Rendition of Mozart opera gives lesson in great performance
L.A. Opera's 'Cosí' marked by fine cast, orchestral support
By John Mangum
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
"Così fan tutte" is kind of Mozart's operatic bad boy.
The music is genius, the libretto is so tight it would stop bullets, but the work as a whole has always been kind of problematic. Much of the composer's affecting score is at odds with his poet's mercurial text.
"Così" was on its best behavior, though, when Los Angeles Music Center Opera revived Sir Peter Hall's production, which first took the stage here in 1988. The production provided the ideal context for some all-around excellent music-making.
The cast, L.A. Master Chorale and L.A. Chamber Orchestra performed with great accomplishment, displaying a keen sensitivity to Mozartian style in one of the composer's most stylish musical works.
"Così," whose complete title translates to something in the neighborhood of "And So Do They All" or the "School for Lovers," follows two couples through a test of fidelity devised by Don Alfonso and abetted by Despina, the leading ladies' maid.
The sisters Fiordiligi and Dorabella are betrothed to Guglielmo and Ferrando, two Neapolitan soldiers. Don Alfonso bets the soldiers that temptation could render their brides-to-be unfaithful, because, he says, all women are essentially fickle. Guglielmo and Ferrando protest, agreeing to the wager on faith that Fiordiligi and Dorabella love only them.
Dressed as Albanians, the soldiers hit on each other's fiancees, discovering that the women are far less true than they thought. But the opera ends happily, Alfonso having taught the lovers his lesson.
Tenor Michael Schade and bass-baritone Richard Bernstein gave Ferrando and Guglielmo strong, accomplished voices and a humorous side. Schade's creamily spun rendition of Ferrando's big Act I aria "Un' aura amorosa" was especially melting, and Bernstein brought a similar quality to his contribution to Guglielmo's duet with Dorabella in Act 2.
As Dorabella, soprano Marie McLaughlin made her L.A. Opera debut, singing the role on-stage for the first time. Her contribution to the duet matched Bernstein's for beauty, and her knack for comedy made Dorabella the perfect foil for her more serious sister. Soprano Hillevi Martinpelto made Fiordiligi more melodramatic than usual, and this characterization helped propel the drama.
Claudio Desderi, who appeared in last season's remarkable "Don Pasquale," returned to sing Don Alfonso, justifying the high opinion in which he is held. Elizabeth Gale matched his excellent performance every step of the way as Despina, the maid who becomes a doctor and a notary to help Don Alfonso test her mistresses.
The accomplished performances on-stage were underpinned by top-notch orchestral support from the L.A. Chamber Orchestra. Conductor Ingo Metzmacher made his U.S. debut with this performance, one filled with sensible ideas and an attention to style that could hardly be bettered.
Sir Peter Hall's production and designer John Bury's attractive, no-nonsense sets provided the ideal backdrop for a pretty much perfect performance of "Così."
Why, then, was this very well-behaved presentation of the opera not as satisfying as it should have been?
Certainly through no fault of anyone involved in this production. "Così" is a naughty opera simply because the text and the music work against each other.
Da Ponte created a libretto which mocks itself with wit and grace. He provided nothing concrete or secure in the whimsical, capricious text - characters change their identities, their feelings and their loyalties at the drop of a hat.
Mozart responded seriously to Da Ponte's most unserious story. He took the emotions at face value, and his music gives these feelings a depth that just isn't in Da Ponte's libretto.
For example, in her justly famous Act 2 rondo "Per pietà," Fiordiligi sings of how her ardor and courage will help her overcome her shameful desire for one of the mysterious Albanians, and the audience (at least those who haven't memorized the synopsis) believes her. Why? Because her sentiment gains weight, resolve and credibility from Mozart's music, which takes the emotion seriously. Only, 15 minutes later, the text has Fiordiligi off-stage, presumably getting together with the Albanian, something that works against Mozart's musical response.
The audience, and Mozart too, it seems, only really gets the joke in the third scene of Act 2. Here, Don Alfonso sings the lesson for the lovers - that women change their minds too often to keep track, but men have only themselves to blame for this. When Guglielmo and Ferrando join him to sing the words of the title ("And so do they all") to a little snatch of music from the overture, Mozart and Da Ponte are in sync. Composer and poet meet in the world of self-parody, and a remarkable moment results.
"Così" is no "Figaro," but it is full of beautiful music and incidental humor. In a performance like L.A. Opera's, it's also something not to be missed.
OPERA: L.A. Opera presents "Così fan tutte, ossia La scuola degli amanti," music by Mozart, libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. At Dorothy Chandler Pavilion March 4, 7, 9, 13 at 7:30 p.m., March 2 at 1 p.m. TIX: $22-$120, $15 student and senior rush one hour before curtain. For more info call (213) 972-8001.
Michael Schade and Hillevi Martinpelto
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