While opera may be “alive and well at the Oberlin Conservatory,” and also “adventurous,” as read posters advertising Handel’s Alcina, the implications behind these statements should not be ignored. It is of note, i.e. abnormal, for opera to be alive and well, and even more abnormal for it to be adventurous.
Other ads read, “Before there was MTV, there was opera.” This may be true, but now there is MTV, which directors everywhere have to keep in mind. So why is opera so unpopular? In an age where we can just turn on the TV and watch hard bodies gyrate in fantasy lands, why does his thing called opera even bother to continue? I think it is supposed to elevate its audience to the sublime. Or something like that. But for whatever reason, in this case, they aren’t lying: opera is alive at Oberlin.
Alcina is a case in point, and the singing in this production is, for the most part, gorgeous. Senior Malia Bendi-Merad, who plays the soprano role of Morgana, is one of the best things ever to have happened to Oberlin’s voice department. Her intonation, clarity and subtle musicality alone make this production worth seeing. Senior Liora Grodnikaite, as the male role of Ruggiero, is also stellar. She effects a convincing masculine swagger.
Unfortunately, the generally fabulous orchestra drowns out some of her most musically sensitive moments.
Senior Vera Savage is well cast as the sorceress. She does an impressive job reigning in her massive voice and letting it wail when appropriate. She has all the makings of a classic opera diva, not to mention the cleavage to boot.
Junior Sarah Fanuchi, as Bradamante, displays enormous potential, and with some guidance and confidence, is on her way to become a powerful performer. Junior Sarah St. Germain is adorable as Oberto, although her smaller voice is sometimes swallowed up by the orchestra. Junior Ferris Allen does an admirable job as well.
Alumnus David Kurtenbach’s voice is appropriate for his role as Oronte, but his slinky body-language was a detriment to his sound and effectiveness. All of the singers, save Bendi-Merad and Gradnikaite (who in all fairness are two of the older members of the cast), could benefit from some attention to the control of their bodies and their acting techniques.
But opera is not solely an aural art form, it also has visual components that require attention. Today’s MTV-watching audience wants something that is fun to watch. Alcina director Jonathon Field certainly tries to remedy this, but his methods are all wrong. Instead of focusing acting, staging and blocking, Field uses elaborate, gimmicky sets and ornate costumes to maintain his audience’s attention. This method implies either a lack of confidence in his singers or laziness on his part in terms of training them in how to hold themselves on stage. The opera features a small, circular stage-within-a-stage, a fancy slide projector and a scrim, which is present for the entirety of the opera.
Audience opinion varied greatly in regards to Field’s direction. One audience member called it “beautiful,” while another proclaimed it “self-indulgent” and even went on to say that it “looked like an epileptic seizure.” The circular mini-stage cut the amount of stage space in half, further limiting the already restricted motion onstage. The scrim was both an enhancement and a detriment, at times reminding the audience that this is all just fantasy and at times serving as a distraction.
Voice majors are not required to take acting at Oberlin. They are, however, required to take 18 hours of Italian, German and French, which explains the overall exemplary Italian diction. The students’ performances serve as a testament to the excellent training they are receiving in language, as well as in singing itself, but also as a testament to the training they are not receiving. What good are 18 credits of pronunciation and translation if there are zero credits of interpretation?
As for the plot of the opera (and let’s face it, who actually goes to an opera for the plot?), it is typically ridiculous and convoluted and contains the usual exoticism and sexism one can expect from opera. The magical elements are a nice addition to the usual love/revenge melodrama, and one thing for which the staging was well suited.
The opera is three hours long, and due to the aforementioned lack of blocking and acting direction, those three hours do not fly by. This is partially because the nature of the Handel opera is such that there is little variation in the music; it is almost entirely composed of arias (solos for one singer). That said, the visual elements of the opera should be even more important.
If you are looking for beautiful singing and special effects, Alcina will be right up your alley. If you want to be transported to the sublime, or at least experience some convincing acting, I can’t promise that Alcina will satisfy.
Hall Auditorium. Friday and Saturday, March 14 and 15 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, March 16 at 2 p.m. $5 OCID, $8 public. Tickets available through CTS.