Raftermen for The Atlanta Opera
The paucity of public transportation options in some southern cities still comes as a shock to this Northeasterner, no matter how much I read that the rusty but reliable train, subway, and bus systems dotting New England and the mid-Atlantic are the exception rather than the norm.
But this train of thought does not stop there: Evan Rogister’s conducting called to mind the Northeast Regional, Amtrak’s busiest route that plies the stretch between Boston and DC, in particular. You see, the Northeast Regional is unreliable despite the high demand for its service and its ability to run smoothly and on time is inconsistent; similarly, even in a warhorse such as Traviata, Rogister could not deliver a performance that either supported the singers or cohered on its own terms.
The prelude was zoomed through, the swell of “Amami, Alfredo” was strangely quiet, and the give-and-take between the pit and the stage that makes middle-period Verdi dance was nonexistent. Indeed, he conducted this performance like he was conducting a Northeast Regional train: surging ahead when he felt like it, slowing down in the heat of the moment, gesticulating wildly to get people on board. To steal a phrase from Wagner (who might as well have been talking about any number of NE Regional trains that suddenly and inexplicably grind to a standstill mid-journey), it was a performance of effects without causes.
Mané Galoyan seemed to suffer the most from this unrelenting nonsensical approach. She is a spunky, slightly brittle Violetta with a pearly voice, but the role seems a size too big for her vocal and histrionic capabilities. Fully at ease with neither the coloratura of Act I nor the declamation of Act III — her speedy, monotone reading of Alfredo’s letter sounded like Sarah Bernhardt doing an answering service – Galoyan only appeared genuinely comfortable during the Act II duet with Germont. Perhaps a more capable conductor (or a decent diction coach, for that matter) could have gotten a better performance out of her, or at least showed her off more flatteringly than Rogister could, but it fell to her gentle voice and rictus smile to carry the evening.
More obviously at ends was Anthony Clark Evans as Germont; inconveniently for the role of a stern father, his baritone is tawny and his bearing is light and lacking in gravitas. But beyond the temperamental mismatch, there were moments of cracking and undersinging in which the technique just sounded plain unfinished. Only Long Long’s Alfredo had the sense of assurance the others lacked; it’s a more burly sound that doesn’t ping, but he brings strong ideas to his singing and acts appealingly. Even when the Act II cabaletta took him blisteringly high, he remained consistent and stylish.
Raftermen for The Atlanta Opera
The smaller roles showed from some real strengths, including Ilanna Star’s vibrant Flora and David Crawford’s vividly acted Doctor Grenvil. Francesca Zambello’s production, too, was refreshingly uncomplicated; first premiered in 2018 at Washington National Opera and last seen at Atlanta Opera in 2019, it’s mostly free of gimmicks (beyond the predictable TB ward flashback framing device) and Peter J. Davison’s sets really do look opulent.
But perhaps the most interesting part of the evening was seeing Atlanta Opera’s dynamic General and Artistic Director Tomer Zvulun in (digital) action delivering a lengthy pre-recorded pre-show message on huge monitors on either side of the stage right after a rolling slideshow of credits had cycled through. Though this Veterans’ Day performance didn’t play to a packed house, it was nice to see the touches to make the operagoing experience more accessible in-person beyond the Atlanta Opera Studio efforts we’ve all come to appreciate over the past few years.
