VERDI'S AIDA
Esplanade Theatre
Friday (1 June 2018 )
This review was published in The Straits Times on 4 June 2018 with the title "A downsized but still dazzling Aida".
The
Singapore Lyric Opera (SLO) has done it again. Just as it faces ever-decreasing
government funding, the company did a volte-face by presenting its most
expensive project to date (just under a million dollars) with a five-night run
of Giuseppe Verdi's iconic 1871 opera Aida. Set in ancient Egypt Singapore
SLO
could never hope to replicate that epic setting. Scaled down were the luxurious
extras, but not the music, singing and acting. Australian director Andrew
Sinclair’s conception centred on the intimate lives of its dramatis personae,
angling the love triangle between Egyptian general Radames, Egyptian princess
Amneris and her Ethiopian slave-girl Aida into more of a verismo story.
On
its opening evening, the titular role was helmed by the ageless soprano Nancy
Yuen, who has a way with portraying wayward teenaged girls like no other. How
she maintained an unwavering presence and voice through three hours was little
short of amazing, culminating in her passionate aria O Patria Mia in Act
Three.
Norwegian
tenor Thomas Ruud as the conflicted Radames nailed the opening aria Celeste
Aida near the beginning of Act One with stunning aplomb. Radames' journey
from hero to zero within the matter of a single act was also made believable,
despite plot-holes so large that a sphinx could be driven through.
Almost
single-handedly stealing the show was Mexican mezzo-soprano Grace Echauri's
exceptional Amneris whose booming voice was a revelation, especially in
the emotional Judgment Scene of Act Four when Radames has his fate
sealed off-stage. The sympathy that she garnered might have had the opera's
name changed to Amneris. And why not?
They
were supported by a very commendable local cast of singers: baritones Alvin Tan
(Ramfis) and Martin Ng (Amonasro) stood out, and there were smaller parts for
Jonathan Charles Tay, Cherie Tse and Jack Sun.
The
SLO Choir (Terrence Toh, chorusmaster), augmented by Filipino singers, was
highly effective in crowd scenes. Only in the Triumphal March of Act Two
did their actual number appear underwhelming. That the Ethiopian prisoners
comprised just nine children led by Amonasro was almost laughable.
The
orchestra led by Thai conductor-opera composer and all-round polymath Somtow
Sucharitkul supported the singers well. By playing the extended Act Two ballet
scene not often heard in recordings, the audience was treated to a sequence of
amusing dance moves (Gani Karim, choreography) that was supposedly Egyptian.
No
effort was spared in the costume design by Moe Kasim, generating a riot of
colour that was starkly contrasted by Adrian Tan’s lighting and Justin Hill's evocative
sets that gave the illusion of height and breadth in excess despite operating
within a limited space.
It
was a spark of genius by Verdi to end a most extravagant of operas with the
stillest and quietest of love duets as Aida and Radames await death by
entombment. Such contrasts, so trenchantly brought out in this production, truly
demonstrate the moving power and magic of opera.
Verdi's
Aida plays for two more nights on Tuesday and Wednesday (5 & 6 June)
at 8 pm , Esplanade Theatre. Tickets are available at SISTIC.
Photos by the kind courtesy of
Singapore Lyric Opera.
Singapore Lyric Opera.
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