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Georges Bizet’s 1875 opera, “Carmen,” has a Gypsy enchantresses, tarot cards and a magical rose that has the power to make young men forget their responsibilities.
As presented by Townsend Opera at the Gallo Center for the Arts in Modesto, it's an exciting show that grabs your attention from start to finish. This is a spectacle with a cast of 60, including children, a 30-piece orchestra and guest dancers from Central West Ballet. Though there were a few rough spots in Wednesday's dress rehearsal, the cast, under Joseph Wiggett's direction, was able to convey earth-shaking emotions of jealousy, anger and unrelenting passion.
The title character is masterfully portrayed by Irene Roberts, who will perform in the Metropolitan Opera in New York twice next season — once in "The Marriage of Figaro" and again in its HD movie broadcast of Wagner's "Parsifal."
Modesto Bee - (Debbie Noda/dnoda@modbee.com) Townsend Opera's production of "Carmen" with Irene Roberts as Carmen and Mathew Edwardsen as Don Jose. May 5, 2012.
Roberts, a mezzo-soprano, plays the part with confidence in her seductive powers. She knows with every fiber of her being that she only has to twirl her hair or bat her eyes to get any man to fall at her feet. Her rendition of "Habanera," about unrestrained love, is magnetic. She also entertains with her flamenco dance and castanet playing.
Tenor Mathew Edwardsen has a less enjoyable role as the hapless Don Jose, a soldier who deserts his troops and his sweetheart to follow Carmen. He devolves from an upstanding soldier to a wild man with no self-respect and nothing to live for.
Once again in a Townsend Opera production, Michael Ventura displays the most booming voice as Zuniga, Don Jose's superior officer. Tall and displaying a commanding presence, he outsings nearly everyone on stage.
Soprano Jillian Boye also stands out for her powerful voice and charismatic stage presence as Frasquita, one of Carmen's friends. Evgenia Chaverdova is fun to watch as Carmen's friend Mercedes.
Daniel Cilli is handsome and engaging as Escamillo, the bullfighter in the glittering gold suit who steals Carmen away from Don Jose. He shines when singing the famed "Toreador Song." Liisa Davila sings and acts like an angel as Micaela, Don Jose's faithful but rejected sweetheart.
The female chorus of Gypsies appeared to struggle with its numbers at the dress rehearsal. The vocalists sometimes were overpowered by conductor Ryan Murray's excellent orchestra. But they looked lovely in the colorful, swirling skirts and scarves provided by costumer Renata Bricka. And they provided humor with a massive catfight in front of the military troops.
Dressed in ragged clothes with smudged faces, the children wave flags and march charmingly around the stage as street urchins.
Central West Ballet dancers Alyssa Milano, Nicole Firpo, Brandon Phelps and Nathan Champion offer glamour and polish as Gypsy dancers in a tavern scene.
Eric Broadwater's sets artfully suggest Seville, Spain, with banners of village scenes and posters of bullfights. Onstage snow and a large full moon add to the romance in a mountain scene.
The supertitles, which provide the translation for the French singing, didn't always work well at the dress rehearsal. There were a disturbing number of typos — as one example, "mother's kill" was printed accidentally instead of "mother's kiss." They didn't always keep up with the action, either.
But none of that will keep the audience from enjoying Bizet's hit parade of songs performed competently by the seasoned principal singers. All in all, Townsend Opera can be proud of this season-finale production.
