Both in the script and in delivery— the two diva stars of Bronx Opera’s Ariadne Auf Naxos were antipodal, yet each golden in their own way…
Soprano Renee Macdonald is the ultimate prima donna. When she hears that she has to share the stage with a Vaudevillian type troupe she wants to storm off in protest. The opera’s manager convinces her that they can’t afford to walk away from what we imagine is the big bucks only one of today’s tech bros could provide. Reluctantly, she dons ornate robes to sing as Ariadne, the princess who was dumped by Theseus after he slay the Minotaur with her help. She is alone on an island waiting, waiting and waiting some more for death from heartbreak.
While she waits, she sings, sings and sings. Sometimes she is accompanied by three sweetly harmonizing nymphs (Sara LeMesh, Erin Reppenhagen, and Sydney Swearengin), whose melodies this reviewer especially enjoyed because they were so in sync and never overpowered the able orchestra under the baton of Eric Kramer.
Macdonald’s strong voice easily saturates the Lehman College performance hall where Ariadne Auf Naxos is performed. You too might be thinking Macdonald is channeling a Wagnerian heroine. Many are reported to say that’s exactly what composer Richard Strauss had in mind too, when he introduced the twist of this diva competing with a more lighthearted and comic tone.
Macdonald’s foil comes in the form of flirty Zerbinetta, sung con gusto by coloratura soprano Hannah Friesen. Friesen is the embodiment of fun, fun, fun. Before Friesen begins her high jinks choral gymnastics in the second act, she makes a point of shaking everyone’s hand in the first row, and winking at many a man in the audience beyond. While Friesen’s so clarion voice would suffice in this role, her performance is certainly helped by her ability to command the stage. Central casting sent her to us as the paragon of Mankiller Extraordinaire. Friesen is helped in conveying this persona by her talented four-male entourage who pine for her attentions— one literally doing cartwheels for her. (Jonathan Lawlor, Alonzo Jordan, Hunter Warnick, and Matthew Youngblood).
Bronx Opera English Libretto Makes ARIADNE AUF NAXOS More Accessible
The real star of this production, in this reviewer’s opinion, is Peter Heiman, the translator of Hugo von Hofmannsthal’s libretto. The performance moves back and forth from German to English seamlessly. There are, of course, projected translations of the German. The spoken and sung English translations, however, make the opera feel far more accessible. For an art form always seeming to fight for its future audience, this merits a loud BRAVO!
In this particular performance one of the tenors lost his voice mid-performance. Unlike Maria Callas he did not storm off the stage, meriting yet another BRAVO.
If you are traveling far to hear a Bronx Opera performance, you too might appreciate that Bronx Opera seems to be bringing a more local and different audience in to enjoy their performances. It was especially a delight to see families in the crowd on this Mother’s Day** performance.
**How lucky to sit next to star Hannah Friesen’s ever so deservedly proud mother. She had traveled a great distance to see her daughter perform as Zerbinetta. From her mother we learned that Friesen also had traveled far, returning to NY from her Berlin home to perform as Zerbinetta.
For more information visit the Bronx Opera website.
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About the Author: Amy Munice
Amy Munice is Editor-in-Chief and Co-Publisher of Picture This Post. She covers books, dance, film, theater, music, museums and travel. Prior to founding Picture This Post, Amy was a freelance writer and global PR specialist for decades—writing and ghostwriting thousands of articles and promotional communications on a wide range of technical and not-so-technical topics.
