Founded in 1978 by Helen Knox and legendary American mezzo-soprano Mildred Miller, Pittsburgh Festival Opera began life as Opera Theater of Pittsburgh, running alongside the more established Pittsburgh Opera company and offering complimentary repertoire of the less standard fare (notably works by American composers) in the summer months. By 2019 the company boasted robust seasons, offering an average of four to five operas to Pittsburgh audiences, as well as the International Mildren Miller Singing Competition. In November of that year, the company turned to the celebrated mezzo-soprano Marianne Cornetti to take over the helm as General Artistic Director. She would soon be called upon to tackle challenges that would turn the entire world upside down.
As lockdown measures dimmed lights in theaters across the world in March of 2020, Pittsburgh Festival Opera was not spared, going into hiatus for the next two years. Producing opera is expensive, yet despite diminished funding and support, the company has patiently regained ground through recitals and special events. Last Sunday marked the company’s return to the production of complete operas, with an ambitious semi-staged concert performance of Francesco Cilea’s unjustly neglected Adriana Lecouvreur, presented at the lavish Carnegie Music Hall. If the season’s new motto, “It’s all about the voice” caught my eye, a glimpse at the starry line up of principals ensured an overdue pilgrimage to the city of bridges.
Often dismissed as melodramatic and saccharine, Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur is an important work of the Italian giovane scuola. Set to a libretto by Arturo Colautti based on a play by Scribe and Legouve of the same name, it dramatizes the undoing of the famous French actress Adrienne Lecouvreur. The score, replete with expressive and memorable music we nowadays associate with the verismo period, bridges romanticism and modernism through an economy of gesture, acknowledging Wagner while paying homage to old Italian tradition and the excesses of French Grand Opera (it even features a brief ballet depicting “The judgement of Paris”), exuding a certain Gallic “tinta” that would have made Verdi proud.
For this performance of Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur, Pittsburgh Festival Opera offered a semi-staged presentation with the principal artists sharing the stage with the orchestra, while the members of the chorus placed in the right section of the auditorium. Under Kaley Karis Smith’s direction, the action plays out behind the conductor’s podium, assisted by the few props that the narrow real estate available could accommodate. She accomplished much with very little, managing to establish connections between the characters and setting the stage (without a proper one) for the drama to unfold. She was particularly effective in filling the void left by the absence of a proper corps de ballet in act three, reverting focus to the reactions of the principals to the unseen dancers. For his part, maestro Christopher Franklin drew a great deal of sound and effect from a reduced orchestra, delivery a pragmatic and tidy reading of Adriana Lecouvreur. Maestro Franklin is no stranger to the works of Cilea, being perhaps the only conductor who has recorded Cilea’s graduation work Gina for a proper record label.
For the prima donna worth her salt (think Carla Gavazzi, Renata Tebaldi, Mary Curtis-Verna, Renata Scotto, Montserrat Caballe, Joan Sutherland, Mirella Freni, and especially Magda Olivero among its foremost exponents), the part offers tantalizing opportunities to make an impression, all of which Hungarian soprano Csilla Boross fully capitalized upon. Making her company and role debut as Adriana, Ms. Boross revealed a large, glamorous, velvety soprano distinguished by the sort of glottal sheen associated with the Hungarian singers of the past, a welcomed break from the homogeneity which over the lyric stage nowadays. As heard last Sunday, her artistry sits in the bubble of its prime – her instrument is both robust and fresh, with little loss of tonal quality as it soared to the piani in key phrases such as “Sull’onor suo giurò … Egli non sa mentire …La promessa terrò”, and yet her instrument remained credible as it engaged with the Principessa in the Gioconda-like hissy fit that followed.
Adriana’s two lyric soliloquies, “Io son l’umile ancella” and “Poveri Fiori” convinced by the ease of Ms. Boross’ delivery of these introspective, sustained melodies, perhaps cementing a lyrico spinto designation to her resources (and raising concern over parts such as Verdi’s Abigaille and Odabella which figure so prominent in her repertoire). Dramatically, her stage deportment was curiously understated, setting up the success of her scene of recitation, the Phaedra monologue, by providing a stark transformation from her otherwise cultivated aura of polite introversion. The spirit of Eleanora Duse, surely looking in from the Hotel Schenley across the street, was unfortunately unavailable for comment. Pittsburgh audiences will get a second hearing of Ms. Boross later this month through the Pittsburgh Festival Opera Legends in the Limelight concert series – we strongly recommend those in the area to be in attendance.
Expectations ran high as I waited for tenor Viktor Starsky to make his entrance as Maurizio, an assumption which marks his first interpretation of the role as well as his debut with Pittsburgh Opera Festival. The young tenor scored high points when his heroic Radames narrowly saved Utah Festival’s production of Verdi’s Aida in July of 2023. In the ensuing year, he has added such roles as Don Jose, Nemorino, and Cavaradossi, all standard parts which call for disparate declamatory styles. Taking into account the presence of his refined colleagues in this performance of Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur, I wondered if my initial impression of the young tenor would hold up. As heard last Sunday, Mr. Starsky surpassed the initial hype, always maintaining the high artistic bar set by his colleagues whenever he entered the stage. Accompanying his youthful, leading man good looks is a voice that holds the attention. If pressed to assign a classification, his tenor can be best surmised as a full lyric instrument with “possibilities”, which came to his aid when interpreting Cilea’s hero. Though generally more lyrical than his verismo counterparts, Cilea liked to push the envelope in his tenor roles (the first Maurizio was none other than Enrico Caruso), and great Maurizios must project a gallant disposition while navigating through the deceptively testing challenges presented in the score.
Mr. Starsky made for a valid exponent of the role from the very start. His introductory offering, the testing “La dolcissima effige,” was addressed head on with committed and precise intonation, avoiding the intrusive tightness that many have succumbed to by opening too quickly and compromising the pitch as the aria reaches its climax. Mr. Starsky remained poised as the second act introduced a new hurdle in the aria “l’anima ho stanca,” which starts on D in mezza voce and dragged Mr. Starsky’s tenor from the upper tessitura, from a testing diminuendo on F sharp to a fortissimo outburst on high A. Having succeeded thus far, Mr. Starsky showcased Maurizio’s military exploits through a vigorous reading of “Il russo Mencikoff” in act three, a solo framed in a galloping rhythm. By the time he joined Ms. Boross in the opera’s extended final duet, he reverted back to the gallant lover, revealing further gains in polish and style. Mr. Starsky remains on an exciting career path, which promises an exciting future if he continues to develop his sound.
Also making her stage debut at Pittsburg Festival Opera as the Principessa di Bouillon, though under very different circumstances, mezzo-soprano and General Artistic Director Marianne Cornetti reprised a role which has earned her critical acclaim throughout the world’s great stages. In voice and style, Ms. Cornetti is a throwback to the days when Principessas were the property of the likes of Fedora Barbieri, Miti Truccato Pace, Fiorenza Cossotto, Elena Obraztsova, Giulietta Simionato, Biserka Cvejic, Irene Dalis, Livia Budai and Cleopatra Ciurca to list a few. Hers is a dramatic mezzo-soprano of dragon lady proportions, its core dark and penetrating as it dove into the cavernous chest register. The ascend to the top required a brief warm-up to iron out an intrusive hooty quality which undermined the pitch in her introductory aria “Acerba volutta,” a trifle of a disclaimer when considering the artist’s distinguished resume which spans almost 30 years as a principal artist. I myself had the privilege to witness the birth of this career in 1996, when Ms. Cornetti, who at the time was pursuing a career as a comprimario, was convinced by William Fred Scott to be his Azucena in the Atlanta Opera’s production of Verdi’s Il Trovatore. I was in the audience that opening night and witnessed Ms. Cornetti exchange vocal blows with the Eduardo Villa’s Manrico and Donnie Ray Albert’s Count di Luna. Those were the days!
Her subsequent exchanges with Mr. Starsky found her within her comfort zone, and she lavished her declamation with Herculian effort which threatened the structure of the auditorium. During the confrontation with Ms. Boross, her involvement inspired fear for the leading lady and all those assembled onstage, orchestra and maestro included. It remains a gigantic voice, and even if it betrayed a looser knit when over-exerted on occasion, its stentorian profile often detached itself from the ensemble in deafening style. Dramatically she was sensitive to the character’s virtues past her actions, inviting the audience to measure the Princess’ actions against her insecurities and weaknesses.
The role of Michonnet, the stage manager at the Comédie-Française who is secretly in love with his leading actress, was entrusted to the wonderful baritone Michael Chioldi. An artist whose assumption of Verdi’s Macbeth at New Orleans Opera still lingers my mind’s ear, his Michonnet was realized by virtue of his smooth, silken baritone, delivering a touching rendition of the Michonnet’s musings as he watches Adriana become Roxane in Racine’s Bajazet. His performance suffered a minor discount by his reliance on an iPad to assist him through the entirety of the performance. Somehow an open score and bookstand would have been preferable. Yet looking past this trifle, Mr. Chioldi succeeded in conveying a thoughtful and sympathetic portrayal. The remaining troupe of the Comédie-Française was well represented by solid vocalism and dramatic conviction from tenor Fran Laucerica as Poisson, bass-baritone Allen Adair as Quinault, soprano Julia Swan Laird as Madamoiselle Jouvenot and mezzo-soprano Alexandria Zallo as Madamoiselle Dangeville. The cast was completed by the sturdy bass-baritone of Jesus Vincente Murillo, who revealed a vivacious interpretation of Il Principe di Bouillon, and the luxury casting of comprimario royalty, tenor Joseph Frank, as the Prince’s sidekick, the abbot.
The triumph of Pittsburgh Festival Opera’s presentation of Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur will hopefully cement the company’s transition into an era of prosperity following the aftermath of the COVID crisis. For the purposes of Viardot-vs-Grisi’s Delta miles, Pittsburgh enters the list of travel destinations. For information on the company’s Legends in the Limelight concert series, please visit https://pittsburghfestivalopera.org/
-Daniel Vasquez