I can’t recall an opera in which the villain is a building. But that’s the case with “The Shining,” an adaptation of Stephen King’s novel about a haunted hotel and a family that winters within it. While ghosts play a prominent role in many operas, the spirits occupying the remote Rocky Mountain hotel in “The Shining” are servants to one powerful, malevolent master: the building itself.
And what a building it is. Thanks to the inspired intersection of Erhard Rom’s stately set and the swirling, spooky projections of 59 Productions, Minnesota Opera is premiering the scariest opera you may ever experience. From Paul Moravec’s score full of discomfiting themes that clash and collide to strongly sung and disarmingly believable portrayals of characters alive and otherwise, “The Shining” is an unqualified success, ranking alongside 2011’s “Silent Night” as the best works to have been launched by Minnesota Opera’s New Works Initiative.
Like Kevin Puts’ “Silent Night” (with which it shares a librettist, Mark Campbell), “The Shining” seems destined for longevity. But if other opera companies choose to produce it, I’d recommend securing this design team. During the many scene shifts, large portions of the hotel roll in and out behind screens swirling with patterns, creating an unsettling, kaleidoscopic effect. And chilling shadows emerge while Moravec’s music ratchets up the tension.
If you’re familiar with the 1980 film version of “The Shining” but not King’s novel, you should know that director Stanley Kubrick took great liberties with the story, going so far as to change how the conflict plays out and resolves. I actually found this operatic version considerably creepier, in large part because we get to know the ghosts better. And it’s hard to find your footing while contemplating if much of the action is entirely within the protagonist’s head.
That character is Jack Torrance, a recovering alcoholic writer who’s taken on the winter caretaker job at the Overlook Hotel. There, he’ll stay with his wife, Wendy, and young son Danny, a reluctant psychic, and start to learn of the hotel’s sordid past. Will Jack follow in the murderous footsteps of one of his predecessors? Or will Danny’s powers be able to hold off what seems like a dark destiny?
This could come off as an overwrought gothic drama if not for the natural, lived-in portrayals at its center. Brian Mulligan’s Jack gradually evolves from a basically good man haunted by his past into a powder keg of hostility with a sizzling fuse. Kelly Kaduce makes Wendy an engaging everywoman despite Moravec’s melodies seldom allowing her voice to take wing. While David Walton offers a memorable turn as the ghostly former caretaker, the best music is given to bass Arthur Woodley as the chef who bonds with Danny. His deep, powerful voice is an exceptional instrument, and I’d love to hear it employed in one of opera’s great leading bass roles.
What it lacks in showstopping solos, Moravec’s music makes up for in its ability to create tension and drive the conflict. It’s a demanding score, but conductor Michael Christie and the Minnesota Opera Orchestra shape it with a deft blend of strength and subtlety. And director Eric Simonson deserves high praise for bringing so many imaginative elements into brilliant balance.
Rob Hubbard can be reached at robhubbard@pioneerpress.com.
What: Minnesota Opera’s “The Shining”
When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday
Where: Ordway Music Theater, 345 Washington St., St. Paul
Tickets: $200-$25, available at 612-333-6669 or mnopera.org
Capsule: A production so good, it’s scary.
