Monday, July 18
On Saturday I saw the musical “Twist” at the Pasadena Playhouse. It’s a jazzy retelling of the Oliver Twist story set in depression-era New Orleans. It was a very enjoyable evening with lots of wonderful singing and dancing by the mostly Black cast. The story of course is touching and the songs were catchy and plentiful. It wasn’t the life-affirming apotheosis triggered by Bob Dylan the night before, or the thrilling inspiration of Les Miserables the night before that, but it was a thoroughly enjoyable evening of theater in my favorite venue, the Pasadena Playhouse.
Then on Sunday I went to the Hollywood Bowl for a concert performance of Puccini’s last opera, “Turandot.” Our own wunderkind Gustavo Dudamel was conducting and the cast included Christine Brewer and Hei Kyung Hong. I love this opera, which was unfinished when Puccini died suddenly of throat cancer. The title role is known as a voice-killer for its high tessitura and dramatic power. Turandot is a Chinese princess who dares her suitors to answer three riddles and then beheads them when they can’t. Great Turandot’s have included Maria Callas, Birgit Nilsson, and Joan Sutherland. The other soprano part, Liu, is a slave girl in love with the tenor Calaf, who is smitten by the icy princess and risks his life to woo her. Liu’s singing is tender and poignant. Calaf's is ringing and heroic. His most famous part is the aria “Nessun Dorma” made famous by Pavarotti.
I enjoyed the performance very much. Dudamel is a thrilling conductor, and he drew every bit of high drama from Puccini’s lush score. Christine Brewer is a vivid singing actress with the vocal chops to survive Puccini’s challenges, and Hei Kyung Hong has a beautiful lyric voice filled with pathos. The tenor was energetic if not very memorable. All in all it was a fitting conclusion to my July musical marathon.
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