A Passionate Show

Boheme Opera performs ‘Don Giovanni.’

By: Jillian Kalonick

"image"

TIMEOFF/FRANK WOJCIECHOWSKI
Adina Aaron, left, is Donna Anna and Constantinos Yiannoudes plays the lead role in Boheme Opera’s Don Giovanni, at Patriots Theater at the War Memorial in Trenton April 15 and 17.


   Don Juan — also known as Don John or Don Giovanni — appears in plays, stories, ballets, operas and poems. The plot usually goes along these lines: a fast-talking stud with thousands of notches in his belt, accompanied by his loyal wingman, tries to snag as many women as possible. Of course, in Don Giovanni, there’s also murder, a wedding, mistaken identity and the dead returning to walk the earth.
   Mozart’s 1797 opera is "a passionate show," says Edward Crafts, who will direct the Boheme Opera production at Patriots Theater at the War Memorial in Trenton April 15 and 17.
   "There’s nobody who’s just kind of comfortable — there’s something that makes it intense," says Mr. Crafts, who is returning after directing The Barber of Seville for Boheme Opera last year. "It’s a modern drama. (In that time) one tended to find dramas that were much more formulaic and focused on classical heroes — gods and goddesses. ‘Don Giovanni’ is more naturalistic and character-driven."
   Don Giovanni stars Constantinos Yiannoudes, a baritone who sang Figaro in Boheme’s Barber of Seville. Donna Anna will be sung by soprano Adina Aaron, who was Michaela in Boheme’s Carmen. Giovanni kills Donna Anna’s father, the Commendatore, when he challenges Giovanni to a duel. After trying and failing to trap Giovanni, Donna Anna is too upset to accept an offer of marriage from her betrothed, Don Ottavio.
   "There have been many theories about her," says Ms. Aaron. "Some people say she’s got a lover on the side, or secretly wants Giovanni. There are a lot of different views. I prefer to give her the benefit of the doubt. I like to make it work, for her to have true feelings about Don Ottavio.
   "I like her — I think she’s one of the most complex characters," she continues. "She’s hard. She’s had the most wrong done to her — she’s been raped, and her father just died. You have to get the audience to understand her complexity. It’s easy to maker her bad."
   Mr. Yiannoudes, a native of Cyprus, is working toward a doctorate in musical arts at City University of New York. He has sung leading roles with the San Francisco Opera, New York Grand Opera and Cyprus Lyric Opera, and enjoys the close-knit atmosphere at Boheme Opera.
   "It’s like a family here, when you come back," he says. "I know all the chorus members. It’s a wonderful experience, after doing ‘Figaro.’ There’s also a rapport from last year — now everyone can laugh at my jokes."
   Mr. Crafts, who is a former baritone with the Metropolitan Opera, says that despite the impression that opera is difficult to understand, opera singers have ways to express emotions that actors in straight theater do not.
   "(Opera) performers have the ability to communicate in ways that aren’t just about the spoken word," he says. "The sound of a singer’s voice tells us something. These are tools that (other) actors don’t have."
   For those new to the opera or who need a refresher course, pre-curtain talks will be offered before each performance, revealing the plot, the composer’s intent and insight into the time in which the opera was written.
   Founded 16 years ago by conductor Joseph Pucciatti and his wife, Sandra Pucciatti, a pianist, opera lecturer and teacher, Boheme Opera has continued amid the comings and goings of other small New Jersey companies.
   "I think (opera) is like the stock market — it goes up and down," says Mr. Crafts. "Right now we’re in a minor valley. There was a peak in the ’70s. A lot of companies have had to pull back some for financial reasons. There are more new artists entering into it, because there is no place to get better training than the United States. But we don’t provide them with a lot of employment. Groups come and go, they reorganize or change names. There is no art form more expensive — it combines theater, symphony, chorus, set, lights. It’s difficult in the best of times — the health of opera reflects the health of the economy."
   To direct Don Giovanni is to be at the helm of "one of the very few true masterpieces," he says. "Scholars, directors, and performers have argued that passionately. It excites the imagination."
Boheme Opera will present Don Giovanni at Patriots Theater at the War Memorial, West Lafayette and Barrack streets, Trenton, April 15, 8 p.m.. and April 17, 3 p.m. Tickets cost $26-$63. Performances feature projected English supertitles. Pre-curtain talks take place April 15, 6:45 p.m., and April 17, 1:45 p.m. For information, call (609) 581-7200. On the Web: www.bohemeopera.com