First appearing in pajamas and a dressing gown, he opened his robe a few too many times to provocatively suggest “exposing” his business to Susanna, at one point coming up close behind her to ensure she, um, gets the point.
His initial scenes made him seem like a lizard in search of a lounge. Samuel Dale Johnson was an uncommonly fine choice for Count Almaviva, with his lean, lanky, Casanova good looks and a refined, pointed baritone possessed of an attractive timbre and presence. (See: Housebound French Director, above.) Brownlee could not ignite more crackling connectivity between their characters.
Given their substantial individual gifts, it is a shame then, that she and Mr. She is delightfully at ease on stage, even when asked to gamely communicate some sexually charged gestures. He knows the basic way around the role, and lands many of his key moments with aplomb, although he will likely find even more variety with further experience in this title part.Īs Susanna, the pert, diminutive Ying Fang is a sterling soprano, pleasantly full toned for such a soubrette role, easily encompassing melting phrasing, sassy rejoinders, and all the many challenges of this lengthy sing.
Brownlee was a marvelously accomplished Figaro, with a beefy, manly tone that rang out with pleasing fluidity. Nicholas Brownlee was himself replacing an international artist originally cast but unable to come. Photo Credit: Curtis Brown For The Santa Fe Opera, 2021įirst, though, the cast that SFO has assembled is second to none in starry stature. Nicholas Brownlee (Figaro), Ying Fang (Susanna). And those were sometimes in rather short supply. But effective comedy requires detailed characterization and carefully calibrated interaction to work. Acclaimed director Laurent Pelly could not travel, so his assistant Laurie Feldman gamely took over, reportedly using recordings and Zoom meetings to keep Pelly involved as best as possible. This turned out to be somewhat a Marriage of inconvenience. There may be a number of reasons for this, the difficulty of getting visas for foreign artists during COVID restrictions chief among them. Like the barber in another famous piece, Santa Fe Opera’s The Marriage of Figaro (Le nozze di Figaro) is frequently all over the place.
0 kommentar(er)
