A fairy godmother. Glass slippers. A clock striking midnight.
None of those ingredients that Disney made famous are to be found in Lyric Opera of Chicago’s seventh presentation of Gioachino Rossini’s “La Cenerentola (Cinderella)” since 1959, but, no matter, the essential essence of this beloved tale is all here.
Indeed, it is that familiarity combined with Rossini’s vibrant bel canto score, with its smartly interwoven ensemble writing and catchy patter songs (none better than “Sia qualunque delle figlie” at the beginning of Act 2), that make this 1817 opera so appealing.
Rossini, who was just 25 at the time, and his librettist Jacopo Feretti turned this “Cinderella” into a comedy. It contains all kinds of farcical elements, including hidden identities and the wonderfully exaggerated stepsisters, who are delightfully mean, self-involved and ungainly.
For this revival, which opened Sunday afternoon at the Lyric Opera House and runs through Feb. 10, the company has brought back a fun, whimsical and heartwarming production. It was created in 1969 for the San Francisco Opera by Jean-Pierre Ponnelle, a legendary French director and designer who died in 1988.
This is Lyric’s fourth presentation of this classic version, last seen here in 2005-06, with Gregory A. Fortner, who has a long list of directing credits all around the world, capably overseeing this latest iteration in his first Lyric collaboration.
Instead of imposing some directorial concept or conceit, Ponnelle simply brings the magic of this story alive, placing the action on fanciful sets that look like enlarged, three-dimensional versions of traditional storybook illustrations. The scenery is all black-and-white with the designer’s striking costumes, including the red jackets of the courtiers and the stepsisters’ garish ball gowns, providing plenty of color and visual pop.
Ponnelle plays up the opera’s comic interactions with his careful blocking and injects slapstick and all manner of other lively buffoonery, and it all works here in a timeless, winning fashion thanks in large part to the terrific cast that Lyric has assembled.
Making her Lyric debut as Cinderella is the Russian-born mezzo-soprano Vasilisa Berzhanskaya, who possesses virtually everything one could ask for in this title role. It starts with a winning naturalism and luminosity across her full range, especially her breathtaking lower register, and all the vocal power she needs.
She handles all of Rossini’s challenging coloratura demands with striking dexterity and an extraordinary sense of ease, while at the time compellingly conveying this mistreated character’s mix of accumulated pain, essential goodness and undimmed hope.
Opposite her in another Lyric debut, tenor Jack Swanson hits all his marks as Ramiro, the prince, but he comes across as less comfortable amid the opera’s zaniness and his vocal efforts are more apparent.
Italian baritone Alessandro Corbelli had a memorable turn as Sulpice in Lyric’s fall production of “The Daughter of the Regiment,” and this company regular is back as Don Magnifico, Cinderella’s doltish and unkind stepfather. The veteran stage comedian almost steals the show with his sure-footed double takes and other theatrical hijinks and his flawlessly agile, adroitly articulated singing.
Completely at home both onstage and in Rossini’s compositional style, baritone Joshua Hopkins also shows himself to be a first-rate comic actor as he hilariously hams it up as Dandini, a valet who disguises himself as the prince for much of the opera.
Also deserving plaudits as Cinderella’s stepsisters are soprano Teresa Castillo and mezzo-soprano Sophia Maekawa, who is in her first year in Lyric’s Ryan Opera Center and gets a big career boost here. The two capable singers and actors revel in the pratfalls and missteps of these lovably unseemly characters. Rounding out the cast is Nicholas Newton, who makes a solid impression as Alidoro, the prince’s tutor, with his stentorian bass-baritone voice.
A well-choreographed contingent of two dozen male members of the fine Lyric Opera Chorus take on the roles of courtiers and ball attendees in this production, providing welcome vocal back-up at strategic moments and gamely contributing to the overall merriment.
Making a strong debut in the pit is Taiwanese-born conductor Yi-Chen Lin. She brings a commanding presence, providing the rhythmic exactitude, rapid-fire tempos and propulsive thrust that Rossini’s music demands while enhancing the comic pacing onstage and injecting energy into everything going on.
