Finally I got a little vacation time and after
spending a few days in Wyoming I flew back to Chicago and spent what turned out
to be a very introspective several days there.
This has been a difficult fall.
The presidential election has been a horrendous experience, and not just
for me. The level of hate and violence
and racism and homophobia and anti-Semitism that have been unleashed by one
particular candidate has been, well, I can’t even come up with a word for it: Disgusting – unbelievable – reprehensible –
these come to mind. And then the final
result of the election and all that has transpired since have made it difficult
for me to function. It is not having
lost that bothers me. It is what has won
that is so horrible. And then at the
same time there is the military assault taking place in North Dakota against
Native Americans. Genocide in Syria, that no one seems to care about. What is wrong with this country? This world? Have we lost of sense of the principals of
freedom and justice and due process upon which this country was built. And what
about compassion? Have we no shame or
compassion? And what is wrong with those
folks who would assault other because they are different? I am simply appalled.
So, Chicago… First up – Les Troyans by Hector
Berlioz. I had seen it before in HD from
the Met and a couple productions online.
But live, in the house was a unique experience. It was a terrific performance and I loved the production.
This was a production of 1st's - the first time LOC used its new rotating
turntable stage, the first time LOC ever performed this work and the first time
Christine Goerke sang Cassandra. Vocally and musically it was a wonderful
performance. The chorus and the orchestra were wonderful but I loved the cast.
CG was powerful as Cassandra (who is my favorite character BTW) Susan
Graham was, as expected, wonderful and Brandon Jovanovitch was announced as
sick but singing and I really only noticed a little struggle in one brief spot
otherwise he has a beautiful voice. The supporting cast were all excellent -
especially Christian van Horn as Narbal and the young apprentice tenor who sang
Iopas - Gorgeous! I liked the production quite a lot. The turntable and the
projections were wonderful. A little more sumptuousness in Carthage part of the
opera might have been nice but it all worked. The opera clocked in at 4:45 and
this was with two substantial cuts. I missed the scene with the two soldiers
and others felt that the ballet was too truncated. I don't know the piece well
enough to have an opinion on that. As an extra treat I got to meet two members
of the Facebook Met Opera group and It was wonderful to get to meet them. And
after the performance there was a question and answer time with the GM and the
stars that was also really fun.
So I
left this wonderful experience thinking about Cassandra and how she kept
saying: “That wooden horse is not what you think it is and it will destroy you!”
And how the response – even when they hear the rattling of weapons inside – is
“You’re crazy! This is a wonderful
present! Make Troy great again!” And guess what? Cassandra is right! We have our own Trojan horse situation going
on right now – and I fear for the future under the elect government who doesn’t
seem to care about anyone but themselves.
So I
had Friday off! I took the bus into town
and decided to walk over the Privatebank Theater and see if I could get a
ticket to see “Hamilton.” What a
surprise that I was able to get a great seat near the front and it was not
outrageously expensive. So, looking
forward to “Hamilton” in the evening I attended the Chicago Symphony concert in
the afternoon. The program featured the
Dvorak G major Symphony, which is a piece I adore. It also included a performance of the
Prokofiev 2nd Piano Concerto.
I had never heard this work before. But I was seated down front so I was
very close to the pianist and it was an experience to watch him play this piece
up close. The piece itself is
amazing! Prokofiev lived under the
repression of Soviet Russia and Stalin and the piece reflects this in some
profound and subtle ways. I found the
relentless march of the 3rd movement exceptionally moving. The young pianist was terrific. The Dvorak was good, but it didn’t compare
with the Prokofiev. Part of the reason was that because I was sitting so close
to the strings, they dominated the sound of the orchestra and muted even the
brass and the winds. As a former wind
player I prefer to hear and see the winds and brass much more. This piece has such wonderful brass writing
that the muted quality of the brass was a disappointment.
“Hamilton”
was a wonderful experience. It is a great show.
The Chicago cast was excellent and I enjoyed the performance very
much. Anytime there is the
representation of historical events on stage there is by necessity some
compromise, but in the case of “Hamilton” I thought this was all pretty
minimal. Historically the work is amazingly accurate and showed the events of
Hamilton’s life. My favorite line: “Immigrants – we get things done!” Right, in case we have forgotten! Folks we are all immigrants and have no
special God-given claim to special status – unless we are Native American! The musical was entertaining enough, but I
actually found it very profound and powerful.
It was certainly ironic when it turned out that the same evening I saw
the opera there was an incident in New York at the “Hamilton” performance
involving the Vice-President elect. Then
the president-elect had to jump into the mess by making the most ridiculous
statement I have (almost) ever heard: “theater is supposed to be a safe place.” He must not go to the theater very often. I
have never found the theater to be a safe place. I have, however, found it to be a human
place. A place were human emotions are
stripped and made raw; a place where I am reminded of my own vulnerabilities and
a place where my own prejudices and close minded-ness is challenged. The theater is not a safe place – but it is
an essential place, for the theater teaches us human values like love and compassion. I think this is why I prefer the theater to
television or even the movies – because I feel that the theater is honest and
it puts us in touch with our humanity in a way TV hardly ever does and that
most movies (I have found anyway) do not.
I hope our Vice-President elect experienced the joy and the challenge
and the power that is theater on that evening at “Hamilton.”
My last opera was wonderful production of the opera
Don Quichotte by Massenet. I found this entire
experience to be very magical and very moving. Ferruccio Furlanetto was simply
terrific. His beautiful, rich dark bass combined with his terrific acting
skills brought DQ to life in a unique way. From the opening tableau where he
and Sancho were revealed in the pose of a famous illustration to his final
death scene FF was funny and touching as was Nicola Alaimo as Sancho. For me
the serenade DQ sings in act one, interspersed with
his fighting a duel and Sancho's beautiful and moving defense of him while
others are mocking him at the end of act 4 were highlights. I also found the
prayer in act 3 very moving as well. The windmill scene was clever and funny.
This was a very traditional production and it was very well executed. I really
liked the quotes that were projected on the scrim before each act. They really
set the feel for what was to come. Clementine Margaine was Dulcinee and also
did a beautiful job. Her character is the one that is most changed from the
novel and from the musical. Dulcinee in this telling of the story is a noble
woman of aristocratic bearing. Chorus and orchestra were also excellent. It was
a joy to experience this beautiful work. As is always the case with Massenet
the score is brilliantly orchestrated and exceptionally colorful. There are
extended solos for all the winds and a beautiful cello solo which is the whole
of the last act entr’act. There is also a wonderful canzonetta sung by Dulcinee
with in stage guitar accompaniment.
This world needs more knights errant. People who
take it upon themselves to comfort those who are grieving, help and feed the
poor, and treat all - no matter who they are - with kindness and respect.
Perhaps like DQ those who have compassion for others will be similarly mocked
but it is in this that true humanity is found.
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