This Weekend: UT Opera Theatre – Donizetti’s ‘The Elixir of Love’

 

 

The frustration of unrequited love is a universal one, making the promise of a love potion that magically changes hearts quite attractive—especially to those that have allowed desperation to cloud their better judgement. Still, history proves that desperation is a great salesman. In the 50s pop song “Love Potion No. 9”, the purveyor of said potion is Madame Ruth, “that gypsy with the gold-capped tooth,” while in Gaetano Donizetti’s 1832 comic opera, The Elixir of Love (L’elisir d’amore), Dr. Dulcamara, a traveling peddler, understands that cheap wine and a quick exit make for a perfectly good, and safer, love potion.

This weekend, the University of Tennessee Opera Theatre takes a swig of Donizetti’s Elixir of Love, in a four-performance production at downtown’s Bijou Theatre. The comedy revolves around the naive small town guy, Nemorino, who is hopelessly in love with Adina, a landowner who bluntly refuses his lovesick affection. Nemorino falls for the love potion sales pitch of Dr. Dulcamara, a traveling peddler of questionable goods, and spends his last cent hoping for romantic success with Adina. Dulcamara’s potion is just cheap red wine, yet Nemorino becomes convinced that he will be irresistible to Adina the next day, and plays hard to get. Hurt, Adina agrees to marry a local soldier, Sgt. Belcore. Complications, and hilarity, ensue.

While Donizetti’s score is, admittedly, one of his lighter and breezier ones, it contains the beautiful and memorable tenor aria for Nemorino, “Una furtiva lagrima”.

As one might expect from UTOT director, James Marvel, the production promises energy and wackiness, while relying on physical references from previous productions. For practical and financial reasons, the set of arches is being reused from Don Giovanni and The Barber of Seville. But, the visual appeal, apparently, is just the beginning.

“I like to make nods to productions we’ve done in the past,” explains Marvel. “Some of the moments in Elixir were done as a nod to our production of Carmen last Spring. For example, the women faint at the feet of Belcore, just as they had fainted at the feet of Don Jose. The female chorus sometimes walks in angular patterns similar to the ones we created in Carmen.”

Taking the connection to Carmen a bit further, Marvel indicated the fun of taking an implication to its logical conclusion.

“…I’ve always been surprised by the extent of the implied violence inherent within Adina’s language towards Nemorino. She repeatedly says, “This simpleton would like to break the chains that bind him, but I’ll make sure he feels them much more than ever.” So, I have this conflict begin fairly benignly and gradually allow the violence to escalate in a comedic way to the point where Nemorino and Adina both draw knives on each other and use staging similar to the knife fight between Escamillo and Don Jose in Carmen.”

Also a mark of Marvel’s staging is his elevation of the background role of the chorus.

“Donizetti demonstrates early on that the chorus is very gullible and susceptible to the power of suggestion, as they are all duped by Dulcamara’s elixir. I decided to have this idea permeate throughout every aspect of their lives from the beginning of the show until the end. For example, a favorite moment is when Belcore repeatedly calls Nemorino a “baboon.” I have Belcore use anthropomorphized baboon-like movements to the point where he begins finding and eating body lice off his own body. Then, gradually and very subtlety, the chorus begins realizing that some of them also have body lice and begin eating it as well. What could be funnier than that?”