Author Archives: operaramblings

Unknown's avatar

About operaramblings

Toronto based lover of opera, art song, related music and all forms of theatre.

A rather different Opera Revue show

Posted on by
Reply

82448A99-7CBC-4566-B525-35743D468953-1Opera Revue teamed up with Opera Atelier for a show called Trills, Chills and Thrills at the Redwood Theatre on Sunday evening.  The usual gang of Danie Friesen, Alex Hajek and Claire Harris were joined by tenor Ben Done and mezzo Kathryn Rose Johnston for a programme of opera arias and musical theatre numbers that (sort of) turned the plot of Handel’s Acis and Galatea (OA’s upcoming show) into a murder mystery.

There was music on spooky themes by Britten (Turn of the Screw), Schubert, Handel (of course), Corigliano (Ghosts of Versailles), Lloyd Webber (Phantom, natch), Verdi and more.  It was glued together by a narrative in which the mermaid/nymph Galatea is murdered and despite being turned into sushi her ghost returns to wreak its revenge.  And there was one of the dances from Acis and Galatea (Julia Sedwick and Eric da Silva). Continue reading →

UoT Opera in the RBA

Posted on by
Reply

On Wednesday it was UoT Opera’s turn in the RBA.  Pretty much the whole graduate programme appeared in a series of duets, trios and larger ensemble numbers staged by Mabel Wonnacott.  The theme was “love” (well it had to be that or “death”.. this is opera). It was a French and German programme so there was fairly mainstream stuff like the Antonia/Hoffmann duet from Les contes d’Hoffmann and “Hab mir’s gelobt” from Der Rosenkavalier but also rarer material like “Doute de la lumière” from Thomas’ Hamlet.

uotoperarba

Continue reading →

13 Plays About ADHD… All At The Same Time

Posted on by
Reply

13 Plays About ADHD… All At The Same Time by Alec Toller (mostly) is a show that is currently running at the tiny Assembly Theatre in the heart of Little Tibet so if you get bored there are momos a’plenty to be had.  Unsurprisingly the show is about ADHD.  Hosts Sharjil Rasool and Danny Pagett (who predictably arrives late) attempt to take us through a seminar about ADHD, how to diagnose yourself how to recover from it (if you have it).

IMG_1982

Continue reading →

Sing to Me Again

Posted on by
Reply

Apocryphonia has been around for three years or so but Sunday evening at Heliconian Hall was the first time I managed to catch one of their concerts.  I like that they don’t do mainstream repertory, rather seeking out much less well known works, and Sunday was no exception.  It was actually a collaboration with Syrinx Concerts and the show was in two parts.  The first part featured baritone John Holland and tenor Alexander Cappellazzo with pianist Ivan Estey Jovanovic performing 20th century songs mostly from Eastern Europe and the Caucasus while the second featured works from the same area arranged for oboe (Caitlin Broms-Jacob) and piano (Madeline Hildebrand).  I say “mostly” because each half included a piece by Toronto’s Srul Irving Glick.

459810745_8454432601302908_33543492753501181_n

Continue reading →

Reminiscencia

Posted on by
Reply

Reminiscencia is a performance piece created during lockdown by Chilean playwright Malicho Vaca Valenzuela.  Valanzuela is the sole live performer and from his desk on stage he taskes us through series of scenes and themes using AV material on his laptop projected onto a giant screen.  It’s ultimately about memory.  How we create a footprint in history and how that does and doesn’t endure.  His examples are all taken from his home town of Santiago de Chile.

reminiscencia

Continue reading →

A Fidelio in two halves

Posted on by
Reply

I have long been of the opinion that Beethoven’s Fidelio is structurally flawed.  The first and second acts are so different intone and dramatic intensity that it never seems quite to hang together.  Tobias Kratzer obviously shares this view but being smarter than me finds a way to leverage it.  For his production at the Royal Opera House in 2020 he takes the two acts and effectively makes the second a commentary on the first.  It’s worth quoting his own words:

Like no other opera, Beethoven’s Fidelio falls into two unequal halves.  Act I is a historical melodrama on freedom and love in the post-Revolutionary era.  Act II is a political essay on the responsibility of the individual in the face of the silent majority, a musical plea for active empathy.

1.roccofideliomarzelline Continue reading →

Rebanks fellows in the RBA

Posted on by
1

Luxury!  Two operatic concerts on consecutive lunchtimes in the RBA.  On Thursday it was the turn of the Glenn Gould School’s Rebanks fellows with mentor Paul Groves to present a series of staged opera excerpts directed by Anna Theodosakis.  Stéphane Mayer provided the excellent piano accompaniment throughout.

COC Opera Rebanks-11

Continue reading →