In my November, 2011 Metro Pulse spotlight of the University of Tennessee Opera Theatre’s production of two short operas, Gian-Carlo Menotti’s The Medium and Giacomo Puccini’s Suor Angelica, I went out on a bit of a limb. I made note of the new leadership of UTOT—the artistic director James Marvel and the music director/conductor Kevin Class—and opined that “one would be hard pressed to find similarities between the two short operas being offered…” After all, as I pointed out, they differ in musical style and tonality, location, plot, characters, and dramatic tone.
Granted, that is true, but my statement didn’t account for the imagination and vision of Marvel in finding abstract common elements in an operatic narrative. Along with juicy, challenging roles, immersing students in a modern approach is one of the reasons UTOT is returning to The Medium and Suor Angelica for its November productions this season.
“There are many themes that are similar in both shows,” explains Marvel. “The loss of a child. Communication with spirits of the dead. And both shows end with the death of a major character (Toby/Angelica). I’ve intentionally made the blocking from The Medium resonate with the blocking from Angelica. The most obvious example being that they both die downstage center. The Medium has a circular table at center stage. Angelica has a well at center. Things like that. We may even have the Baba in The Medium and Principessa from Suor wear similar skirts and tops.”
Marvel’s distinctive staging touches have been a consistent element over the last 12 years, but there is definitely method in the madness. Gone are the days when voices alone carried a singer into a successful career. It has been Marvel’s goal to equip each of the young artists with the necessary dramatic tools and theatrical experience needed in the modern opera landscape.
“The visual aesthetic,” offers Marvel, “will be quite similar to our original The Medium, leaning heavily into German Expressionist style of acting… the original concept for the video for The Medium was created for UTOT by Katy Tucker, whose work is regularly seen at The Metropolitan Opera these days. Joe Payne from the Clarence Brown Theatre staff will be modifying the concept for The Medium to accommodate changes to concept and space. The projections for Suor Angelica will be an entirely new creation of Payne’s.”
The Medium, libretto and music by Gian Carlo Menotti, was first performed in New York City in 1946, gaining even more notoriety with a Broadway run in the 1947-48 season on a double bill with Menotti’s The Telephone. The action takes place in the parlor of Madame Flora (contralto), a sham spiritualist. Known familiarly as Baba, she deceives customers with the help of her daughter, Monica (soprano), and a mute boy, Toby. The music score is wildly addictive, containing a wide range of styles to match the underlying drama and emotion.
Suor Angelica, by Giacomo Puccini, is one of three one-act operas in the musical triptych Il trittico along with Il tabarro and Gianni Schicchi. It received its first performance at the old Metropolitan Opera house in December, 1918. Set in a convent in Italy during the 17th Century, Suor Angelica relates the story of Angelica, relegated to the convent having had a child out of wedlock. The two UTOT sopranos singing Angelica will be Emma Wilson and Jessica Parker. Wilson was last seen as Gretel in last season’s Hänsel und Gretel; Parker took the role of Mother in that production.
As is the usual UTOT practice, four performances in the Bijou Theatre will be double cast to accommodate the number of singers—
• Friday evening, November 10, at 7:30 PM
• Saturday afternoon, November 11, at 2:30 PM
• Saturday evening, November 11, at 7:30 PM
• Sunday afternoon, November 12, at 2:30 PM
