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Tenor
Rolando Villazon summarizes the plot of Giacomo
Puccini’s La Bohème in just 12 short words: “They meet,
they fall in love, they split, she returns, she dies.”
But those few words fail to summarize the beauty of
Puccini’s music, which has captivated the hearts of
millions of opera lovers worldwide since its premiere in
Turin, Italy, in 1896. And last weekend, hundreds of
opera lovers in Metro Manila experienced the magic of
this story about bohemian youths in a coproduction by
the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) and the
Philippine Opera Company (POC).
La
Bohème is POC’s first full-length opera production since
the group was formed in the 1990s. After countless of
concerts that featured local singers in programs of
opera arias, the company finally took the plunge and
mounted an opera that would rest in the minds of many
theatergoers as one of the best. Many still remember the
unforgettable La Bohème staged by the late National
Artist Rolando Tinio in the ’90s, and that, along with
its companion La Traviata, served as benchmarks for
opera productions in the country. POC’s La Bohème is now
a worthy companion to the Tinio operas.
For its
staging of the opera, stage and TV director Floy Quintos
moved the story to contemporary Malate, peopling it with
struggling artists belonging to the local indie arts
scene. It was rather difficult to reconcile singers in
modern dress who are singing in Italian. You somehow
expect them to drop the Italian, and suddenly sing in
Filipino, as in the Tinio Bohème. But you get none of
that here. The CCP Main Theater was filled with sweet,
limpid Italian singing for more than two hours.
The
beauty of POC’s production was that it brought to fore a
new generation of opera singers who were more than
capable of singing Puccini’s masterpiece. An open
audition attracted many applicants, and the singers they
discovered in that search only proved that there is
still a goldmine of operatic talents in the country just
waiting to be discovered.
Many of
the singers in the Tinio Bohème got their start from
that production and are now established singers in their
own right. Tenor Gary del Rosario, who played Rodolfo
during the opera’s opening night, got his start from the
Tinio production as Parpignol, the toy vendor. In the
interim, he has gone abroad and assumed roles in opera
productions across the United States.
Del
Rosario is now heavier of voice, almost lirico-spinto in
heft, and he brought to his Rodolfo a confidence that
could only be gained from years of work in the theater.
It would be difficult to find a tenor locally who could
match del Rosario in terms of tone color and lung power.
His Rodolfo was definitely a rare musical treat.
But
then, del Rosario could not have had any problem being
heard over Puccini’s music, since conductor Helen Quach
was leading the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra in all
the performances. Quach knew how to tame Puccini’s music
for the benefit of young singers, carefully nurturing
them to give truly dramatic performances.
Assuming
Rodolfo on the second night was Juan Alberto Gaerlan,
who had a lighter and more lyrical voice than del
Rosario’s. Some might prefer Gaerlan’s performance
musically because his voice is in the mold of
Pavarotti’s—sweet and plangent. However, his voice was
unsteady and often inconsistent in pitch. He also had a
tendency to scoop, rather than to sing on the note. Many
might have found this habit to be expressive, but some
might have found it annoying.
The
sopranos cast as Mimi were also vocally different:
Jennifer Uy has a lighter and clearer voice, while
newcomer Maribel Miguel has a weightier voice, almost
spinto in heft. Both turned in fine performances,
although Uy was the better actress on opening night. Her
death scene in the opera’s final act was subtle and more
carefully calculated for dramatic effect. As Mimi slowly
loses her energy, her voice slowly lost color until she
totally stopped singing and delivered her lines parlando.
Miguel sang her way through her death scene, varying the
dynamics of her voice as needed. It would be interesting
to see Uy and Miguel sing more Italian opera in the
future, maybe in a dramatic role like Bellini’s Norma.
There
were also two sets of Marcello and Musetta: Lawrence
Jatayna and Ana Feleo on opening night, and Jesus
Emmanuel Baang and Elaine Lee on the second night. They
proved to be as engaging as the Rodolfos and Mimis.
Then
there were Schaunard and Colline, namely John Ocampos
and Leo Logdat, respectively. They might not have the
weightiest baritone and bass voices, but they brought an
actorly confidence to their roles as Rodolfo and
Marcello’s roommates.
Rounding
out the cast was veteran Nomer Son in the twin roles of
Benoit and Alcindoro, short comic roles that he
performed with relish.
Quintos’s direction was fluid and compact. Except for
the massive demands of Act II—it requires a chorus of
singers and children—he kept the action intimate with a
staging that focused the audience’s attention on the
singers. The sets by Jo Tecson were simple, aided by
screen projections by Furball and lighting by Monino
Duque.
This is
the highlight of POC’s season this year, which
culminates with a three-week run of Terence McNally’s
Master Class at the Carlos P. Romulo Theater at RCBC
Plaza that starts next week. |
