Tag Archives: de souza

Jonelle Sills debuts in La Bohème at the COC

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It wasn’t supposed to happen for another couple of weeks but Jonelle Sills jumped into the COC’s production of Puccini’s La Bohème as Mimi on Sunday afternoon, replacing an indisposed Amina Edris.  It added some spice to a production I’ve seen rather a lot of times before.  I don’t have a lot to say about the production that I haven’t said before.  It’s still efficient and serviceable and it’s always looked a bit (not inappropriately) down at heel.  If it’s now a bit more worn and faded t doesn’t detract from that.  If you want more detail here’s a link to my May 2019 review.

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Frühlingsstürme

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Jaromir Weinberger’s Frühlingstürme has been called “the last operetta of the Weimar Republic”. It premiered in 1933 in Berlin with some success before being banned by the Nazis. The background is sombre enough. We are at the HQ of a Russian Army in Manchuria during the Russo-Japanese war of 1905. Against this backdrop we see two (or perhaps three) love affairs play out. Lydia Pavlovska is a widow exiled from Petersburg because of the Grand Duke Mikhailovitch’s infatuation with her. The commanding Russian general, the elderly and “good natured” Kachalov, is in love with her. She discovers that her old flame, Japanese major Ito, is operating as a spy at Kachalov’s HQ disguised as a Chinese servant. Meanwhile the general’s daughter-from-hell Tatiana has fallen for the scheming reporter from Berlin Roderich Zirbitz, who happens to be the author of a very uncomplimentary article about her father.

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Danceworks at 40

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Danceworks 40th anniversary show opened at Harbourfront last night.  Now contemporary dance isn’t really my thing but I was invited in part on the assumption I’d write about the music.  Fair enough but I thought we could do better than that so I asked my partner Katja, who has at least some dance in her background to guest review.  She has done this in rather more detail than I might have expected so what follows is basically her work.  I have added a few comments, mostly about the music, and I have made it clear where it’s me talking.  It would be obvious anyway as I am, as the good lady points out, a “grumpy old bastard”.  Over to Katja…

Joanna de Souza & Esmeralda Enrique-Amalgam-photo 03 by Hervé Lelbay_preview

Photo: Hervé Lelbay

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On the radar

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hoover_scruff_fight copyComing up this next week.  Tomorrow Toronto Operetta Theatre are performing Calixa Lavallée’s The Widow.  He’s the dude who wrote the music for O Canada! so no idea what to expect.  It’s at the Jane Mallett Theatre at 3pm.  Monday at 7pm at the Zoomerplex is the IRCPA Singing Stars of Tomorrow concert.  My interview with Brett Polegato about it is here.  And this is the link for ticket purchase.

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Oksana G.

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Aaron Gervais’ and Colleen Murphy’s Oksana G. finally made it to the stage last night after a most convoluted journey.  It’s being produced by Tapestry at the Imperial Oil Theatre with Tom Diamond directing.  The wait, I think has been worth it.  The story, set in 1997, of a naive country girl from the Ukraine who gets caught up in sex trafficking is dramatic and the it convincingly depicts the sleazy underworld of southern and eastern Europe created by the collapse of the USSR, the civil wars in the Balkans and the pervasive official corruption in countries like Ukraine, Greece and Italy.  It’s gritty and, at times, not at all easy to watch.

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Natalya Gennadi and Oksana G

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ng2A couple of days ago I sat down to chat with Natalya Gennadi who will sing the title role in Tapestry’s upcoming premiere of Oksana G by Aaron Gervais and Colleen Murphy.  It’s a story about a Ukrainian girl who gets caught up with a sex-trafficking ring; an all too real phenomenon in Eastern and Central Europe as the Soviet system disintegrated.  For Natalya it’s a very personal piece.  She is Ukrainian and much the same age as Oksana would be.  It’s her era and Oksana is, she feels, a similar sort of person from a similar background and there but for…

Thankfully, Natalya’ “career path” has been rather different.  She didn’t set out to be a singer.  In fact she trained in linguistics before applying to, and being accepted by the Moscow Conservatory though she never studied there.  Instead she moved to Ottawa with her husband where she began to study music formsally.  With a degree from the University of Ottawa she came to Toronto to study for her masters.  Along the way she appeared in a number of student productions and since graduating has been keeping busy with roles mainly with opera companies and orchestras in the Toronto suburbs(*); most recently in the title role of Suor Angelica with Cathedral Bluffs and the countess in Le nozze di Figaro with the Brott Festival.  The latter representing something of a vocal shift from Puccini and the like to lighter rep.  This is something that she sees as an important (if slightly unusual) career direction.  There have also been competitions and the Karina Gauvin scholarship and a “career blueprint” award from the IRCPA.

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Ambur Braid is Oksana G.

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So finally we have dates and casting for the long awaited Oksana G (music Aaron Gervais, libretto Colleen Murphy) from Tapestry Opera.  This one has been years in the making.  Back when I saw the second act workshop in 2012 there were all kinds of rumours about who would eventually (co)produce it.  Now it looks like Tapestry have come up the resources to do it as a standalone.  That’s no mean feat as this is a full blown two acter with orchestra and chorus.  It will play May 24th – 30th, 2017, at the Imperial Oil Opera Theatre of the Canadian Opera Company, 227 Front St. E. (just around the corner from the Kitten Kondo) and the title role will be played by Operaramblings’ favourite crazy lady Ambur Braid.  As she showed recently as Dalinda in the COC’s Ariodante she’s now much more than a series of impressive high notes.  She’s become a singing actress of real substance and Oksana is certainly a role a girl could get her teeth into.  The rest of the casting is also impressive with the always impressive Krisztina Szabó as Oksana’s mother, Adam Fisher as Father Alexander, and Keith Klassen as the baddy Konstantin.  Jordan de Souza conducts and Tom Diamond directs.  This is one not to miss!

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Photo Credit: Jennifer Toole

Jordan de Souza on the rise

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Jordan de SouzaJordan de Souza, late of the COC and Tapestry, continues to make news.  Having recently joined the Komische Oper Berlin as Studienleiter, he will, from the 2017/18 season, be the Kapellmeister (but not GMD).  I think (my knowledge of German musical semantics being imperfect) that this represents a step up from Assistant Conductor to Chief Conductor with a policy role but stops short of implying overall control of musical policy.  Apparently the Komische is still looking for a GMD.  For those who might be able to wring more out of it than I, here is the article from Musik Heute (auf Deutsch).

ETA:  A kind German correspondent provided further information on the semantics of “Kapellmeister” as it generally applies in German houses (i.e. may not be 100% correct for the specific case of the Komische).  So, Kapellmeister is basically the second resident conductor of an opera orchestra after the GMD, without (usually) being in any real sense an “assistant”to the GMD though possibly a “deputy”. Generally the Kapellmeister takes on a number of repertoire productions per season and perhaps also new productions and/or concerts.

There must be more money

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Rocking Horse Winner; music by Gareth Williams and libretto by Anna Chatterton, opened last night at the Berkeley Street Theatre.  It’s based on the short story by DH Lawrence and is a co-commission of Tapestry Opera and Scottish Opera.  There are some changes from the original story.  Here Paul is a developmentally challenged adult (on the autism spectrum) rather than a child.  The gardener is replaced by his personal care worker who moonlights as a caller at the local racetrack.  This has a couple of advantages.  It provides something of a rationale for Paul hearing the “voice” of the house and for his apparently inexplicable intuition about race winners and it also means that Paul can be cast as a tenor rather than having to make an awkward choice between a boy soprano or a pants role.  As Paul is one of, perhaps the main, character, this simplifies casting considerably.  The work is also gently updated.  So gently in fact that it’s barely perceptible.

RHW-L to R, top to bottom Keith Klassen as Oscar, Peter McGillivray as Bassett, Asitha Tennekoon,, Stephane Mayer, Aaron Durand, Sean Clark, Elaina Moreau, Erica Iris

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First we take Berlin

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JdSweb-209x300News just in that Jordan de Souza, currently with the COC, National Ballet of Canada and Tapestry, will be moving to Berlin later this year to take up the position of Studienleiter (Head of Music) at the Komische Oper. Jordan will spend six weeks working at the Bregenz Festival before taking up the Berlin position effective August 1st. Although Jordan will be leaving his current positions in Toronto he expects to be back in 2016/17 to conduct productions at both Tapestry and L’Opéra de Montréal.

It’s a pretty good move for all parties I think.