Review: A gorgeous and emotional staging of 'La Boheme' opens Sarasota Opera's fall season
The Sarasota Opera has mounted three productions of Giacomo Puccini's "La Boheme" in the past nine years. That's a lot. But if the current production were mounted three more times in the next nine years, no one would be likely to complain. It's that special.
From the design work to the performances, almost everything about this production is inspired and inspiring. The three sets by David P. Gordon -- the same ones used in the 2011 Sarasota Opera production -- are breathtaking. The dismal and claustrophobic artists' garret in the first and last acts, the lively and open Latin Quarter of act two and the dreary Barriere d'Enfer of act three all drew enthusiastic applause from the opening night audience even before a note was sung.
Howard Tsvi Kaplan's costumes look great and suit the characterizations perfectly, and Ken Yunker's lights subtly and prettily evoke mood, the seasons and the time of day.
Maestro Victor DeRenzi and the Sarasota Orchestra were sublime as usual, delicately and powerfully supporting the singers, and never once overpowering them.
The story, as most people know, has to do with a group of impoverished Parisian artists and intellectuals suffering through a winter with little food and no heat.
The poet Rodolfo meets and falls in love with a beautiful neighbor named Mimi, and soon the painter Marcello rekindles his romance with Musetta. But in the coming months, Marcello's jealousy destroys his relationship with Musetta, and Mimi becomes so ill she is scarcely able to move.
There are no bad performances, and the ensemble work, which features Sarasota Opera apprentices and studio artists along with the Sarasota Youth Opera, makes the second act a highlight of the evening.
In the lead roles, the two sopranos -- Jessica Rose Cambio as Mimi and Angela Mortellaro as Musetta -- give perhaps the most impressive performances. Cambio, in her debut with the Sarasota Opera, has a lovely voice that hits all the right emotional notes. Mortellaro, who was memorable as Adele in "Die Fledermaus" in 2013 at the Sarasota Opera, is lovely physically and musically as Musetta. Her performance of the opera's most famous melody, which has become known as "Musetta's Waltz," is a musical highlight of this production.
Baritone Craig Irvin and tenor Martin Nusspaumer, as Marcello and Rodolfo, both wield gorgeous voices. Nusspaumer is somewhat physically stiff and stylized, though, which doesn't fit the relatively naturalistic performance of the rest of the cast under the direction of Stephanie Sundine. (Sundine also directed the great productions of "Il Trovatore" and "Pagliacci" last season.) "La Boheme" has its detractors, but it has remained one of the most popular and most often produced operas in the world. The Sarasota Opera's current production reminds us why.
Details: Through Nov. 17, Sarasota Opera House, 61 N. Pineapple Ave., Sarasota. Show times: 7:30 p.m. Nov. 10, 12 and 17; 1:30 p.m. Nov. 15. Tickets: $19-$135. Information: 941-328-1300, sarasotaopera.org.
Marty Clear, features writer/columnist, can be reached at 941-708-7919. Follow twitter.com/martinclear.
This story was originally published November 6, 2015 at 4:46 PM with the headline "Review: A gorgeous and emotional staging of 'La Boheme' opens Sarasota Opera's fall season ."