SEATTLE – When “Florencia en el Amazonas” set sail at Seattle Opera seven years ago, audiences where charmed. So much so, that they started clamoring for its return.
Daniel Catan’s riverboat trip down the Amazon is back at Seattle Opera in a sparkling production that opened Feb. 26 at McCaw Hall. This “Florencia” is a fully realized show with a wonderful cast of singers and extraordinary staging, lighting and visual effects.
Catan’s romantic score with its dense orchestration and surging melodies adds the final touch of magic to this magical mystery tour into the jungles of South America.
The opera is destined to be a real audience pleaser, judging by the gasps of delight and the resounding applause that greeted the performers at the final curtain on Saturday.
“Florencia,” which was co-commissioned by Seattle Opera, is the story of opera diva Florencia Grimaldi who boards the steamboat El Dorardo to travel down the Amazon River to the city of Manaus, Brazil, where she will sing her first performance in her native South America in 20 years.
She left to pursue a career in Europe, and is retracing that journey to find her lover, Cristobal, a butterfly hunter who has disappeared into the jungle.
The other passengers include an unhappy married couple, a young couple who are falling in love, the boat captain and the mysterious Riolobo, a transforming character with magical powers who can command the turbulent Amazon and the lives of men.
Soprano Nancy Gustafson sings the role of Florencia (alternating with Wendy Hill), and her considerable vocal powers are matched by her superb acting skills. On Saturday night she brought a heart-tugging realism to the role of Florencia, who even though she is fated not to find her lover, is transformed by their love.
Baritone Nathan Gunn made a big impression as Riolobo. It’s not a large singing role, although he has vocal power to spare, but it is a big part physically. Gunn has the physique of a body builder and he was mesmerizing as he moved about the riverboat with the agility of Spider-Man.
Luretta Bybee and bass-baritone D’Arcy Bleiker are the middle-age couple whose marital bickering takes a dramatic turn when he is washed out to sea. They are excellent singers and Bybee has an aria that shows off her lovely mezzo voice.
Tenor Lawrence Brownlee and soprano Frances Lucey were particularly fine as the young lovers. Brownlee’s voice gets better with each hearing. Lucey’s singing is light and sweet with shimmering top notes. Their duet was among the musical highlights of Saturday’s performance.
Bass Luiz-Ottavio ably sang the role of the captain.
Vjekoslav Sutej conducts the orchestra and Robert Israel’s amazing riverboat returns from the original production. Dancers have been added to propel the narrative and there are astonishing feats of flying. Andrew Morton’s stage direction is coherent and always interesting.
The opera ends on one of those you’ve-got-to-see-it-to-believe-it moments. And that you should do.
Rozarii Lynch photo
The riverboat, El Dorado, sets sail down the Amazon in Seattle Opera’s “Florencia en el Amazonas.”
“Florencia en el Amazons (Florencia in the Amazons)”: A Seattle Opera production through March 12, with evening and matinee performances at McCaw Hall, Seattle Center. Sung in Spanish with English captions. $40 to $132; 206-389-7676, 800-426-1619, www.seattleopera.org.
Review
“Florencia en el Amazons (Florencia in the Amazons)”: A Seattle Opera production through March 12, with evening and matinee performances at McCaw Hall, Seattle Center. Sung in Spanish with English captions. $40 to $132; 206-389-7676, 800-426-1619, www.seattleopera.org.
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