Reviewed by James Karas
Grounded is a powerful new opera by Jeanine Tesori (music) and George Brant (libretto) that was commissioned and developed by The Metropolitan Operas. It is sung in English and deals with remote warfare by the U.S. Airforce. That makes it a quintessentially American product that gets a grand production by one of the greatest opera companies. The bonus for us is that it is brought to a movie theatre in our neighborhood, something that most of us could only dream of seeing live in New York.
It is a modern, high-tech production with videos and special effects that are dazzling. We learn and see how remote war occurs with a fighter pilot destroying terrorists in the Middle East from a seat in Las Vegas with deadly accuracy and the ability to see the body parts of the targets flying and the bloodshed.
The central character is a women called Jess (Emily D’Angelo) who becomes an extraordinary ace fighter pilot handling a conventional F16 plane in the sky. We are told that she is one of the very few women doing it but her mastery is undoubted.
The other side of the opera and Jess is her meeting a rancher, falling in love and having a baby girl. She leaves the Air Force to be with her child and returns after a five-years absence. In the meantime. the world has changed and she can carry one her duties as a fighter pilot from a chair in Las Vegas where with a Sensor (Kyle Miller) beside her, she will be called to destroy enemies on the ground in the Middle East. One example is the sighting of an American convoy on the road and some people working on the road that appear to be enemies planting explosives. She must destroy them and save the lives of the Americans. She does.
We see Jess as a pilot under the control of the rough and ready
Commander (Greer Grimsley). But we also see her with her husband Eric (Ben
Bliss) taking care of their little girl Sam. Jess lives in two worlds, the
fighter pilot killing people remotely and being unable to talk about it with
her husband (it is classified), and her domestic life. the wife and mother in
the idyllic ranch.
Jess’s two worlds are emphasized by the appearance of her “other” self simply called Also Jess (soprano Ellie Dehn).
These two worlds clash when Jess pursues the Serpent, presumably a terrorist leader. He is in a car going somewhere. She follows him and waits for him to step out of the car and confirm his identity before liquidating him. The car stops but the Serpent does not step out of it. Jess sees a little girl running to the car (her father?) and she is ordered to shoot. I will not spoil the ending for you and you should really see the opera to get the full effect.
We are told that Tesori wrote the opera specifically for Torontonian Emily D’Angelo and the mezzo soprano delivers an unforgettable performance. We see her as a dedicated, fearless, outstanding fighter pilot that relishes the experience of flying the free world of the sky. We se her as a wife and lover in tender scenes with her husband and her daughter. The clash between the two worlds becomes heart-wrenching. D’Angelo presents outstanding acting and stunning singing. Her vocal prowess covers the gamut from the tender and loving wife/mother to the tough and ambitious pilot and perhaps killer. That is where her world becomes unraveled.
Tenor Ben Bliss looks and acts like a benign and loving rancher. He met a nice girl and brought her to his ranch knowing little about whom he married. He sings splendidly and his overall performance is excellent.
Baritone Kyle Miller is the Sensor, the man who sits beside Jess as the (cameraman?) (who gets) get information and orders about where she is to unleash the deadly power of the drones. When she first meets him, Jess asks him if he is twelve years old. He is not of course, but he does look like one and this has a comic side. He does well as such and as a competent Sensor and a very good singer
Bass-baritone Greer Grimsley is the heavy and stentorian Commander giving orders in an authoritative voice. You do not argue with the Commander as Air Force brass or Grimsley as a singer.
Jason H. Thompson and Kaitlyn Pietras are co-projection designers and their videos representing Air Force pilots and effects of drones releasing and unleashing bombs remotely are terrifying even in the comfort of a theatre.
There are vigorous dance routines choreographed by David Neumann and a kaleidoscope of special effects that dazzle the mind. This is no simple opera but a production that tested the limits of an opera company with the most resources in the field.
Michael Mayer directs the mind-boggling complexities of the production with a firm hand and mind-blowing imagination.
Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts the Met Orchestra in all the facets and complexities of the score. It is almost impossible to absorb the music on a single hearing regardless of how impressive and enjoyable it is. Unlike familiar operas, I remember very little of the music except that I enjoyed listening to it. Modern operas have the problem of needing to be produced or heard numerous times before they are put in the drawer and all but forgotten. How many of them have joined the standard repertoire? Grounded has an army of advantages. It deals with a current American subject; its characters are recognizable Americans and it is sung in comprehensible English. It may be a candidate for the standard repertoire but it is difficult to say how many opera companies have the resources to produce it on a regular basis.
Grounded by Jeanine Tesori (music) and George Brant (libretto)was shown Live in HD from the Metropolitan Opera on October 19 , 2024 in various Cineplex theaters It will be reprised in encores starting from November 9, 2024, in various Cineplex theatres. For more information go to www.cineplex.com/events/
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