{"id":37912,"date":"2016-08-05T07:53:46","date_gmt":"2016-08-05T11:53:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/?p=37912"},"modified":"2016-08-05T08:50:57","modified_gmt":"2016-08-05T12:50:57","slug":"scrutiny-santa-fe-la-fanciulla-del-west","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2016\/08\/05\/scrutiny-santa-fe-la-fanciulla-del-west\/","title":{"rendered":"SCRUTINY | Letters From Santa Fe: La Fanciulla del West"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Santa Fe Opera: Patricia Racette (Minnie) and Gwyn Hughes Jones (Dick Johnson) in The Girl of the Golden West (Photo: Ken Howard)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The second opera of my Santa Fe trip was that Puccini \u201cspaghetti western,\u201d The Girl of the Golden West<\/em>. This opera has never achieved the same exalted status accorded the other Puccini\u2019s masterpieces such as La boheme, Tosca<\/em>, or Turandot<\/em>. I can only speak for myself \u2014 I consider Fanciulla<\/em> great theatre, and certainly one of my favourites.\u00a0 When in the right hands \u2013 or should I say right vocal cords \u2014 it\u2019s a marvelous evening at the opera. I had the great good fortune of hearing Renata Tebaldi as Minnie in New York, way back in 1970 when I was still a student. Who could forget the dramatically galvanizing poker scene of Act 2, or her searing vocalism?\u00a0 Ever since that memorable experience, I\u2019ve always looked out for an opportunity to attend this opera wherever I can, which is not often enough. I do realize my love for the Puccini horse opera is not universally shared.\u00a0 But this Santa Fe Opera revival was such a good show that even my Fanciulla<\/em>-hating opera companion on this trip had a conversion, an epiphany of sorts, after Act Two!<\/p>\n

The Santa Fe Opera\u2019s Fanciulla <\/em>is a co-production with English National Opera, directed by the Brit Richard Jones, whose previous works have won kudos. The set isn\u2019t quite 1860\u2019s California Gold Rush style. It\u2019s more of a mix from different time periods, some of it a bit incongruous such as the use of fluorescent lighting, the stylish sconces on the wall, and the stand-alone safe with a combination lock! \u00a0Perhaps the most problematic aspect of this production is the lack of the feeling of nature so important in this opera. There\u2019s little suggestion of the wild west or the vast expanse of outdoors and of nature in general. Many Santa Fe Opera productions have the back of the stage open, allowing the audience a glimpse of the grand vista, the magnificent New Mexican landscape. \u00a0Fanciulla<\/em> is an ideal candidate for such a treatment, especially in Act Three. The staging of the mob scene and the lynching of Ramirrez gives little hint of the outdoors. A real opportunity lost.<\/p>\n

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Santa Fe Opera: Ensemble Cast in Girl of the Golden West (Photo: Ken Howard)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

American soprano Patricia Racette sang the title role, with British tenor Gwyn Hughes Jones as Dick Johnson, and American baritone Mark Delavan as Jack Rance. This opera rises and falls with its heroine. Without question, Racette has the force of personality and stage allure to be a compelling Minnie.\u00a0 After a career that\u2019s more than a quarter century long (she debuted in 1988), Racette has given up the more lyrical roles such as Mimi and Leonora in favour of the more dramatic soprano roles such as Minnie and Giorgetta. Her Minnie has just the right mixture of dramatic, steely \u00a0vocalism and feminine warmth. The top register has lost some of the sheen and purity of tone, and sometimes the vibrato can take over, but there\u2019s no shortage of her consummate artistry and dramatic thrust. The mezza voce in the middle voice remains lovely. Her best moments were a nicely delivered \u201cLaggiu nel soledad\u201d and the more contemplative moments of Act One. The arioso she sang to the miners in Act Three was meltingly beautiful. Her poker scene was dramatically compelling, making a big sound but without resorting to excessive chest voice. It was an altogether winning performance.<\/p>\n

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Santa Fe Opera: Patricia Racette (Minnie) in The Girl of the Golden West (Photo: Ken Howard)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As Dick Johnson, tenor Gwyn Hughes Jones sang with clarion power and a bright, forwardly produced sound and a free top register. His exceptional \u201cCh\u2019ella mi creda libero\u201d would have brought down the house if there was a pause in the orchestra to allow for an ovation. Jones is quite a burly fellow, but he moves well on stage, and he has good chemistry with his Minnie. The extended love duet in Act Two was excitingly delivered by Racette and Jones, made even more so as an approximately one minute’s worth of music, loaded with high notes and almost always cut, has been restored in this production. These two singers have certainly earned their fee!<\/p>\n

Santa Fe Opera audience favourite American baritone Mark Delavan was a striking Jack Rance, singing with ringing tone and a totally secure top. The men\u2019s chorus, so important in this piece, was exemplary, with all the cameo roles very well taken.\u00a0 That being said, I do find some of the highly choreographed movements for the chorus in Act Three a bit over the top \u2014 I felt like I was watching a Broadway musical!\u00a0 With English translations at the push of a button, there\u2019s no avoidance of some of the quaint \u2014 yes, rather embarrassing \u2014 dialogues in Act One.\u00a0 I suppose, in the final analysis, one must accept that this is a period piece, and there\u2019s no point in scrutinising it too closely with our 2016 lens. French conductor and Dallas Opera music director Emmanuel Villaume conducted with passion and lyricism, making a truly compelling case for more revivals of this Puccini gem. Highly recommended.<\/p>\n

#LUDWIGVAN<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Santa Fe Opera’s La Fanciulla del West makes a compelling case for more revivals of this Puccini gem.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":37915,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[5723,43,52],"tags":[5913,6288,6285],"yst_prominent_words":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/08\/13_Patricia_Racette_Minnie_and_Gwyn_Hughes_Jones_Dick_Johnson_in__The_Girl_of_the_GOlden_West__c_Ken_Howard_for_Santa_Fe_Opera_2016.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-9Ru","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37912"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37912"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37912\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37921,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37912\/revisions\/37921"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37915"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37912"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37912"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37912"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=37912"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}