Presented by State Opera of South Australia
Reviewed 21 Nov 2017
Accompanied by the delightful explanations and insights of conductor Stephen Mould, this journey through a small portion of Verdi’s work was a delight. Opening with the overture from La Forza del Destino, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra got the evening off to a rousing start. Soprano Gisele Blanchard treated us to her wonderful rendition of Sempre Libera filling the hall with delight.
The evening progressed with some interesting snippets from Verdi’s many operas, including some great favourites. The Italian baritone Mario Bellanova sung Iago’s Creda from Otello with clear evil and malice, and later gave us a fine version of Ford’s E sogno o realta from Falstaff, full of the emotion of his betrayal. Elizabeth Campbell sang Azuncena’s Condotta ell’ era in ceppi from Il Trovatore with all the passion of grief.
The always fine State Opera Chorus were given several chances to shine: the Anvil Chorus from Il Trovatore was well received, as was Va Pensiero from Nabucco in the second half of the program. They also appeared in support for the Macbetto inclusion Ah la paterno mano with tenors Bradley Daly and Norbert Hohl, with Blanchard and Daley in Brindisi (La Traviata) to close the first act, and again in the final piece Quartetto – Bella figlia dell’amor with soprano Teresa La Rocca, mezzo Elizabeth Campbell, tenor Bradley Daley and baritone Jeremy Tatchell.
Rigoletto was well represented with several arias as well as the Quartetto. Daley performed La Danna e mobile and Blanchard delighted with a bright version of Caro nome. Jeremy Tatchell did well with Morte di Rodrigo from Don Carlos and there were pieces from Aida with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra shining throughout.
In all, this was a thoroughly enjoyable evening enhanced by the quality of talent and the good humoured compeering of conductor Stephen Mould.
Reviewed by Fran Edwards
Twitter: @franeds
Venue: Adelaide Town Hall
Season: 21-22 Nov Apr 2017
Duration: 2hr 30min
Tickets: $20 (Restricted view) – $95
Bookings: http://www.bass.net.au/events/verdi-spectacular/