‘Fledermaus’ flutters by with pop culture humor

Published 9:00 pm Thursday, January 19, 2006

SEATTLE – When the dominant audience reaction is belly laughs, and the show is grand opera, it can only be Seattle Opera in a party mood.

The laughs come in equal measure with the lilting melodies in the company’s production of “Die Fledermaus,” the effervescent operetta by waltz king Johann Strauss that opened Saturday night at McCaw Hall.

Strauss’ masterpiece gets an over-the-top production that milks the comic possibilities without neglecting the music, with a strong cast of singers who are also accomplished actors.

They are aided in their efforts by lavish costumes and sets (Zack Brown) and the superb musical direction of Gerard Schwarz, music director of the Seattle Symphony, who never lets the comic antics on the stage upstage Strauss’ lovely score.

Stage director Chris Alexander has updated the Seattle Opera production, last seen here in 1999, with references that make contemporary an opera that’s set in pre-World War I Vienna.

There’s a swipe at Seattle’s ill-fated monorail project and a hilarious bit in which Rosalinde, the put-upon wife in Strauss’ story of romantic deception and mistaken identify fueled by too much champagne, describes herself as a “desperate housewife.”

If there is a quibble, it’s that Alexander goes too far with some of the comic bits. The third act belongs to the nonsinging character of Frosch, the drunken jailer played to the comic hilt by actor Grant Neale, but Neale’s extended pratfalls and sight gags begin to feel like too much of a good thing. Mostly this opera zips along over its three-plus hours.

“Die Fledermaus” is sung in English with English captions, which are nice to have but not essential to understanding the story, thanks to those fine singers.

Opera fans knew they were in for something different when the casting was announced. Four singers known for their performances in operas by Richard Wagner sing the principal roles in this lighter operetta. Saturday night the cast had a lot of fun with their Wagner credentials, trading insider jokes.

Jane Eaglen, a world-class dramatic soprano (with a delicious English accent), sang the part of Rosalinde. Eaglen, who specializes in the heavy Wagner repertoire, can handle Strauss, too. Turns out she is a true comedian with the comic’s gift for timing and the well-placed gesture, and Saturday’s audience rewarded her portrayal with thunderous applause.

Eaglen (who alternates the role with Julie Makerov), gave an amazing demonstration of her range on opening night. In a rare move, the show was stopped in the second act and Eaglen sang Wagner’s “Liebestod” in a tribute to Birgit Nilsson, the great Wagnerian soprano of her generation who died recently in Sweden.

Other Wagner veterans in the cast include tenor Richard Berkeley-Steele as Eisenstein (alternating with Roger Honeywell), tenor Alan Woodrow as Alfred and the superb mezzo-soprano Nancy Maultsby in the “pants role” of Prince Orlofsky.

Young soprano Sarah Coburn had a field day as Adele, the little maid with big ambitions in life. Coburn is slight, but her voice is huge and agile, and she has high notes to spare.

“Die Fledermaus” gets an extra injection of carbonation with a robust cancan dance number, choreographed by Nicola Bowie and the gorgeous singing of the Seattle Opera Chorus.

Bill Mohn photo

Jane Eaglen (Rosalinde), Sarah Coburn (Adele) and Richard Berkeley-Steele (Eisenstein) in Seattle Opera’s “Die Fledermaus.”