The Canadian Opera Company’s new production of Engelbert Humperdinck’s Hansel
& Gretel has so many virtues one feels downright churlish to
mention some of its less admirable aspects. Alas, we must deal with both.
Richard Strauss by happenstance conducted the first production of the
opera and he declared it a masterpiece without hesitation. That is about as
good as a Good Opera Seal of Approval
as you could get in 1893 and not too many people have taken issue with the
quality of the work.
It is based on the fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm which Humperdinck’s
sister Adelheid Wette molded into a libretto and it was a hit from the start.
With its wealth of gorgeous melodies and luscious music, the story of children
in the forest with a Sandman, a Dew Fairy and a Witch with unique gastronomic
tastes, it can hardly fail.
The singing is superb. Canadian soprano Simone Osborne (a regular with
the COC since 2013) has a clarion voice and sings a gorgeous Gretel. American
mezzo-soprano Emily Fons has a big and lusty voice and as Hansel makes a
perfect partner for Osborne.
Hansel and Gretel are of course children and Osborne and Fons, though
young, are not. Their costumes indicate their youth but that is not enough.
They have mastered the movements, mannerisms and gestures of children to the
point where we never doubt that they are children.
Amazing performances.
Ontarian operatic veterans Kristina Szabo and Russell Braun handle the
roles of the mother Gertrude and the father Peter with their usual assurance
and exceptional singing.
The role of the Witch, usually sung by a mezzo-soprano, is given to
Torontonian tenor Michael Colvin who approaches the meaty part with relish. He
wears a very colourful, clownish costume and sings with nasty delight. Marvelous.
The young Canadian soprano Anna-Sophie Neher is cast as both The Sandman
and The Dew Fairy and gets to sing some of the most beautiful arias of the work.
She does superb work with her deliciously lyrical voice.
Johnannes Debus conducted the COC Orchestra and did more than justice to
Humperdinck’s marvelous and superbly orchestrated score.
The production is directed by Joel Ivany with set and projection designs
by S. Katy Tucker, costume designs by Ming Wong and lighting design by JAX
Messenger.
They have set the opera unapologetically in an apartment building in
Toronto occupied by people of the lower rungs of the economic ladder. We are
treated to panoramic views of the city and the apartment building where we see
through the windows of numerous units. Then we zero in on several apartments on
two floors. Those apartments are the central but very changeable set of the
production.
We are treated to extensive use of projections and a kaleidoscope of
colours that are eye-catching and impressive. There is some indication of a
forest in the midst of all this but it quickly disappears and we are kept so
busy looking at everything else that we hardly notice the forest.
A scene
from the Canadian Opera Company’s Hansel & Gretel. Photo: Michael
Cooper
Then it gets murky and confusing. We know the fairy tale and we know the
plot of Hansel and Gretel. Ivany has something happening in one or two
apartments at most times and there are occasions when I have no idea what is
happening there. Hansel and Gretel are dealing with the Witch below and someone
in the upper apartment is drinking something that he took from the fridge and a
woman in another apartment is doing something else. I try to ignore them but
what in the world are they doing?
Hansel and Gretel’s first meeting with The Witch takes place in the
corner of the stage and they stay there for a while. Why? The oven in which the
children are to be roasted is a large wooden cabinet. We don’t need anything
more graphic, thank you. But what is Peter doing coming on the stage, getting
in the oven and shaking it? Who is the woman that comes in from the other side
of the stage and speaks with The Witch and disappears? What did I miss?
Did I tell you about the cute dog in the upper apartment? And my
companion noted that the children go and sleep in a strange man’s apartment. “Shouldn’t
we be calling social services?” she asked.
All of this was unnecessary, annoying and confusing. It has the effect
of making the post-performance conversation focus on the needless aspects
instead of the main point which was a splendidly sung and otherwise wonderful
production.
_________
Hansel and Gretel by Engelbert Humperdinck is being performed seven
times between February 6 and 21, 2020 at the Four Seasons Centre for the
Performing Arts, 145 Queen Street West, Toronto,
Ontario. Tel: 416-363-6671. www.coc.ca
James Karas is the Senior Editor - Culture of The Greek Press
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