Executioners were quite busy Sunday afternoon at Lyric Opera, where various characters came to unfortunate ends.
Before they succumbed, however, torrents of notes were expended on their behalf, most sung quite lusciously by soprano Sondra Radvanovsky, star of “The Three Queens.”
The title refers not to a single opera but to excerpts from works by Gaetano Donizetti in a semi-staged production, each dealing with historic figures who ran afoul of British royalty in the 16th and 17th centuries. That so much glorious coloratura singing could be spun from so many beheadings attests to opera’s unique charm – and the considerable suspension of disbelief it requires.
The blood bath began with the finale of Donizetti’s “Anna Bolena,” who lost the affections of King Henry VIII and would lose much more. Conductor Riccardo Frizza led the Lyric Opera Orchestra in a buoyant performance of the overture, followed by exquisitely delicate tones from the Lyric Opera Chorus, prepared by Michael Black.
When Radvanovsky delivered those first a cappella notes of “Piangete voi?” – her phrasing subtle, her tone tender – the bar for this venture was set rather high. For Radvanovsky acted the part as tellingly as she sang it, the vulnerability on her face reflecting the ache in her voice.
As her character’s fate became more apparent, Radvanovsky darkened her timbre, most notably in “Un suon sommesso,” which she performed slowly and profoundly. Contralto Lauren Decker, a member of Lyric’s Ryan Opera Center, expressed grief in amber low notes as Smeaton, the queen’s page.
The title character of Donizetti’s “Maria Stuarda” also faced the scaffold, Radvanovsky’s tonal purity in opening passages rendering the character’s eventual denouement all the more startling. Could a figure who has reached such a place of peace and aspiration really be facing imminent death?
Yes.
Before arriving at that tragic outcome, however, Radvanovsky and the Lyric Opera Chorus offered spiritual reflection in “Deh! Tu di un’umile preghiera.” The soprano articulated this prayer in earnest, open tones at first, then radiantly with the chorus, a high point of “The Three Queens.”
Radvanovsky played both villain and victim as Queen Elizabeth I in Donizetti’s “Roberto Devereux,” for the queen had signed the title character’s death warrant, even though she loved him and hoped to save him. As fate takes its course, she learns of Devereux’s death and becomes crazed with sorrow, as Radvanovsky’s sobs attested. The soprano ranged from throaty low notes to piercing cries in “Quel sangue versato al cielo s’innalza,” elsewhere floating pianissimo pitches in the stratosphere of her instrument.
Radvanovsky wore the gowns Rubin Singer designed for her about as graciously as could be expected for such extravagant creations, though the immense, multi-layered structure in which she trundled across the stage in “Roberto Devereux” appeared to have a life of its own.
All of which made for sharp contrast with the choristers’ modern black attire, reminding the audience that “The Three Queens” was designed to focus attention on Radvanovsky. Matthew Ozawa’s stage direction underscored the point, keeping all eyes trained on the soprano, with small supporting roles and chorus consistently deflecting to her.
In the end, “The Three Queens” amounted to a lavish vocal recital with bells and whistles, Radvanovsky carrying most of the artistic responsibility and doing so handsomely.
“The Three Queens” repeats at 7 p.m. Wednesday and 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Lyric Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Drive; $49-$219; 312-827-5600 or www.lyricopera.org.
Three stars
Schumacher-Weldon Quartet
The Thanksgiving weekend in Chicago would not have been complete – at least not for jazz listeners – without the heaven-storming music of the Dave Schumacher-Jerry Weldon Quartet.
Baritone saxophonist Schumacher and tenor saxophonist Weldon made their annual appearance before a crowded Green Mill Jazz Club on Saturday evening, Schumacher telling the audience that the two mighty reedists were celebrating 40 years of playing together. You could hear as much in the synchronicity and camaraderie of their work, each musician doing everything he could to make the other one sound better.
Backed by two top-notch Chicago instrumentalists – organist Pete Benson and drummer George Fludas – Schumacher and Weldon came out swinging with “Dig” (from the Miles Davis recording featuring Sonny Rollins and Jackie McLean). No one who has attended past Schumacher-Weldon sessions would have been surprised by the power and drive of this music, Schumacher’s gravelly baritone counterbalanced by Weldon’s wailing tenor. Theirs is a rough-and-ready sound that blows away any obstacles.
But there’s a softer side to their art, as well, as they showed in Irving Berlin’s “How Deep is the Ocean.” Schumacher unfurled softly stated lines of ample melodic invention, and Weldon responded in kind. Eventually, the two soloists pushed up the volume and intensity of their music-making, making way for Benson’s gorgeously ornate solo on the Hammond B-3 organ.
Later in the evening, Weldon offered exclamatory playing marked by crying high notes and ferocious runs in John Coltrane’s “Like Sonny,” backed by ultrasophisticated harmonies from organist Benson.
The set’s most striking moments came near the end, when Schumacher picked up his baritone for Vernon Duke and Ira Gershwin’s “I Can’t Get Started.” This was more than an extended solo, Schumacher producing an essay of remarkable melodic complexity and tonal sheen. Here was proof positive that the contemporary baritone saxophone can sing as openly and warmly as any higher-pitched reed instrument. Tenorist Weldon offered longs strands of melody before yielding the spotlight to Schumacher’s barely whispered coda.
So even though the two saxophonists closed the set with a rambunctious blues finale, they showed that there’s more to their art than its most well-known, extroverted features. Perhaps that’s why they’ve been able to work together for so long – they keep finding new things to say.
Howard Reich is a Tribune critic.
