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Così fan tutte is an infinitely adaptable opera because of the intimate cast of six leads and its timeless, though ludicrous, story. With simple but classy sets, rented from Arizona Opera, the 18^th-century soldiers, their fiancés, and friends were transported to a 1930s seaside mansion and environs. The Saturday night’s near-capacity audience at the Muriel Kauffman Theatre was transported as well, heartily laughing at the shenanigans perpetrated onstage. 

The plot: Soldiers Ferrando (Matthew Plenk) and Guglielmo (David Won) enter into a bet with Don Alfonso (John Stephens) as to whether or not their fiancées, sisters Dorabella (Marie Lenormand) and Fiordiligi (Amanda Hall), can remain faithful. Alfonso is aided by the ladies’ maid, Despina (Susanne Mentzer). The soldiers disguise themselves as “Albanians” in attempts to woo the other’s chosen. At first, the women, not recognizing each other’s partners, spurn their advances with righteous indignation—but as night falls, so do inhibitions. The sisters agree to marry their newfound lovers; as they are signing the marriage contracts, the “Albanians” abruptly leave, returning shortly as the ladies’ original lovers. Rightful accusations are hurled and in the end all are possibly absolved. Mozart left the ending ambiguous, as it is only Don Alfonso, the manipulative bystander, who declares everyone happy and forgiven.

Five of the six singers made their Lyric Opera debuts with this production, but it was the two mezzos, Marie Lenormand and Susanne Mentzer, who stole the show and appropriately earned the most applause come curtain. Lenormand’s Dorabella, though attached at the hip to Fiordiligi for most of the opera’s proceedings, imbued her character with an appropriate amount of ridiculous melodramatics and phenomenal comedic acting to make Dorabella an individual. Her voice was lustrous and agile—well suited to her sex-kitten persona hidden underneath layers of propriety. Unfortunately, though understandable, her second aria was cut from the production for time concerns.

Mentzer’s background antics became one of the highlights of the production, whether drinking straight out of the champagne bottle, sneaking sips of hot cocoa, or emerging from underneath an oversized beach umbrella. Even out of the spotlight, she occasionally upstaged the featured singers with her clowning, but it was so fun it hardly mattered. Her arias were memorable and well executed with her unforced high notes speaking easily and consistent timbre throughout her range.

Amanda Hall had the flashiest of the roles in Fiorgiligi. Playing the straight woman to Lenormand’s pixie, Hall carried herself with poise and dignity even when breaking down. Her vibrato was tight, fast, and took some getting used to. The pitches of her wide leaps were well focused, but her lower register was too weak to carry.  Hall’s ensemble singing was tasteful and balanced, especially when singing with Lenormand.

Plenk and Won hammed it up as the Albanians, and their poisoning scene was hysterically outlandish. Both seemed pressed in their higher tessituras, but their tone was full yet light enough for Mozart. John Stephens, the only singer not making a Lyric debut, did not fare well in this production. Frequently behind and often lacking in diction and focused pitch, he was the one sour note in the otherwise solid and well-cast production.

Kristine McIntyre’s direction was clear and the added levity in the second act was welcome, most notably in the awkward “first date” scene. There seemed to be an overreliance on kneeling and prostrate body positioning, however. Ward Holmquist and members of the Kansas City Symphony served the singers well and did their best to remain under the text. Piano was used on the recitatives; I would have preferred a harpsichord.

Though not flawless and some of the missteps may have been due to opening-night jitters, the Lyric’s Così fan tutte is a surprisingly brisk jaunt, full of zany behaviors that transcends centuries.

REVIEW:
Lyric Opera of Kansas City
Così fan tutte
Saturday, November 5, 2011 (Reviewed)
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Friday, November 11, 2011
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Muriel Kauffman Theatre, Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts
1501 Broadway, Kansas City, MO
For more information, visit http://www.kcopera.org

Top Photo: Lyric Opera of Kansas City's Così fan tutte (Photo by Karen Almond)

By Lee Hartman

Editor-in-Chief; Traditional and New Classical Contributor

Lee Hartman holds degrees from the University of Missouri-Kansas City (D.M.A., M.M.) and the University of Delaware (B.M.). At the University of Delaware, he received a Dean's Scholar position enabling him to pursue an individually designed academic program combining music education and composition. At the University of Missouri-Kansas City he served for three years as the Assistant Director to Musica Nova, the conservatory's new music ensemble, while teaching a variety of composition classes.

In 2007 he was invited to both the Iceland Academy of the Arts in Reykjavík, Iceland and the Sichuan Conservatory in Chengdu, China to give lectures and master classes in composition. In the summer of 2009, Hartman served as an orchestra manager for the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble and Aspen Opera Theater Center for various performances. He serves on the National Executive Committee of the Society of Composers, Inc. as Submissions Coordinator. His primary composition instructors include James Mobberley, Chen Yi, Zhou Long, Paul Rudy, John Beall, and Jennifer Margaret Barker. He currently teaches music theory at the University of Central Missouri and general music classes at Park University having previously taught at UD (2007–08) and UMKC (2006–07).

His compositions can be found at http://www.leehartmanmusic.com