SEATTLE It was Seafair weekend in Seattle, with hydros on the lake and “The Flying Dutchman” condemned to sail the seas until Judgment Day at Seattle Opera.
Wagner in August in Seattle is a tradition, and fans will get their fix in this well-rounded restaging of the company’s 1989 production of his storm-tossed opera that opened Seattle Opera’s 2007-2008 season Saturday night at McCaw Hall. A superb cast, deft staging and a grand swell of music from the orchestra combine for a rewarding evening.
“Dutchman” is a dramatic story as turbulent as a stormy sea. A Dutch mariner is doomed by Satan to sail his ghost ship forever unless he can find a woman who will be faithful to him to death. When his ghost ship encounters a Norwegian fishing boat, he strikes a bargain with Daland, the boat’s captain: The Dutchman’s treasurer for the captain’s daughter.
That would be Senta, who knows the legend of the Dutchman and has been dreaming of him as she gazes at his portrait and longs to be the one to save him. Senta and the Dutchman fall in love, but fate intervenes. The Dutchman returns to his ghost ship and Senta plunges to her doom.
This is Wagner all right, but with a lyric touch that makes “Dutchman” both popular with audiences and a good choice for a first encounter with the master. The music is memorable with melodies that you can hum after the curtain has fallen, perhaps none more so than with the opera’s tremendous overture.
The orchestra, under the direction of Asher Fisch, positively gleamed Saturday night, playing with depth and beauty and giving life to the genius of Wagner’s great score.
The blood-red sails of the Dutchman’s ghost ship give this staging its most atmospheric moments. Although the Dutchman is from another time, the opera takes place in a 20th century fishing village: People ride bikes, a refrigerator hums in a corner and contemporary street clothes are the order of the day.
Stephan Wadsworth takes a straightforward approach to the staging. It’s efficient without gimmicks and serves the music and the story. He’s done a remarkable job of placing the huge chorus of men and women – the women spin and gossip, the sailors drink and banter with gusto – while singing the most complex choral music. The chorus, directed by Beth Kirchoff, is one of the glories of this production and part of Seattle Opera’s artistic arsenal.
Seattle veterans – bass-baritone Greer Grimsley and dramatic soprano Jane Eaglen – share the spotlight as the Dutchman and Senta. Both have sung plenty of Wagner and other major roles here. These two powerhouse singers were spectacular all night, especially in the second act, producing a long, seamless flow of beautiful singing.
Grimsley dominates with his charismatic stage presence. His sumptuous voice is rich and layered, equaled in beauty by his patrician bearing and extraordinary looks. Eaglen must be at the peak of her awesome vocal powers: Her voice is big and gleaming and can soar over the orchestra and the house with precision and ease, yet she sings with warmth. Both gave convincing portraits as the doomed lovers.
The rest of the able cast includes Daniel Sumegi as Daland; Luretta Bybee as Mary, Senta’s maid; Jason Collins as the Steersman and Jay Hunter Morris as Erik, the villager who loves Senta but loses her.
Rozarii Lynch photos
ABOVE: Luretta Bybee and Jay Hunter Morris with members of the Seattle Opera Chorus in “The Flying Dutchman.”
LEFT: Jane Eaglen and Greer Grimsley in Seattle Opera’s “The Flying Dutchman.”
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