Manitoba Opera enchants crowd with 50th anniversary season production of Rossini’s ‘La Cenerentola’

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This article was published 12/11/2022 (731 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Goodness prevailed as Manitoba Opera kicked off its auspicious 50th anniversary season with Rossini’s La Cenerentola, a feel-good choice that enchanted Saturday’s opening night crowd, and notably the company’s first full-scale production since the global pandemic began ravaging the world in March 2020.

The highly stylized opera buffa sung in Italian (with English sur-titles), and skillfully stage directed by Winnipeg’s Robert Herriot tells the archetypal tale of Cinderella, who is bullied and berated by her two stepsisters, Clorinda and Tisbe, and in this case, her beer-swilling stepfather Don Magnifico. Enter Prince Ramiro, who becomes instantly smitten by the pure-hearted dreamer, a.k.a. Angelina, who sings of a king finding his true love during Una volta c’era un re, and they all live happily ever after.

Deanna Finnman’s glorious, 1950s-style haute couture frocks originally designed for Edmonton Opera’s 2017 production, also directed by Heriott, created luscious eye candy for the senses. Sheldon Johnson’s equally brilliant set comprised (mostly) of a skeletal frame of a mid-20th century bungalow, including, naturally, a fireplace for the cinder girl/family maid became a canvas for the entire cast that also included the return of the MO Chorus led by Tadeusz Biernacki. What a joy to see maestro Tyrone Paterson back on the podium, who crisply led the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra throughout Rossini’s bubbly score of operatic hits.

Notably marking her MO debut, Winnipeg-based mezzo-soprano Lizzy Hoyt dazzled in the title role, fleshing out her prototypical, fairy-tale inspired character with wholly believable, deep humanity, while tossing off her sparkling colouratura passages just as she tirelessly tends to her stepsisters’ every whim and need. Brava to Hoyt for her “big” Act 2 aria, Nacqui all’affanno … Non più mesta, in which the radiant singer pulls out all the stops in one final, enthralling display of bel canto fuelled by her flawless intonation and agile voice leaping through her full range with precision and lightness.

Canadian tenor John Tessier reprising his role of Prince Ramiro, and last appearing in MO’s 2016 production of Werther, filled the stage with his every, naturally regal appearance and unabashedly lyrical voice ideally suited for the composer’s ear-pleasing music, even when initially appearing in cognito as his own valet. So strong are his acting skills that Tessier inadvertently upstaged himself during Act 2’s Si, ritrovarla io giuro in which he pledges to find his love after she returns home from the ball (er, dinner party, here). Wriggling out of his valet uniform into more princely duds that, while eliciting loud guffaws from viewers, only drew focus from this eagerly anticipated showstopper, still delivered with palpable resolve.

Baritone Nicholas Borg (MO debut) shone as a diamond in the rough as Ramiro’s “real” valet Dandini, with his fine vocals at times at times difficult to hear during Act 1’s Come un’ape ne’ giorni d’aprile, and his more restrained portrayal of this famously delicious role needing to go much further.

However baritone Peter McGillivray’s Don Magnifico would be a tough act for anyone to follow, with the hugely charismatic singer crafting a larger-than-life persona including no-holds barred physical comedy skills, as well as booming through his opening Act 1 aria, Miei rampolli femminini, or later, spitting out librettist Jacopo Ferretti’s rapid-fire text during his duet Zitto, zitto, piano, piano performed with Borg.

It’s been far too long since we’ve seen Winnipeg-based soprano Andrea Lett light up this stage, whose Clorinda showcased her confident, pitch-perfect voice (not to mention razor-sharp acting chops) matched equally by Canadian-Bulgarian mezzo-soprano Adanya Dunn (MO debut) as her sisterly counterpart, Tisbe. The pair infused the show with plenty of comic punch, hilariously mugging and sparring for the Prince’s favours while navigating a gazillion quick costume changes. They also easily held their own during Act 2 sextet Questo è un nodo avviluppato that became an overall show highlight.

American bass Kirk Eichelberger as mysterious philosopher Alidoro embarks on his own “Cinderella” trajectory, initially appearing as a scruffy “beggar” scouting potential brides for the Prince, to later morphing into a doppelganger for iconic, pony-tailed German designer Karl Lagerfeld — including his signature fan — as the opera’s chief plot-driver in lieu of a fairy godmother. Several scenes in which he waved his hands to spur characters’ action akin to a master puppeteer only felt cheesy (underscored by woozy lava light effects by designer Scott Henderson), as did the Act 2 storm scene performed in slow motion that frankly didn’t work.

Despite these few mars, Rossini’s La Cenerentola continues to resonate as a tale for the ages, with its message that hope, kindness, love and goodness — no magical fairy godmothers or mice required — even more potent for today’s (hopefully) post-pandemic, rapidly changing world. The audience, that leapt to its feet at the end with cries of bravo, seemed to agree.

La Cenerentola repeats on Tuesday, Nov. 15th, 7 p.m. (note earlier start time) and Friday, Nov. 18th, 7:30 p.m. at the Centennial Concert Hall. For tickets or further information, visit: https://mbopera.ca/

Holly.harris@shaw.ca