld.
Berlioz’s principal motive in reworking Orpheus was to make the central role, written for a high male voice, suitable for a low-lying female. Mezzo-soprano Mireille Lebel brought stylish acting and a sure sense of line to the task but not the big sonority and sheer intensity demanded by the long (and famously plainspoken) solo sequences. Soprano Peggy Kriha Dye was a bright-voiced and strong-willed Eurydice and Meghan Lindsay rolled her Rs imposingly as Amour (i.e. Cupid).
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Conductor David Fallis paced the last act impressively and drew some engagement from Tafelmusik in the pit. Elsewhere the baroque sounds were hit and miss. The players worked up a lather in the Dance of the Furies but were distressingly wan in the Dance of the Blessed Spirits. Gerard Gauci’s faux-rococo sets were relatively subdued, at least before the concluding ballet, when the skies brightened and the dancers held up placards proclaiming the triumphant power of love.
Imaginative touch, that. There were some others. The flames of Hades were nicely rendered by billowing fabric. But on balance I would count this among Opera Atelier’s less memorable outings. Costumes by Margaret Lamb were tame: Orpheus (only occasionally armed with a lyre) was dressed in ho-hum black and white. And while director Marhsall Pynkoski responded elegantly to the real drama of Act 3 he elsewhere decreed an awful lot of running around.
Even as a dance enthusiast I wondered why Atelier ballerinas must always wear bell-shaped skirts that reach almost to the floor rather than tutus that free up female legs to do their best work and let audience see this work being done. Male dancers in body stockings with bulging muscles have an unfair advantage in these ensembles.
Still, this is an Opera Atelier production, so integrity and fun are both guaranteed. The final performances are on Friday and Saturday.
Opera Atelier’s Orpheus and Eurydice runs until April 18th. Details here.
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