“Marilyn Forever,” a new opera by Gavin Bryars, which was given its U.S. premiere Saturday night by Long Beach Opera, is a mood tribute to Marilyn Monroe. It’s more of a dream than a narrative, a kind of fantasia on her loneliness. The libretto by Marilyn Bowering, based on her book “Anyone Can See I Love You,” gives us Monroe in her last few hours, reliving parts of her life in flashback, or more precisely, remembering the feelings of her life in flashback.
“Marilyn Forever” seems at times to last that long, though it’s only about 80 minutes. Bryars, who in his career has collaborated with the likes of John Cage, Brian Eno, Tom Waits, Merce Cunningham and others, is in no hurry to get anywhere. Here, he writes a kind of ambient music for a dream, richly harmonized and darkly toned and almost directionless, tossing and turning.
The small orchestra consists of two violas, a cello, bass, bassoon, horn, bass clarinet and percussion, a low and creamy blend. They are supplemented by a jazz trio (tenor saxophone, piano, double bass, the latter played by Bryars himself on this occasion) on stage, Monroe singing with them as if in a public performance. The tempos are all slow or moderate, the occasional ostinato whir notwithstanding.
The vocal style is lyrical but the composer rather consistently avoids turning phrases into melodies per se – they take flight but find no place to land.
The production and direction is by the company’s artistic director, Andreas Mitisek, and he took the liberty of dividing the lead role, Monroe, in two. Thus, we get a Marilyn in her bedroom, drinking, taking pills, recalling her life on one side of the stage, and a “public” Marilyn, re-enacting those memories on the other. A single male role, Rehearsal Director, transforms into her several lovers (including Arthur Miller and Joe DiMaggio, though they are never named). A male duo, the Tritones, serves as chorus, commenting (sparingly) on the action.
Mitisek added live video, as well as some documentary footage, to the mix, all projected on scrims draped across the stage, creating an effective dream world. The division of Monroe worked well enough, but may not have been necessary. The part doesn’t always seem clearly split between the public and private character.
At any rate, soprano Danielle Marcelle Bond played the more private Monroe in a recognizable way, sensuous, nervous, making love to the camera. She sang sumptuously, expressively. Jamie Chamberlin gave the public Monroe a nice star-struck vulnerability, in shimmering tones, comfortable with the jazz. Lee Gregory sang the male parts with a fresh eloquence. Robert Norman and Adrian Rosales were the capable Tritones.
Bill Linwood, who led the world premiere of the work in Victoria, Canada, conducted patiently. The sound was definitely hampered by the venue, the Warner Grand Theatre in San Pedro, an old movie palace, however. Amplification was used, but the textures remained murky, soupy. One felt that had the instrumental colors been more distinct and the overall atmosphere more intimate that “Marilyn Forever” would have been more compelling than it was.
Contact the writer: 714-796-6811 or tmangan@ocregister.com
