When pondering Wagner, the opera stereotype is the first thing that might come to mind: the 600 pound Viking woman screaming her lungs out. And yes, "The Flying Dutchman" is set in Norway, so Vikings would not be completely out of place. However, at the performance of "Flying Dutchman" by the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO), this is not all that viewers will get.
Under the direction of James Levine, the BSO performed the opera in concert over the weekend. They eliminated lavish sets and overdone costumes, bringing this work down to its essentials. The original soprano Deborah Voigt, who was cast as Senta, was ill on the evening of March 11 and the leaner English soprano, Elizabeth Byrne, was called in to replace her.
It's a story we've all heard millions of times. Girl (Senta) loves boy (Dutchman). Boy is fairy tale character forced to roam the seas until the end of time, coming to shore only every seven years to find a true love, breaking the curse. Boy comes to shore after seven accursed years at sea and meets girl's dad (Daland). Girl and boy get together. Girl is happy. Boy catches girl breaking up with boyfriend (Erik) and thinks she still loves him. Boy curses girl. Girl jumps off cliff. It's simple, really.
The overture presents the Dutchman's theme in the very first seconds of the opera, and unlike the other themes presented in the overture, the Dutchman's is never treated by voice throughout the remainder of the opera, but simply interjected by the orchestra here and there, whenever the Dutchman is mentioned.
The six principle performers collectively get a B+, with individual grades ranging from C to A+. Bass-baritones Juha Uusitalo and Mikhail Petrenko, the Dutchman and Daland respectively, were amazing in their roles. Not only did they sing near-perfectly, but they injected into their roles just the right amount of emotion and theatrics appropriate for an orchestral concert performance.
The duet between the Dutchman and Daland at the end of act one is regarded as one of the most technically difficult in all of opera. They pulled it off brilliantly, and made it one of the performance's several highlights.
American tenor Paul Groves receives an A+ for his role as Daland's steersman. The steersman is a minor character, but Wagner provides him with an aria or two, just enough for Paul Groves to show his worth. These three performers made the first act absolutely breathtaking.
The other tenor of the bunch, Alfons Eberz, was not as successful playing Senta's disgruntled boyfriend Erik. Erik is the principle tenor of the ensemble, and upon the first note that escaped his mouth, one wished that Paul Groves had sung in his place. He sounded almost like a baritone who was reaching too high, and completely out of place in the cast made up of otherwise impressive talent. He generously gets a C.
Mezzo-soprano, Jane Bunnell, was competent as Mary, Senta's nurse. The role is not very impressive, but Bunnell did her job well although she was often drowned out by the chorus of maidens during her principle passages.
Not entirely unwelcome, the brilliance of the Tanglewood Festival Chorus under direction of John Oliver was yet another highlight. The third act is the most choral of the three, and the chorus was able to produce an absolutely incredible sound that truly brought the opera to life.
Finally, Elizabeth Byrne as Senta has an impressive history singing Wagner roles, and an equally impressive record covering Wagner roles in times of need. She has covered Br??nnhilde in "Ring," at the Metropolitan Opera, and has even dabbled in Senta with the Austin Lyric Opera.
During her first scenes, the replacement seemed like a disappointing decision. When someone is called in as a replacement, physical theatrics must be sacrificed, and Byrne was unable to match some of the emotion of her bass-baritone counterparts. As the opera progressed, the audience learned to let Byrne's powerful voice speak for itself, and it spoke volumes, giving her the A+ that she deserves.
In the end, this listener even learned to forgive the transgressions of Alfons Eberz and look at the production as a spectacular whole. Four sensations out of six soloists, a magnificent chorus, and one of the best orchestras in the world come together to produce Wagner's peerless "Flying Dutchman," and most importantly, no glass-shattering, scale-breaking Viking princesses.
