Why Impressions of Pelléas? Why Now?

Opera Vivente will open a new production of Marius Constant's searing distillation of Debussy's Pelléas and Mélisande Friday, February. Conceived to be accompanied by two pianos, Impressions of Pelléas intensifies the tragedy of the love triangle between two half-brothers and a mysterious princess while evoking the sound world of Debussy's piano masterpieces. It is a chamber opera produced as a chamber opera.

Why do Impressions of Pelléas right now?

A lot of the talk in our industry and in criticism has centered on the question of "How can we keep doing the same stuff we've always been doing for less money"? We must produce yet another Carmen or Traviata or Butterfly, but for half the cost as the last time we did it. To my mind, this almost always results in a production that is unsatisfactory on many levels and is reviewed as such. But we are coming to accept it as the best we can do, after the oft-invoked caveat of "but in the current economic climate…”

To m, the more productive question for the opera industry to be asking is: "What are the elements of opera that are somewhat independent of cost, and what repertoire and production style best focuses us (and our audience) on those elements"?

When I start making a list of those elements, here's what I come up with:

1) Intelligent, musical, singing.

2) Committed, detailed, and skilled acting.

3) Evocative, thoughtful design that serves to enhance the audience's emotional response to the work rather than being an element that steals the audience's attention away from the work. (avoiding the old bon mot of "the audience left the theatre humming the set" in other words)

4) Direct communication with the audience that does not require expensive technology and equipment

5) Direction that places narrative, catharsis, and relevance at the forefront rather than spectacle or concept.

So then the answer to why Impressions of Pelléas now: quite simply, it's a piece that emphasizes all the above elements. I fact, I'd say it's the sort of piece that demands the above elements in order to work.

The musical language of the piece is not one that is all about high notes belted out by some overpaid "star", but rather a marriage of text and tone that is so subtle and intimate that it only comes alive in the throat of a singer who is more interested in artistry and the art form than accolades. The core of the story and the power of Pelleas is its examination of human relationships.

There are no improbable larger than life operatic hero/heroine relationships involving babies tossed in a fire or smugglers, gypsies, and an errant corporal. Instead, there are real human relationships: sibling rivalry between half-brothers, ineffective parents and grandparents, abusive marriages.

The characters of Pelléas tell half-truths, they commit sins of omission, they change their minds, they recognize the error of their ways and yet still persist in them. They delude themselves. Sound familiar? It should, because those are the things that we do. And the hope is that viewing these things on stage gives us the distance required to understand, to empathize, and to achieve catharsis.

Obviously a work of this sort of subtlety needs a number of things to work. For Opera Vivente, these things are presentation in the vernacular, a design concept that is evocative and functiona without being overwhelming, a stage director who is willing to spend the time building those characters with singers who are also willing to be that vulnerable and true to the emotions required of them. And finally, a performance space intimate enough that those singers will feel confident of their efforts being perceived by the audience occupying the same room with them and not only in a close up on an HD screen.

Personally I know a lot of singers, designers, and instrumentalists who will readily tell you that these are the elements that drew them to opera in the first place. So why have we as an industry allowed spectacle, "star" personalities, and a tiny segment of the total operatic repertoire to hogtie us into the belief that big is always best? In the end, does all great opera have to be grand opera?

To get tickets to this truly great opera, click here.

The Inaugural Posting of Opera Vivente's Blog

Hello Opera Aficionados, Opera Virgins, those of you who are Opera Curious, and yes, even you poor misguided souls who would identify yourselves as Opera Haters. Welcome to the inaugural posting of the Opera Vivente Blog. When I was originally contemplating starting this blog, I had thought that I would start by giving a brief history of Opera Vivente. However, upon further consideration, I think new technology should be used to talk about new things. So the brief history is going into an expanded History Page on our website and the blog is going to be used to keep those of you who are interested abreast of what's going on right now at Opera Vivente. So let's dive right in. Oh, by the way, I'm John Bowen, the General Director of Opera Vivente.

At this point, our 2007-2008 season has been completely cast. Indeed casting was completed in early April. As is usually the case, however, the various and sundry pressures of life that affect us all also affect singers causing all sorts of changes in their personal lives, their professional lives, and their finances. Consequently, this time of year invariably finds me looking for replacements of singers who for one reason or another have had to withdrawal from one of our upcoming productions. The first week of July was occupied with two such recastings. I am pleased to say that I have succeeded in finding replacements and am keeping my fingers crossed that this will be the end of cast changes. Hope springs eternal, eh?

This week, I have been busy assembling the props, furniture, and costumes necessary for our upcoming production of Leonard Bernstein's jazz-infused short opera Trouble in Tahiti. Opera Vivente will be performing this short 20th century masterpiece at Baltimore's annual arts festival, Artscape. It's a rather sarcastic look at the American Dream through the eyes of a 1950s couple who are having trouble in their marriage. Since the budget from the city is, shall we say, modest, I'm totally thrilled that I've been able to find most of the requisite items for cheap or, even better, for free. However, I have to say, prop shopping continues to be one of my least favorite tasks. It's time consuming, and often involves days of driving from thrift store to thrift store in search of things like a vintage toaster, a psychiatrist's couch, a locker room bench, or a tiki cup (to name just a few of the items that I've recently been on the prowl for). Ah, how I dream of someday having the budget to hire a full-time props master or mistress! But I digress. Trouble in Tahiti is now basically totally planned and shopped for and ready for rehearsals next week. Since our rehearsal space is not air-conditioned, all I need to do now is pray to the weather gods for less sauna-like conditions.

Anyway, in addition to rehearsals for Trouble in Tahiti next week, I'll also be meeting with the design team for the show which opens our 2007-2008 season in October: George Frideric Handel's decadent baroque masterpiece, Alcina. This fantastic piece deals with the tension between a pleasure-driven utopian society that hides a violent, selfish underbelly and a harsh, duty-bound "reality". Consequently, I've chosen to set this 18th century opera in the psychodelic 1960s. I've met with the lighting designer, the costume designer, and set designer individually to give them my take on the piece. They've now all gone off and done research, sketches, etc. Next Wednesday, we all come back together for what I'm sure will be a very exciting brainstorming session by the end of which all the pieces have to add up to a coherent whole. Unlike prop shopping, these design meetings are one of the great joys of my life. The energy sparked by putting a group of creative people in a room together is incredible and almost always ends up with each of us expanding our perceptions beyond what we had imagined individually. This will probably be particularly the case working on an opera being set in a decade which was highly focused on mind-altering experiences.

In my spare time (he said with tongue slightly inserted in cheek), I'm also stage directing a scenes program for a new organization called The Little Patuxent Opera Institute, which is performing at Howard Community College at the end of July. Tonight will be the first staging rehearsal and I'm anxious to see how all these talented operatic newbies that I auditioned back in June with the voice faculty of HCC have risen to the challenge of the scenes we've given them. Although I mostly work with professional singers, I always find working with amateurs or beginners highly rewarding. Everything is new and exciting to them and their learning curve is often a wonder to behold. No jaded cynics or haughty divas in this crowd!

Well that's it for now. I'm off to rehearsal. But look for more behind the scenes info in the coming days. And if you have any questions about anything or would like to hear about anything in particular, let me know.

See you at the opera! - John Bowen