Opera Project Ends on High Note

Author: Lucie Greene

The production of "L'incoronazione di Poppea" by Claudio Monteverdi, was performed on Wednesday, Jan. 29, and Thursday, Jan. 30, in the Center for the Arts Concert Hall, as the final result of both two semesters of opera study, and one intense Winter Term production course.
A joint project between the Italian and Music Departments, the performance was intended to be a working process.
Not only did students study a particular composer and opera in depth, but they also received hands-on experience in performing and creating a live piece through a cycle of vocal training, rehearsal and academic study of the opera within its context.
Assistant Professor of Italian David Castronuovo, who has several years of operatic experience, chose "L'incoronazione di Poppea" specifically for its passionate and powerful storyline.
This, he said, would appeal to young students and spark their interest in the opera genre. With the help of Visiting Assistant Professor of Music Stacy Moore and voice coaches Cynthia Huard, Carol Christensen and Beth Thompson-Kaiser, the cast reached their highest potential, which they displayed to an audience of supportive students, patrons and colleagues.
Jarl von Arlyon, a well-known director who recently put up the same opera in Manhattan, directed the Middlebury performance.
The story centers on Emperor Nero (Jake Nicholson '05), who is hounded by his Mistress Poppea (Dorothy Resig '04) to rid himself of both his wife Empress Octavia (Allison Miller '05) and his most trusted advisor Seneca (Ben Fainstein '04). Thorin Schiber '04.5 played Ottone, a general in love with Poppea who left him for the emperor, while Teal Tigner '05 took the role of Dursilla, who wins over Ottone and shares in his banishment after he attempts to murder Poppea. The piece begins with an introductory trio, which included two of the voice coaches, Thompson-Kaiser and Christensen.
While giving the pair a chance to exhibit their talents, this established a high production standard that all the other performers would follow.
As the performance progressed, various characters entered into the plot line, allowing those not as developed or confident vocally to still play a role in the project. This project allowed a broader range of talents to contribute. This ambitious piece was performed with an obvious sense of fun and enthusiasm.
The high caliber opera made the audience want to stay, if only to congratulate the performers. Resig and Fainstein both gave outstanding performances with their rich and accomplished voices.
They seemed to have the strongest and most natural grasp of the genre.
The choral sections, tribunes and Councils of Rome mourning Seneca's condemnation provided a refreshing change of style from the series of extended solos.
The choral sections were executed extremely well, with a beautiful and sensitive handling of the chord changes and melody. Although created in a very short time, the set and costumes still stood out.
Transformed by a series of classical Roman arches and illuminated by simple white lights, the concert hall provided a beautiful atmosphere with its clean abstracted lines.
The costumes, combinations of Romanesque influences, suited the performers.
The performer's voices sounded fully developed and operatic given their ages and the short time spanned for production. The work stands more as a testament to the ethos of the Center for the Arts in general, as is pointed to in the opera's introduction by Liza Sacheli in "Arts at Middlebury College."
She emphasizes that the process of creating art is in many ways more important than the actual product. "L'incorazione di Poppea," while an extremely strong production in its own right, confirms Sacheli's statement.
Opera is very rarely made accessible, and is often seen as very intellectual and elevated art form. This experience demonstrates invaluable understanding of a key part of Italian language and culture and potential for bridging this gap.
The creative process and participation involved in producing the opera constituted the central positive aspect of the experience.