After all, with its crazed gypsies, clanging anvils, infanticide and bloodlust, "Il Trovatore" usually spells melodrama with a capital M.

As Verdi scholar William Berger once wrote: "This is the opera your parents warned you about: wild, uninhibited and relentlessly intense."

Lyric Opera's new production, directed by David McVicar and designed by Charles Edwards, certainly lives up to that standard. Italian tenor Vincenzo La Scola joined the cast Wednesday as Manrico, the troubadour of the opera's title, and he holds his own against the excellent principals: the mighty Dolora Zajick as Azucena, Mark Delavan as Count di Luna and Sondra Radvanovsky as Leonora.

With his brighter, more lyrical voice, La Scola sounded less earthbound than his predecessor, Italian tenor Walter Fraccaro. As his more fluid style suggests, he's more troubadour than warrior.

In Act 3's showcase moments, La Scola offered delicately sculpted lines in "Ah, si, ben mio," but his "Di quella pira" lacked the fire of Fraccaro's version and the dizzying, heart-pounding intensity that characterize the best renditions of this Verdi chestnut. The final high C didn't meet its mark, but La Scola has nailed it before and will nail it again.
Radvanovsky's incandescent "Miserere" received the biggest ovation, and Delavan matched her brilliance in the subsequent "Mira d'accerbe lagrime" duet. But this production's driving force remains Zajick, who creates a fiery, unforgettable portrait of unrelenting obsession.

McVicar admits he had to be persuaded to take on "Trovatore," and now that he has done so, he still doesn't think much of the opera. Too bad, because with its irresistible blend of primal fury and vengeance, "Trovatore" is a keeper; with his intelligent production, McVicar has made a strong case for it.

Source: http://www.msn.com
POSTED BY LAURA EMERICK


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