Puccini, and the singers, need more ebb and flow to make the best of the Italian idiom. The result, though, was rather like an impressionist tone poem, and his inexperience in conducting opera showed in the rather rigid control.
Conductor Simon Rivard got some gorgeous colours from the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, and some striking legato playing, especially from the wind. All the minor leads made strong contributions. Peter Barrett made a compelling company debut as Marcello, with a rich and powerful baritone, and solid acting - I hope he’ll be back soon. I was looking forward to seeing how the talented young soprano Lara Ciekiewicz would play Musetta, and she lived up to her promise, charismatic as the flirting lover, and showing the other side of her character in her interactions with the dying Mimi. However, Racine’s very sure touches were everywhere, from the believability of the acting to the humour of final act’s dance. This production was not by any means ‘director’s opera’ (where there is a strong angle or rethinking from the director), but rather a traditional approach. The third is the direction by François Racine. Together they sing a duet opera fans say is perhaps the most moving ever written. Miriam Khalil, left, as Mimi, with Stratford’s tenor Adam Luther, in the lead role of Rodolfo in Edmonton Opera’s production of Puccini’s La Bohème. Deanna Finnman’s new costumes stuck to the period of the piece, the highlight being her creation for Musetta, all black-green and red velvets, as if Toulouse-Lautrec was waiting in the wings. This was complemented by some very effective lighting by Geoffrey George, almost colour-coded: blue in Act 1, red in Act 2, back to a cold blue in Act 3, and ending the final act with the white of the apotheosis, and a mixture of blue and red (purple) on the garret window. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The Momus café scene in Act 2 is both splendidly crowded and yet full of different spaces for the chorus, while Act 3 contrasts with its dour winter scene. In the first and last act, we’re amidst Paris rooftops, looking into the garret where the bohemians live - the smoke above the roof as they burn Rodolfo’s script was a wonderful touch.
Designed by Wolfram Skalicki, it was bought by Edmonton Opera in 2009 for its 2010 production, but it still looks as fresh and alluring as ever. As it was, the children’s chorus, from Cantilon Choirs, and the company’s chorus performed wearing masks, and the soloists without. Please try again Article contentĮven then, it was touch-and-go: a couple more positives and the show would have to be cancelled at the last minute.
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