Italian opera "Falstaff" comes home after 16 years

Friday, October 30, 1998

REVIEW: Verdi's comedy from 19th century still wins laughs from crowds

By John Mangum

Daily Bruin Contributor

Giuseppe Verdi's "Falstaff" occupies a special place in the world of opera.

It's the last grand statement from a tradition of Italian comic opera that stretches back to Mozart and Rossini. "Falstaff" is also Verdi's final opera. Premiered in 1893, the work brought the composer's career, which spanned more than 50 years, to a close.

But for the Los Angeles audiences, "Falstaff" represents a beginning, not an end. It was the first home-grown production of any opera in recent memory, presented under the auspices of the L.A. Philharmonic Association and lovingly prepared under the watchful eye of the orchestra's then-music director, Carlo Maria Giulini, in 1982.

Since then, the Philharmonic's "Falstaff" has traveled the world, appearing in such storied venues as London's Royal Opera and Florence's Teatro Communale. On Wednesday evening, the production had its homecoming, returning to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion after a 16-year absence. And what a homecoming it was.

The production, now the property of L.A. Opera, shows few, if any, signs of its age. The sets and costumes have been lovingly refurbished, and the broad humor and gentle philosophy of the opera were, for the most part, conjured up successfully by director Stephen Lawless.

The work, based primarily on Shakespeare's "Merry Wives of Windsor," presents the misadventures of Sir John Falstaff, the quixotic knight and self-styled Don Juan. Naturally, the ladies he tries to seduce make a fool out of him in the end, but getting there is more than half the fun.

Of course, the wonderfully talented cast made the most of Falstaff's bumbling and everyone else's scheming. While it lacked the superstar names that the original production had in abundance, the singers - mostly L.A. Opera regulars - made the most of the riotous work.

As Sir John, baritone Gregory Yurisich brought a feisty spirit to the role. His interplay with Stephanie Blythe's delightful Mistress Quickly at the beginning of Act Two was especially memorable, not only for its vocal detail, but also for Yurisich's comic abilities.

In fact, Act Two's entire first scene revealed the strengths of this production. Although it lacked the manic, Three Stooges-style mayhem that made the close of the second and third acts so hilarious, this scene displayed Yurisich, Blythe and the Ford of baritone Robert Orth at their best. The cast as a whole presented carefully detailed interpretations that enlivened moments of less obvious comedy.

As Meg and Alice, the women whom Falstaff tries to seduce, Suzanna Guzman and Ashley Putnam also created winning portrayals. Jamie Offenbach's whiny Pistol and Charles Castronovo's laid-back Bardolph were right on target as Falstaff's goofball sidekicks.

But the evening's most memorable performances, alongside Yurisich's Sir John, came from Ashley Putnam and Greg Fedderly as the young lovers Nanetta and Fenton. Verdi gave both characters memorable arias in Act Three, some of the opera's only solo sections. Putnam and Fedderly brought these off with aplomb, the soprano glowing in her invocation of the spirits of Windsor Forest and the tenor elegant in his paean to love.

The L.A. Opera Orchestra played the score with the requisite measure of delicacy and care under the baton of conductor Gabriele Ferro. During their brief appearance as the demons, devils and sprites of Windsor Forest in Act Three, the members of the L.A. Opera Chorus seemed to enjoy themselves.

The production itself boasts some evocative period sets, originally designed by Hayden Griffin and rebuilt specifically for this revival. The scene change in Act Three, from behind an inn to Windsor Forest, used a particularly remarkable effect. The entire inn folded in on itself, turning into the trunk of an old oak tree and revealing the lights of Windsor twinkling in the distance. This inventiveness made the production as much a treat for the eye as it was for the ear.

Only one moment in the evening jarred, just before the end of the opera. Everyone joined to sing a rollicking fugue to the words, "All the world's a jest, and man is born a fool," sort of the final moral of what, thus far, had been a good-natured tale.

But on this occasion, the lights in the theater slowly illuminated and the singers moved like predators to the front of the stage. They pointed at the audience, some of them almost snarling the words, and for a moment, the whole thing took on an uncomfortably self-righteous and accusatory tone. Maybe that was the desired effect, but it certainly wasn't what Verdi would have wanted.

Thankfully, the lights dimmed again, the performers drifted back into the dreamy world of Windsor Forest, and the opera concluded as playfully as it had begun.

OPERA: L.A. Opera presents Verdi's "Falstaff" in five performances through Nov. 14. Tickets are $25- $137, $20 student and senior rush tickets may be available. For more information, call (213) 972-8001.Photo by Ken Howard

Gregory Yurisich (as Sir John Falstaff) and Ashley Putnam (as Alice Ford) star in Verdi's "Falstaff", which is running through Nov. 14 at the L.A. Opera.

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