La Traviata
Dell Hall at the Long Center, 701 W. Riverside, 472-5992, www.austinlyricopera.org
Through Nov. 14
Running time: 3 hr.
I can’t recall a time when the Long Center looked better than it did Saturday night. Guests, decked out in an array of black ties and gowns, packed Dell Hall for Austin Lyric Opera’s late afternoon season opener amid the sounds of several other festivals taking place near the shores of Lady Bird Lake. It was as if the whole city was celebrating with us. Not a bad setup for a night of high spectacle and soaring drama.
As the curtain rose on an elaborate 19th century Parisian party scene, the first thought that came to my mind was, “What recession?” The set and costume designs are extraordinary. Designers often create an idealized, fairy-tale portrait of a period onstage, one which awes but can also compete with the narrative for attention. For its current revival of La Traviata, Austin Lyric Opera employs a staging originally created for Lyric Opera of Chicago in which legendary designer Desmond Heeley – who, after a half-century designing for the likes of Sir Laurence Olivier, the Old Vic Theatre, and the Metropolitan Opera, has recently turned his attention to the Houston Grand Opera – created a masterful portrait of baroque extravagance, the slightly frayed edges of which not only look believable but also evoke a sense of longing and nostalgia that befits the story’s sentimentality. Coupled with the richness of Christine Binder’s lighting design, this is a tremendous visual achievement for the company.
Obviously, sets and costumes don’t make an opera. In fact, after the failure of the first performance of La Traviata in 1853, composer Giuseppe Verdi himself wondered: “My fault or the singers’? Time will tell.” He may have meant singer rather than singers, as his creation ultimately lies in the hands of one character, the passionate Violetta.
Violetta appears in nearly every scene and is responsible for anchoring almost three hours of soaring emotion and artistry. ALO was lucky to score the wonderful Pamela Armstrong for the role. A magnetic and crystal-clear soprano, Armstrong contemplates love and loss before an entranced audience, nailing Violetta’s coquettish swoon and tragic fall. It’s always a bit odd for me when a dying heroine is able to rally from her deathbed to belt out an aria, but in the final scene, as Violetta senses her fate in “Addio del Passato” (“So closes my sad story”), Armstrong’s grip only strengthens, and it is a gorgeous thing to watch.
Armstrong’s grace eclipses that of her character’s love interest, Alfredo, sung by Chad Shelton. Shelton has a fine instrument but doesn’t connect deeply with his character. The opposite is true of Grant Youngblood as Giorgio, Alfredo’s father (and Violetta’s foil). A strong baritone with an almost electric buzz, Youngblood’s voice is magnificent, and his scenes with Violetta in Act II were the night’s best. A shout-out to Austin’s own Brett Barnes and Liz Cass, whose Marquis d’Obigny and Flora Bervoix, respectively, bring a splendid touch of social levity to the production.
I brought a friend who had never been to an opera to this La Traviata. The work is a good introduction for a potential opera fan: It’s the third most popular opera in North America, and thanks to the enduringly saccharine film Pretty Woman, it has its place in popular culture as well. Beyond this, though, all credit goes to the talents of Austin Lyric Opera for staging a tremendous and memorable production. My friend loved the experience. I’ve seen a lot of opera; she hasn’t. We both felt exactly the same.
This article appears in November 12 • 2010.