LAUGH OUT LOUD AT TRI-CITIES OPERA: L’HEURE ESPAGNOLE & BRETTL-LIEDER
“Going to the opera is not about sitting silently in your chair,” says James Kenon Mitchell, Stage Director of Tri-Cities Opera’s production of L’Heure Espagnole and Brettl-Lieder. “It's a live, interactive experience: literally laugh out loud.” This double-bill performance is guaranteed to make you do just that.
When the cat - in this case a certain diligent (but certainly foolish) clockmaker, is away - the mouse will play. Only in this case, the mouse is his lusty and beautiful wife. And play is exactly what she has in mind, until her well-laid plans go awry (as well-laid plans oft do). Two suitors, one handsome (and strong!) distraction, and a pair of very large multi-purpose clocks, offer just what is needed for a perfect comedic opera. Maurice Ravel’s L’Heure Espagnole (How the Spanish Keep Time) is the story of a Spanish Clockmaker named Torquemada (Patrick Parks); his libidinous wife, Concepcion (Mary Beth Nelson); Gonzalve, her suitor (Jordan Schreiner); Don Inigo Gomez, an admirer (Jake Stamatis); and Ramiro, the strong, handsome muleteer who finds himself in the middle of a very muddled tryst (Scott Purcell). Performed in French, the opera set in Toledo, Spain in the 18th century. The other half of this clever double-bill is Schoenberg’s 1901 Brettl-Lieder (Cabaret Songs). Performed in the original German by Stacey Geyer, it runs the gamut from comic to lewd, brimming with double entendre and sly innuendo. The performance features English opera-titles, music conducted by William Hobbs, and set design by AmarA*jk.
According to Mitchell, the combination is the brainchild of general director Susan Ashbaker. “The Ravel is absolutely hilarious,” says Mitchell, “but when you stop and think about what's really going on, it's a pretty dark comment on relationships. The Brettl Lieder are a great mirror to that. Schoenberg's music is absolutely gorgeous - melodic and rich, very operatic - but some of these are just downright raunchy. The two halves balance each other out.”
He elaborates: “Comedy is all about playing the truth; the funniest moments come out of brutal honesty. Especially in the Ravel, it's easy to be tempted to go for the easy laugh. The biggest challenge is finding the genuine motivation that drives each character so that the comedy comes from a realistic place, not something false or manufactured.”
For the performers in L’Heure, there are unique technical challenges, relating, as Purcell explains, to Ravel’s style of writing. “For me, the most challenging part of this role is the way Ravel sets the text. His goal was to set the music as close to speech-rhythm as possible, and that makes for some very tricky rhythms and entrances. The language itself is hard as well, since it's not poetry, but actual conversation.”
Nelson agrees, “Concepción has little to no ‘song-y’ music. I sing a lot of patter (fast words with little variation in melody and lots of intention of character). The score is infused with a complex musical language to match the complexity of the characters.”
Stacey Geyer, the soloist in Brettl-Lieder, faces different challenges. As a literary cabaret, Brettl sought to find middle ground between opera and vaudeville, to appeal to a broad audience. Despite this appeal, Mitchell says, “they were not widely performed after their initial composition due to the considerable technical demands on the soloist.”
These technical demands now fall squarely on the shoulders of Geyer. “These pieces are definitely not performed as much as they should be,” she asserts. “They provide such an interesting look not only into Schönberg's early compositional style - which is so uncharacteristically tuneful, playful, and accessible as compared to his later music - but into the poetic voices of the time as well. Many of these poets were, like Schönberg, of Jewish descent, living in a time when anti-Semitic ideals began to resurface in German society. Although it is true that this music was on a different level than that of other German cabaret music of the time, the few tricky chromatic passages and wide vocal range are not the most challenging aspects of the piece for me; finding an interpretative voice that stays true to the ideas of these specific poets is the greatest challenge.”
She continues, “Although most of the poems are saucy and playful in nature, there is always a deeper level to be found between the lines. There are eight songs in total. Some of them are light and boundy, while others are dramatic and dark. They encompass a broad spectrum of human emotion that make for a truly unexpected narrative capability.” Geyer credits their pianist, John Elam, for his input and partnership in making the performance a success.
Designing a set for a double-bill has its own hurdles, expressed by design team, AmarA*jk. “The set for a show like this unifies. It does more than provide a location; it inhabits an idea. Opera is about more than portraying life - we have life every day for that - it is about the interchange of senses. Brettl/L'Heure is the tryst of a one-act opera and a collection of early 20th-century cabaret. We have designed a set that encompasses both.”
“The audience is in for a real treat with this double-bill,” says Geyer. “If exquisite music, titillating comedy, and avant-garde female liberation piques your interest, then this production is an absolute must. Prepare to be swept off your feet.”
Performances take place February 17th and 24th at 7:30pm, and February 19th and 26th at 3pm. In addition to these performances, a special free preview takes place Saturday, February 11th at 7:30pm (doors at 7pm). Hosted by Susan Ashbaker, along with James Mitchell, William Hobbs, and the cast performing musical excerpts, BU’s Paul Schleuse will present an enlightening talk about the production. Seating is cabaret-style, so arrive early for good seats. The operalogue will be rebroadcast on WSKG during the week before each opening night. Tri-Cities Opera Center Savoca Hibbitt Hall is located at 315 Clinton Street in Binghamton. Tickets can be purchased online at tricitiesopera.com or at the box office, Monday-Friday 12:30-4:30pm. Further information can be found online or by calling (607) 729-3444.
