Arts & Events

The 2019 Merola Singers Strut Their Stuff in the Grand Finale

Reviewed by James Roy MacBean
Friday August 23, 2019 - 02:54:00 PM

Every year the Grand Finale offers a new crop of Merola singers the opportunity to strut their stuff on the grand stage of the War Memorial Opera House. For the young artists this is a thrill. For audiences, too, it is often a thrill to discover the opera stars of tomorrow. Indeed, on Saturday evening, August 17, the 2019 Grand Finale offered the chance to hear quite a few opera stars of tomorrow.  

Among the cant misscategory I noted, in no particular order, mezzo-soprano Alice Chung, tenor Brandon Scott Russell, soprano Chelsea Lehnea, mezzo-soprano Cara Collins, soprano Anna Dugan, baritone Jeff Byrnes, tenor Victor Starsky, and, well, the list could go on and on. One thing that impresses about the 2019 crop of Merola singers is the uniformly high level of vocal mastery. Among the 18 scenes from different operas performed in this years Grand Finale, there was hardly a scene that didnt reveal at least one opera star of tomorrow; and often there were several!  

Opening the program was the post coital bedroom scene from Richard Strausss Der Rosenkavalier with Cara Collins as Octavian and Anna Dugan as the Marschallin. Both singers were in top form, with Cara Collins wondrously singing Wie du warst/How you were, and Anna Dugan returning the compliment. Next came an excerpt from Vincenzo Bellinis I Puritani featuring baritone Laureano Quant and tenor Victor Starsky, both of whom were excellent. Then we heard mezzo-soprano Brennan Blankenship in a harp-accompanied aria from Charles Gounods Roméo et Juliette, another excellent performance. Soprano Anne-Marie Macintosh sang a lovely aria from Bellinis I Capuleti e i Montecchi. Next came a surprise highlight, tenor Brandon Scott Russell singing the Princes aria Vidino divná, presladká from Antonin Dvoráks Rusalka. An excerpt from Francis Poulencs Dialogues des Carmélites featured two opera stars of tomorrow, soprano Amber R. Monroe as Madame Lidoine and mezzo-soprano Alice Chung as Mère Marie. 

An excerpt from Mozart’s Così fan tutte was beautifully sung by soprano Esther Tonea and tenor Michael Day accompanied by Andrew King on harpsichord. Another surprise highlight ensued with soprano Chelsea Lehnea holidng forth as Queen Elisbeth in Gaetano Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda while two courtiers, tenor Salvatore Atti as Leicester and bass-baritone Rafael Porto as Lord Cecil, pressed rival claims. To close out the first half of the concert, baritone Jeff Byrnes gave a ringing interpretation of Germont’s aria “Di Provenza il mar” in an effort to persuade his son Alfredo to forget Violetta in Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata. 

Throughout this Grand Finale conductor George Manahan led the San Francisco Opera Orchestra, and director Greg Eldridge staged each scene. One might mention, in passing, that in the aforementioned scene from Verdis La Traviata Greg Eldridge made the highly questionable move of having Germont père drag in Alfredos sister as a mute presence in the fathers efforts to win back his wayward son. In all the myriad performances Ive attended of La Traviata, never has Alfredos sister been seen on stage till now. Oh well. Finally, one might mention that the entire Merola Grand Finale was staged on the ship-like set of San Francisco Operas forthcoming production of Billy Budd designed by Christopher Oram.  

After intermission, the second half of the program got underway with soprano Elisa Sunshine as a vivacious Marie in Donizettis La Fille du régiment, aided and abetted by bass-baritone Andrew Dwan as Sulpice. Next came an excerpt from Samuel Barbers Vanessa, gorgeously sung by soprano Anna Dugan and tenor Victor Starsky. These two singers even held their own against a full-out fortissimo from the orchestra! Then, in a scene from Otto Nicolais Die lustigen Weber von Windsor, baritone Edward Laurenson and bass-baritone Rafael Porto hammed it up as, respectively, Fluth and Falstaff. Next we heard soprano Hyeree Shin as a bright-voiced Sandrina in the aria Geme la tortorellafrom Mozarts La finta giardiniera. Then came what may well have been the vocal and dramatic highlight of the concert mezzo-soprano Alice Chung as Hamlets mother, Gertrude, and baritone Tim Murray as Hamlet in a gut-wrenching scene from Ambroise Thomass Hamlet. Bass Stefan Egerstrom made a brief appearance as the ghost of Hamlets father. Then came an excerpt from Jacques François Halévys La Juive, followed by the forest scene from Verdis Falstaff, featuring soprano Patricia Westley as a bright-voiced Nannetta and soprano Esther Tonea as Alice Ford. Mezzo-soprano Edith Grossman then sang the role of Hélène and tenor Nicholas Huff was Paris in an excerpt from Jacques Offenbachs La belle Hélène. To close out the 2019 Grand Finale all the Merolini joined together to sing the fugal final chorus of Verdis Falstaff, with its famous punch line, Tutto nel mondo è burla/The whole worlds a joke.All I can say is, when the joke is as beautifully sung as everything was in this years Merola Grand Finale, Viva la burla! 

 

 

The 2019 Merola Singers Strut Their Stuff in the Grand Finale  

Reviewed by James Roy MacBean 

 

Every year the Grand Finale offers a new crop of Merola singers the opportunity to strut their stuff on the grand stage of the War Memorial Opera House. For the young artists this is a thrill. For audiences, too, it is often a thrill to discover the opera stars of tomorrow. Indeed, on Saturday evening, August 17, the 2019 Grand Finale offered the chance to hear quite a few opera stars of tomorrow.  

Among the cant misscategory I noted, in no particular order, mezzo-soprano Alice Chung, tenor Brandon Scott Russell, soprano Chelsea Lehnea, mezzo-soprano Cara Collins, soprano Anna Dugan, baritone Jeff Byrnes, tenor Victor Starsky, and, well, the list could go on and on. One thing that impresses about the 2019 crop of Merola singers is the uniformly high level of vocal mastery. Among the 18 scenes from different operas performed in this years Grand Finale, there was hardly a scene that didnt reveal at least one opera star of tomorrow; and often there were several!  

Opening the program was the post coital bedroom scene from Richard Strausss Der Rosenkavalier with Cara Collins as Octavian and Anna Dugan as the Marschallin. Both singers were in top form, with Cara Collins wondrously singing Wie du warst/How you were, and Anna Dugan returning the compliment. Next came an excerpt from Vincenzo Bellinis I Puritani featuring baritone Laureano Quant and tenor Victor Starsky, both of whom were excellent. Then we heard mezzo-soprano Brennan Blankenship in a harp-accompanied aria from Charles Gounods Roméo et Juliette, another excellent performance. Soprano Anne-Marie Macintosh sang a lovely aria from Bellinis I Capuleti e i Montecchi. Next came a surprise highlight, tenor Brandon Scott Russell singing the Princes aria Vidino divná, presladká from Antonin Dvoráks Rusalka. An excerpt from Francis Poulencs Dialogues des Carmélites featured two opera stars of tomorrow, soprano Amber R. Monroe as Madame Lidoine and mezzo-soprano Alice Chung as Mère Marie. 

An excerpt from Mozart’s Così fan tutte was beautifully sung by soprano Esther Tonea and tenor Michael Day accompanied by Andrew King on harpsichord. Another surprise highlight ensued with soprano Chelsea Lehnea holidng forth as Queen Elisbeth in Gaetano Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda while two courtiers, tenor Salvatore Atti as Leicester and bass-baritone Rafael Porto as Lord Cecil, pressed rival claims. To close out the first half of the concert, baritone Jeff Byrnes gave a ringing interpretation of Germont’s aria “Di Provenza il mar” in an effort to persuade his son Alfredo to forget Violetta in Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata. 

Throughout this Grand Finale conductor George Manahan led the San Francisco Opera Orchestra, and director Greg Eldridge staged each scene. One might mention, in passing, that in the aforementioned scene from Verdis La Traviata Greg Eldridge made the highly questionable move of having Germont père drag in Alfredos sister as a mute presence in the fathers efforts to win back his wayward son. In all the myriad performances Ive attended of La Traviata, never has Alfredos sister been seen on stage till now. Oh well. Finally, one might mention that the entire Merola Grand Finale was staged on the ship-like set of San Francisco Operas forthcoming production of Billy Budd designed by Christopher Oram.  

After intermission, the second half of the program got underway with soprano Elisa Sunshine as a vivacious Marie in Donizettis La Fille du régiment, aided and abetted by bass-baritone Andrew Dwan as Sulpice. Next came an excerpt from Samuel Barbers Vanessa, gorgeously sung by soprano Anna Dugan and tenor Victor Starsky. These two singers even held their own against a full-out fortissimo from the orchestra! Then, in a scene from Otto Nicolais Die lustigen Weber von Windsor, baritone Edward Laurenson and bass-baritone Rafael Porto hammed it up as, respectively, Fluth and Falstaff. Next we heard soprano Hyeree Shin as a bright-voiced Sandrina in the aria Geme la tortorellafrom Mozarts La finta giardiniera. Then came what may well have been the vocal and dramatic highlight of the concert mezzo-soprano Alice Chung as Hamlets mother, Gertrude, and baritone Tim Murray as Hamlet in a gut-wrenching scene from Ambroise Thomass Hamlet. Bass Stefan Egerstrom made a brief appearance as the ghost of Hamlets father. Then came an excerpt from Jacques François Halévys La Juive, followed by the forest scene from Verdis Falstaff, featuring soprano Patricia Westley as a bright-voiced Nannetta and soprano Esther Tonea as Alice Ford. Mezzo-soprano Edith Grossman then sang the role of Hélène and tenor Nicholas Huff was Paris in an excerpt from Jacques Offenbachs La belle Hélène. To close out the 2019 Grand Finale all the Merolini joined together to sing the fugal final chorus of Verdis Falstaff, with its famous punch line, Tutto nel mondo è burla/The whole worlds a joke.All I can say is, when the joke is as beautifully sung as everything was in this years Merola Grand Finale, Viva la burla!