The Review Is In

Opera in the Heights finds the magic touch: New maestro and a rising star liftIl Trovatore

Michelle Johnson as Leonora and Dominick Rodriguez as Manrico in Opera in theHeights' production of Il Trovatore
Photo by Davis Tucker
From Opera in the Heights' production of Il Trovatore, Andrew Cummings as Contedi Luna and Michelle Johnson as Leonora
Photo by Alyson Toups

There might have been only two anvils, but at least they were authentic and hammered with unrelenting gusto. One of the most beloved scenes in all Italian opera, the rousing “anvil chorus” from Verdi’s Il Trovatore, was given a confident and exhilarating performance by Opera in the Heights.

The words, “so, to work now,” seem to be not only the motto of the current Coro di zingari (in Italian, “the gypsy chorus”) on Heights Boulevard, but for everyone involved this season with the “growing professional opera company,” as it is described at the group’s website.

Last season’s production of Verdi’s Don Carlo was my introduction to Opera in the Heights, and while I wasn’t quite taken with that staging, there was something about the conductor that sparked my curiosity. I made a mental note to watch for his name again, and was thrilled in September when CultureMap’s Joel Luks interviewed Enrique Carreón-Robledo in recognition of his appointment as OITH’s new artistic director. It’s turned out to be more than just good news.

Verdi’s lengthy score was stored mostly in Carreón-Robledo’s head. He turned the pages of the full score before him mostly without looking at them, because he’d committed it all to memory

At the time, maestro told Luks he was attracted to the company’s potential, adding that he thought patrons were interested in seeing emerging artists on the stage.

Yes, we are, and the opening performance of Il Trovatore Thursday night is striking evidence that this goal is easily being accomplished. It’s also safe to say that the ensemble’s obvious potential stands to be realized even further under Carreón-Robledo’s leadership and inspiring artistic zeal.

Opera in the Heights has more performances on Il Trovatore Saturday night and March 23, 24 and 25.

Dancingly expressive is one way to describe Carreón-Robledo’s engaged realization of a warhorse like Il Trovatore. I noticed early in the first act that Verdi’s lengthy score was stored mostly in Carreón-Robledo’s head. That is, he turned the pages of the full score before him mostly without looking at them, because he’d committed it all to memory. He mouthed the Italian arias of each and every character, his gaze intent on the singer of the moment, while he conducted.

He’s not a square little “box-in-the-air” type of conductor. When Carreón-Robledo wanted one of those typically schmaltzy Verdi phrases to stretch and bend so that listeners could hang on to it for just a bit longer, he’d raise his baton until he was standing tip-toe. There is something of the crazy Zen calligrapher in his approach, which is appealing, yet theatrical without ever becoming overwrought.

As for those emerging singers Carreón-Robledo wishes to feature, the maestro found his rising star with none other than the elegant Michelle Johnson as Leonora.

Performing grand opera in a small venue like Lambert Hall, with only a 22-member orchestra, raises distinct challenges for a conductor. The ensemble isn’t constantly trying to project. In fact, it often seems the opposite. How to avoid being continually too loud is the challenge.

And the balance between singer and orchestra in this setting is quite the reverse of a place like the Metropolitan Opera, for instance, where almost any singer could be in danger of being drowned out by the players. I’ve heard it happen to the best of them. At Lambert Hall, however, it’s more often the singers who drown out the orchestra. That happened on occasion Thursday night, with certain artists more than others, but not to the degree it had in last year’s Don Carlo.

As for those emerging singers Carreón-Robledo wishes to feature, the maestro found his rising star with none other than the elegant Michelle Johnson as Leonora. She was consistently wonderful throughout, but the high point came in the fourth act.

From the first notes of the weird short, hopping overture that opens the scene, to her recitative and then stunning interpretation of “D'amor sull'ali rosee” (“on the rosy wings of love”), one felt in the presence of a great conductor and a deeply musical singer. Johnson showed a range here that I’d never quite considered in the context of the aria.

Generally considered a dramatic coloratura showpiece, Johnson’s middle C made me think she might be thrilling mezzo-soprano as well. There are soaring high notes (the D two octaves away, for example) and many great leaps in between. It is fiendishly difficult, and if it’s bad, the aria seems hours long. Johnson’s interpretation felt almost too short, and she gave one of the most precious things a singer can give: a haunting yet vivid sustained pianissimo, delivered with perfect intonation.

It should be noted that Opera in the Heights offers two casts for this production. Johnson is in the “Emerald” cast, and Lara Tillotson, in the “Ruby” cast, has a difficult act to follow.

Sets, costumes and lighting design are still lacking, especially in view of the elevated musicianship at OITH, so let’s hope that increasing attention will be give to this area. If the company is truly a “growing professional,” it can’t continue to be stunted visually. The company needs a creative designer who could streamline productions into something more sophisticated.

Opera in The Heights’ 2012-13 season is the first planned completely by Carreón-Robledo. In celebration of Verdi’s Bicentennial and honoring Shakespeare, it features some rarely-performed operas such as Rossini’s Otello and Bellini’s I Capuleti e I Montecchi.

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Movie Review

Over-the-top acting and incoherent plot drag down Her Private Hell

Photo courtesy of Neon

Sophie Thatcher in Her Private Hell.

Danish filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn is not someone who plays nice with the general film world. His 2011 film Drive introduced him to American audiences in a big way, but that pulsating thriller was followed up with artier films like Only God Forgives and The Neon Demon that eschewed coherent plots in favor of moody, atmospheric pieces.

Winding Refn, who hasn’t made a feature film in 10 years, has gone fully down the rabbit hole with Her Private Hell. Taking place in a liminal space that kind of resembles Earth but also feels like someone’s dreams/nightmares, the film focuses on Elle (Sophie Thatcher), an actor currently starring in a sci-fi film. Staying at a hotel with newcomer Hunter (Kristine Froseth), the two bond over their shared passion and the legend of Elle’s father, Johnny Thunders (Dougray Scott), who’s now married to Elle’s friend Dominique (Havana Rose Liu).

After spending a good amount of (mostly incomprehensible) time with that group, Refn introduces Private K (Charles Melton), who seems to be living in post-World War II Japan. He is looking for his daughter, who might have been taken by a mysterious figure known as “Leatherman,” and he will stop at nothing to find her, fighting whoever stands in his way.

It becomes clear almost right away that Winding Refn has no desire to engage in traditional storytelling in this film. The main characters wander through neon-drenched streets and buildings, which are often surrounded by a mist that is referred to on multiple occasions but never explained. Everyone speaks as if in a constant state of wonderment, and there are many moments where it’s unclear if events are actually happening, part of a movie-within-a-movie, or something else entirely.

Unlike his previous films, Winding Refn has taken the characters in this film completely out of the real world, with every scene taking place in a sparsely decorated room or street that is obviously a movie set. While there are moments where this decision really works, especially the striking first shot of a human-like figure mixed in with a cityscape and clouds, most of the time it only adds to the stilted nature of the film as a whole.

In fact, the entire movie has the feel of an avant-garde theater exercise. Every actor seems to be trying to outdo the others with awkward performances and out-sized reactions. Two very specific characters make appearances in both sides of the story for seemingly no reason other than to inject their weirdness into both spaces. The shocking violence that crops up on occasion would have more of an impact if it was related to anything intelligible.

Thatcher (Companion) and Liu (Tuner) are among the young stars who have had breakout moments in recent years, but neither of them is served well by this hot mess of a movie. They, along with Melton, still demonstrate the talent they possess, but the oddity of the film weighs them down. Scott makes an impression for all the wrong reasons, while Froseth is called upon to play a character who might as well not be there at all.

If there’s any kind of message that Winding Refn was trying to convey with Her Private Hell, it’s lost among the flashing lights, overload of pink, and jewel-like structures. Filmmakers who try to make art for art’s sake have a place in the world, but this film too often feels like people are making things up as they go, with no real goal in mind.

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Her Private Hell opens in theaters on July 24.

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