Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 28, 1994 TAG: 9409280050
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SETH WILLIAMSON SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The reason is simple: This ``Rigoletto'' has two of the finest singers that Opera Roanoke has ever had the luck to sign. Either baritone Nicholas Loren and soprano Carol Chickering have big futures in major companies, or most of us who were ga-ga at their performance at Mill Mountain Theatre on Monday night are nuts. It's too bad that there were a good hundred empty seats for the show.
Not that the rest of the cast is negligible. General Director Craig Fields and Music Director Victoria Bond rarely hire singers who don't belong in a good regional company. But Loren's Rigoletto and Chickering's Gilda are, in a word, tremendous. If you only take in an opera every year or two, this is the one.
To put it plainly, Loren is probably the finest singer Opera Roanoke has ever had. His huge cannon of a baritone has, if anything, gained size, maturity and nuance since his last appearance in Virginia. His portrayal of Giuseppe Verdi's hunchbacked jester, tormented by self-loathing and cynicism and yet strangely elevated by love for his daughter, was complex and shaded with subtle touches. This is Loren's first essay at the summit of Italian baritone roles, which makes his achievement all the more impressive.
And with Carol Chickering, now doing only her second Gilda, Loren finally has a female lead who can keep up with him. What a beautiful instrument this woman possesses! Her first-act aria, ``Caro nome,'' was breath-taking, full of sculpted phrases, with a light, crystalline upper register and flawless control.
Furthermore, she's beautiful and an accomplished actress. She lacks as yet Loren's magnetic stage presence, but her performance was full of memorable moments. She was waif-like in a torn nightgown after being seduced by Brent Weber's lecherous Duke of Mantua, and her pathetic attempts to wash away her guilt in a basin of water were poignant.
Aside from Loren and Chickering, this show is up to Opera Roanoke's usually dependable standards. Mitch Baker's colorful costumes and a serviceable unit set by John Sailer give this ``Rigoletto'' a handsome look. The all-male chorus of familiar Opera Roanoke regulars did a yeoman job.
Tenor Brent Weber turned in a workmanlike performance as the Duke, though he wasn't as convincingly nasty as Gilda was chaste and innocent. Bass-baritone Wayne Kompelian's menacing physical presence as the Burgundian assassin Sparafucile was backed up with his commanding bass. Kompelien goes from strength to strength with each new Opera Roanoke production.
Opera Roanoke veteran Michelle Sarkesian, whose sexy title role in ``Carmen'' two years ago is still talked about here, played yet another trollop as Maddalena. Sarkesian's sultry mezzo was in good form, and though visibly pregnant, she was as provocative as ever.
If you're a traditionalist with no patience for funny business in sets and settings, this staging is for you. This is a traditional production of ``Rigoletto.'' With the exception of Craig Fields' innovation of a steam bath scene in Act II -which brings out the studly, locker-room ambience that the randy Duke of Mantua enjoys so much - there's nothing here to raise the eyebrows of the orthodox opera faithful.
The opera is sung in the original Italian, with English supertitles translated and computer-projected by Paul Zweifel. Zweifel, who continued to hone his translation till opening night, frequently achieved a felicitous style that rhymed where the Italian did. For example, in the monumental vendetta scene that closes Act II, Zweifel has Rigoletto swearing, ``Yes, vengeance tremendous, / My heart is on fire! / His punishment, death / Will fulfill my desire!''
Opera Roanoke's ``Rigoletto'' shows again tonight and Friday with curtain time at 8 p.m. Tickets are available for both performances. 982-2742, 342-5746.
by CNB