The Cunning Little Vixen, 7/18/08

Published in Opera News
Oct. 2008, vol 73, no.4
By David Shengold

In artistic and general director Jay Lesenger's picturesque staging for Chautauqua Opera, The Cunning Little Vixen - the company's first-ever Janáček outing - made a highly worthwhile and enjoyable evening (seen July 18). Both Lesenger and conductor Ari Pelto kept the pace between the short scenes flowing. One difficulty in presenting Vixen is that despite the (seemingly) small-scale subject material, the mature composer wrote for large orchestral forces. British composer Jonathan Dove, who has done similar tasks for Wagner's Ring, arranged the score for roughly halved forces, allowing for performance in Norton Hall. Pelto gave a good sense of the piece, yet on opening night one was sometimes conscious of the immense difficulty of the music - a score that probably comes off best when rehearsed for months. Even though Dove's reduction cannily attempts to finesse it, and Pelto's fine players gave it a good shot, the final orchestral/emotional surge needed fuller forces (and flashier brass) to make its intended effect. Yet Lesenger staged the denouement very well. We as an audience had seen the great variety of insects and other forest creatures - most of them played by kids, with terrific energy - capering, crawling and slinking around before, during the striking prelude, but the Forester was the first "onstage" human to witness the same magic.

Chautauqua veteran Philip Cokorinos, always a professional, acted the role commandingly; most of his words were audible and put over with flair. A fairly gruff bass-baritone in a role ideally calling for a grand, flowing, heroic voice such as Bryn Terfel's, Cokorinos captured the Forester's earthiness but just missed the character's inherent nobility. The finale especially needed more tonal majesty.

Sari Gruber, an expert singing actress of genuine charm and admirable musicality, made a delightful, winning Vixen. The part, which she embodied physically to the hilt, showcased her rich, fluid middle voice; the orchestra largely covered a few less rounded upper tones. Gruber and Cokorinos set an inspiring standard for the company's young singers. Not everyone got their words across with equal effectiveness - Norton has tough acoustics. Mezzo Elizabeth Pojanowski's Fox provided a charming love interest and a clear, warm timbre. As the unlucky Schoolmaster, Vernon Di Carlo fielded excellent diction and just the right kind of high-placed, bright lyric tenor for a whole host of roles. Other standouts included Melanie Campbell (Innkeeper's Wife), whose few phrases glowed with rich individuality; very solid bass-baritones Seth Carico, as Harasta, the poacher, and Ryan Kuster, who enlivened three contrasting roles; plus dancer Lee Heinz as both a dragonfly and, in a dream ballet, the collective local fantasy object, Teryenka.

A large cast of youthful singers, dancers and mimes filled up the forest scenes, aided by Maris Battaglia's creative choreography and (especially) Nancy Leary's marvelous, witty costumes. Ron Kadri's two-tiered set proved versatile; he and lighting designer Christopher Ostrom achieved a beautiful snow effect using the scrim. Lesenger deserves kudos for pulling the whole show together with aplomb, and also for giving the Chautauqua community such an enjoyable first look at Janáček's nonpareil operatic legacy.