The Capulets and the Montagues

by Vincenzo Bellini
San Francisco Opera
War Memorial Opera House

Once again, absolute delight in this ultra-American city.

I don't usually include the entire cast in a post, because I usually can't say good things about everyone, but here it is - because everyone was excellent:

Giulietta - Nicole Cabell
Romeo - Joyce DiDonato
Tebaldo - Saimir Pirgu
Lorenzo - Ao Li
Capellio - Eric Owens

Clearly, this was a Romeo and Juliet story, by the title. Although, the story was different from what we all know from high school, if not before. Juliet and Romeo have more reason to be apart, a long-standing war, not a simple family feud. Juliet is torn, as psychologically she should be, between family loyalty and love. There is a rival suitor, Tebaldo, who is a reasonable option for our poor Juliet. Romeo isn't some wimpy kid, but a soldier who has killed her brother. All these changes, all these differences brought an old story to life and provided some real depth to the old story of love.

Nicole Cabell was the whole package. How they found a Giulietta of this caliber, I don't know. Vocally wonderful, good acting, young, pretty - she was everything you could possibly want. She was actually worth the affections of Romeo and Tebaldo.

One of the strangest things about this opera is that Romeo is sung by a mezzo-soprano. It works and it's a fascinating choice by Bellini. One way it works is that Romeo and Giulietta are the only two female voices singing on the stage the entire night, uniting them through voice and distinguishing them from everyone else on stage. At the pre-performance lecture it was pointed out that the woman's chorus only sings off-stage. It also portrays youth, to have Romeo cast as a woman (think Hansel and Gretel, right?).

The production was wonderful, rather sparse and modern. But, with fantastic, slightly deconstructed costumes by Christian Lacroix. Even before I looked at the program, the costumes seemed suspiciously good, oddly beautiful. They were high fashion and it showed. As a reader and lover of Vogue, it was a joy to see such wonderfully designed costumes on the opera stage. When you are dealing with more sparse backdrops, it pays to have amazing fashion on the singers. I especially loved Giulietta's slip and wedding dress. And, the chorus' clothing at the wedding. Wow!

I can't rave enough about this performance. I thought we were going to simply listen to Joyce DiDonato, whose reputation preceded her by a long shot. And, she was lovely. Loads of vibrato in that voice, which isn't my favorite type of singing, personally. The entire cast was magnificent, though, with special stand-out performances by Pirgu and Cabell. I think, notably, it was strange blocking for Eric Owens. We heard him in Hercules a couple years ago. I know his lungs are big enough to carry. But, he was at the back of the stage most of the night and some of his vocal power got lost back there. There was one point where he was at the front of the stage, everyone singing - including the chorus and we could hear him clearly. So, I don't think it was an off night, I just think he was put into weird places on the stage. It makes sense that the ill-fated lovers should be in front, logically. But, we lost some of the power of the father-figure with him towards the back.

If we had to change anything about this performance, it would be the creakiness of the stage. It was so loud, competing at some points with the music. Just a few nails or screws or glue or something and we are all better. And, the good looking boots were a little squeaky-creaky in the beginning, but that might bet better as time rolls on. I don't think they were real leather, they sort of made that sound fake leather makes.

There is less to write when everything is wonderful. I keep saying that San Francisco is the number two opera house in the country. It can never be number one because of the scope of their season and its brevity. The Met is unrivaled for its season and its stature in the world. But, it seems like an opera house that is fully and entirely devoted to quality, not quantity. And, though I've only seen two operas there, they are two of the best - and I just can't wait to go again.