Opera Quad-Cities will present a scaled down ‘Rigoletto’
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By David Burke | Sunday, January 13, 2008 |
This is the fifth straight January that Opera Quad-Cities has presented a full-scale work, and this year it’s Verdi’s “Rigoletto.”
But it’s being presented for the first time as an “enhanced concert version.” That description falls somewhere between a traditional concert, in which the performers are dressed formally and holding their scores, and a complete production with costumes, sets and choreography.
The orchestra will be onstage with the performers, some costumes, lighting and choreography.
“You just scale it down to the space that’s given you,” director Bill Fabris said in a telephone interview from New York. “You don’t want to be wielding swords. The cellist gets a little nervous.”
The performances will be Friday night and next Sunday afternoon at the RiverCenter/Adler Theatre, Davenport.
Fabris said the principal performers, including Tom Hall returning as the title character, are all familiar with their roles and do not need to refer to the score anyway.
An English translation of the songs will be projected above the stage.
A veteran of musical theater, Fabris said he enjoys bringing out the storytelling aspect of opera that was not given a high priority decades ago.
“The thing I enjoy about it is that I try to bring out the acting in the singers so they can tell the story,” he said. “So much of the old style of opera is a static thing. The voices were great, but they weren’t telling the story.”
In “Rigoletto,” the title character is a jester to the Duke. At a ball, the hunchbacked jester mocks the courtiers cuckolded by the profligate Duke, stirring them to plans of vengeance. Count Monterone appeals to the Duke for the return of his dishonored daughter, but he is cruelly mocked by Rigoletto. Enraged, Monterone calls down a father’s curse on the terrified jester.
The opera’s most-recognized tune is “La donna è mobile,” which translates to “woman is fickle.”
Fabris said “Rigoletto” is one of his favorite Verdi operas.
“(I love) the drama and the characters. They’re so well-written and vivid,” he said. “They’re not nice people.”
A New York native, he directed “L’elisir d’amore (Elixir of Love)” for the Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre last summer. In the audience were Angela Hand, the Opera Quad-Cities general manager, and Ron May, the president of the organization.
Hand and May offered him the Opera Quad-Cities spot that very night.
“Angela told me it was not one of her favorites and she was dreading seeing the production. But once she went, she really enjoyed it,” he said and then laughed. “She said that was the director’s fault.”
David Burke can be contacted at (563) 383-2400 or dburke@qctimes.com. Comment on this story at qctimes.com.
IF YOU GO
What: “Rigoletto” by Opera Quad-Cities
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 18; 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 20
Where: RiverCenter/Adler Theatre, Davenport
How much: $33 and $27, with discounts for senior citizens and groups of 20 or more. Those 16 years and younger receive a free ticket with a paid adult admission.
Information: (563) 326-8555 or Adler Theatre.com
On the Web: OperaQC.org
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