Opera Triple Play

The second event in the Merola Opera Program's 2017 Summer Festival featured three one-act operas performed last week on a single bill, at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

Loosely connected by a theme of connubial love (before, during and after the nuptials), the program looked a little long on paper. The production actually flew by with exuberant assurance and professionalism.

Director Peter Kazaras added many deft touches to the trio of short operas - a delicious sight gag here and a meaningful glance there, aided by Chris Lundahl's subtle lighting design. The appropriate and attractive costumes by Kristi Johnson were also in synch with the effective minimalism of Donald Eastman's scenic design.

"La serva padrona" ("The Maid Turned Mistress") (Giovanni Battista Pergolesi); "S?vitri" (Gustav Holst); and "The Bear" (William Walton), based on the play of the same title by Anton Chekhov, were all staged on an elevated platform, facilitating vocal projection for the singers and improving sight-lines for the audience.

Their voices sailed over the wonderfully alert orchestra, seated on the floor, but the youthful casts really didn't need much help. Their fresh and resonant singing and surprisingly sophisticated acting skills would have filled any auditorium with ease.

The opening comedy by Pergolesi showed why it was a big hit in its day, flying solo after being uncoupled from a longer work, and where other composers of opera buffa found witty inspiration.

A breezy fight between Venus (the shrewd servant Serpina), abetted by silent colleague Vespone, and Mars (the cranky master Uberto) is sustained by Pergolesi's catchy tunes and silly comic ruses. The maid becomes the mistress with outrageous guile, but it turns out the old goat needed a push, and everything turns out well. Returning to Merola, soprano Jana McIntyre (Santa Barbara, CA) made a believably seductive Serpina, mining the part for every laugh, and charming with her bright and liquid coloratura. David Weigel's miming of Vespone's complicity was hilarious.

As the annoyed Uberto, bass-baritone Daniel Noyola (San Luis Potosi, Mexico) convincingly changed the aging master to a younger and more clueless nerd. His reactions to some of Serpina's maneuvers were laugh-out-loud funny, even as his rich voice managed to maintain a straight face.

Marriage Album

The next opera took a much more sober look at married love. Holst's "S?vitri" is based on an episode from The "Mah?bh?rata." Director Kazaras started the act in silence as young wife Savitri reflects on her marriage to Satyavan.

Supertitles informed the audience of the work's significance in the context of the premiere, shortly after the horrific Battle of the Somme during World War I. As the story unfolded, we could share in the comfort Holst's tender and emotional confrontation with death must have provided.

The young wife engages in a battle of her own against Death, portrayed by impressive bass-baritone David Weigel (Asheville, NC) in an about-face from his earlier comedic appearance.

In the title role, soprano Kelsea Webb (Anderson, IN) movingly tried to save her husband from his clutches and triumphed with her shining example of selfless love. Her warm and measured tone was beautifully nuanced.

Tenor Addison Marlor (Salt Lake City, UT) was a poignant and clear-toned Satyavan. Setting the scene in WWI attire added to the universality of the message, and Conductor Daniel Ocasek encased the performance with lovely orchestral support.

Ocasek again showed his remarkable range in the next one-acter, the fizzy and wildly kinetic "The Bear." Chekhov and William Walton were allowed the final say on the trials and benefits of marriage, with their humorously sexy and far more jaundiced take on love.

Skewering blustering, testosterone-driven males and simpering widows, with music running the gamut from traditional opera to modern musicals, Walton's knockabout tussle between the opposing male and female planets provided a tour de force conclusion to the evening.

Mezzo-soprano Ashley Dixon (Peachtree City, GA) tore the house down as the recently bereaved Popova. Her accuracy never wavered regardless of the considerable range of physical comedy required. Her initial smugness, seething anger and eventual surrender to the literally bearish Smirnov was wonderfully achieved by the fine young singing actress.

Returning to Merola, bass-baritone Cody Quattlebaum (Ellicott City, MD) matched Dixon's spirit with fire of his own. His long mane of brown hair and sly good looks added conviction to his portrayal of Smirnov. We already know he has a great voice from previous recitals. We also got a terrific reminder of his excellent comic timing. It was not hard to understand why the feisty widow would succumb.

One of the many joys for Merola audiences is the chance to hear often overlooked works. Enabling promising young singers to get their public performance chops as they recover neglected gems is the biggest joy of all.