Singing The Heart of Darkness: Tarik O’Regan’s opera premieres in America

By Jaime Robles, 03 May 2015

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Reviewed at Z Space, San Francisco on 2 May 2015

O'Regan, Heart of Darkness

Opera Parallèle

Nicole Paiement, Conductor

Heidi Moss, Woman of the River / Fiancee

Michael Bell, Chief Accountant / Helmsman

Thomas Glenn, Harlequin

Jonathan Smucker, Manager / Secretary

Isaiah Bell, Marlow

Daniel Cilli, Company Director (Thames Boat)

Aleksey Bogdanov, Doctor / Boilerman

Philip Skinner, Kurtz

Shawnette Sulker, Soprano

Champion at Opera Parallele: strong, but no knockout

Ilana Walder-Biesanz, 19th February

Opera Parallele's production of Terence Blanchard's Champion: An Opera in Jazz features great performances but an uneven score and spotty blocking.

***11

Dead Man Walking returns to the Bay Area

Jaime Robles, 20th February

Opera Parallèle’s superb production of Heggie's Dead Man Walking reveals a prism of anger and forgiveness.

*****

Sir Thomas Allen’s Figaro for Scottish Opera still entertains

David Smythe, 9th May

A traditional Marriage of Figaro entertains with a strong cast, eye-catching design and lighting, and Amanda Holden’s earthy libretto.

****1

Sasha Cooke brings sharp intelligence to Seattle Opera’s Carmen

Thomas May, 8th May

Sasha Cooke’s thoughtful role debut anchors Paul Curran’s visually and musically alert but dramatically uneven production.

****1

Werther oozes quiet despair in new Canadian Opera Company staging

John Gilks, 7th May

Excellent performances cannot turn a conventional production of Massenet’s Werther into a dramatic experience for the 21st century.

***11

Welsh National Opera’s Dutchman docks in Birmingham

Rohan Shotton, 7th May

This bracing performance of The Flying Dutchman is a powerful reminder of the extraordinary musical standards which are at risk in the face of WNO’s subsidy cuts.

****1

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Jaime Robles

Jaime Robles has previously written in the San Francisco Bay Area, including for the San Francisco Classical Voice. Also a poet, she has written song lyrics and librettos for several one-act operas, including Inferno (music by Peter Josheff), staged in 2009 by San Francisco Cabaret Opera, and Vladimir in Butterfly Country (music by Anne Callaway), staged in 2012.