The Canadian Opera Company rounds off its current season with a grand
production of Verdi’s 27th opera Otello. The stars of the
production are Canadian bass-baritone Gerald Finley as Iago and the COC
Orchestra conducted by Johannes Debus.
David Alden’s production is quite solid but it has enough eccentric
touches to send your eyebrows to the back of your head.
Otello starts as a
great love story between a black general in the Venetian army and the high-born
and pure Desdemona. The story and the conflict are driven by the malevolent
Iago whose hatred of Otello for passing him over for promotion leads him to
destroying the loving couple.
Finley with his big, sonorous voice and commanding presence quickly
establishes vocal and personal dominance. The Venetian gentlemen Roderigo (Owen
McCausland) and Cassio (Andre Haji) cower under his authoritative persona.
Otello, a successful general is no fool but Iago manages to find a way to drive
him insane with jealousy to the point where he follows instructions on how to murder
his beloved Desdemona. Finley makes every aspect of Iago clear and alive for
us.
All of that cannot be said about tenor Russell Thomas’s performance as
Otello. Thomas has the physical attributes of the Moor. He is noble and
impressive in the beginning and when he becomes ugly in his jealousy, he is
frightfully menacing. Unfortunately, he is not always up to the vocal demands
of the role. What we see physically is not translated into vocal power and
emotional splendour. He is not helped by Alden’s directing and there is little
passion and not enough fury in his dealing with Desdemona. In the end, and this
is one of Alden’s idiosyncratic stagings, he dies “upon a kiss” about ten feet
away from Desdemona.
Soprano Tamara Wilson as Desdemona is good in some of the almost Wagnerian
outbursts but she does not quite measure up to all the emotional expressions
demanded of the role.
The production gains a great deal from the playing of the COC Orchestra.
From the initial burst of music representing the storm to the final death of
Otello, we are treated to magnificent playing under the baton of Johannes
Debus.
Verdi provides some
heroic singing for the chorus and the COC Chorus responds with a splendid
performance.
The set by Jon Morrell
consists of large concrete walls that could represent a fortress or a port and
they serve for all the scenes of the opera with minor adjustments. The costumes
suggest 19th century attire and they are fine.
Gerald Finley as Iago and Russell Thomas as Otello. Photo: Michael Cooper
A couple more examples of Alden’s idiosyncrasies. At one point, Otello
brings an icon of the Virgin Mary on the stage and hangs it on a wall. That
seems quite appropriate because we are expecting Desdemona to sing “Ave Maria.”
Instead we see Cassio shooting a few darts at the Madonna and the icon is soon removed.
Why the display of such sacrilege by Cassio is a mystery to me.
Otello commands Desdemona to go to bed in her white wedding nightgown.
There is no bed in this production and we see Desdemona crouching on one side
of the stage and Otello across at the other side. Eventually he strangles her
in the centre of the stage on the floor.
Otello kills himself after realizing what Iago did to him and what he
did to Desdemona. Otello usually stabs himself with a dagger and falls upon
Desdemona and his last words are “a kiss…another kiss…another kiss.” In this
production Otello slashes the side of his neck and falls about ten feet from
Desdemona. One is grateful that he does not do the completely comic act of
slashing his throat and continuing to sing but slashing the side of his neck is
almost as bad and dying that far from Desdemona is pretty ridiculous.
These directorial
quirks need not be more than eyebrow raisers but Alden really packs them in and
I am not quite sure why. Once your eyebrows return to their natural place, some
gripes aside, the production becomes thoroughly enjoyable.
______________________
Otello by Giuseppe Verdi is being performed eight times on
various dates until May 21, 2019 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. www.greekpress.ca
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