Scattered borrowings fail to cohere in COC's new Faust

Kyle Ketelsen (Méphistophélès) and Long Long (Faust)

Kyle Ketelsen (Méphistophélès), Long Long (Faust) and Guanqun Yu (Marguerite)

Szymon Mechliński (Valentin) and chorus

Guanqun Yu (Marguerite) and Kyle Ketelsen (Méphistophélès)

By Gianmarco Segato, 12 October 2024

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“a tacked on attempt at subversiveness that fails to convince”

Reviewed at Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, Toronto on 11 October 2024

Gounod, Faust

Canadian Opera Company

Johannes Debus, Conductor

Amy Lane, Director

Emma Ryott, Set Designer, Costume Designer

Charlie Morgan Jones, Lighting Designer

Canadian Opera Company Orchestra

Canadian Opera Company Chorus

Long Long, Faust

Kyle Ketelsen, Méphistophélès

Guanqun Yu, Marguerite

Megan Latham, Marthe

Szymon Mechliński, Valentin

Alex Hetherington, Siebel

Korin Thomas-Smith, Wagner

Canadian Opera Company’s Barber proves as fresh as ever

John Gilks, 5th February

The Barber is back in Toronto with an excellent cast, young and old, and it’s as lively, colourful and energetic as ever.

****1

Christopher Alden’s Rigoletto returns to Canadian Opera Company

Michelle Assay, 28th January

Christopher Alden’s Victorian-era Rigoletto still divides opinions, despite top-notch performances all around in this Toronto revival.

***11

Canadian Opera's Orfeo returns elegant, restrained and very satisfying

John Gilks, 9th October

The restrained beauty of Robert Carsen’s production of Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice is matched by musical elegance in its revival current revival at the Four Seasons Centre.

*****

Canadian Opera Company opens season with Roméo et Juliette

John Gilks, 27th September

Amy Lane’s production of Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette at the COC is eye-catching and enjoyable but doesn’t offer the same level of insight as her Faust last season.

***11

Eugene Onegin revival fails to find the magic spark in Toronto

John Gilks, 2nd May

Robert Carsen’s 1997 production of Eugene Onegin has aged remarkably well but the latest Canadian Opera Company revival of it doesn’t quite recapture its magic.

***11

COC triumphs with Kentridge’s brilliantly conceived Wozzeck

John Gilks, 25th April

William Kentridge's production of Berg’s Wozzeck has it all: wonderfully imaginative and disturbing designs, terrific acting and singing plus fabulous orchestral playing.

*****

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Gianmarco Segato

Arts writer, administrator and singer Gianmarco Segato is Assistant Editor for La Scena Musicale. He was Associate Artist Manager for opera at Dean Artists Management and, from 2017-2022, Editorial Director of Opera Canada magazine. Previous to that he was Adult Programs Manager with the Canadian Opera Company. Gianmarco is an intrepid classical music traveler with a special love of Prague and Budapest as well as an avid cyclist and cook.

Scattered borrowings fail to cohere in Canadian Opera Company's new Faust