True talent is compelling regardless of medium.
Anyone with a sense of curiosity and wonder can thrill at the perfect touchdown pass, the flawless triple axel or a perfectly seared flank steak.
At the moment, there’s an opera running at the Byham Theater that showcases an abundance of such talent. Quantum Theatre’s “Idaspe” brings together musicians, singers, dancers, aerialists and more for a new production of a 300-year-old opera by Riccardo Broschi about war and love and the usual that runs about 2½ hours.
The headliner, singer Vivica Genaux, is superb. She’s compelling.
In her arias on Friday’s opening night, Genaux’s soprano was feather light but strong, supple, lithe and warm. Her execution of the large melodic leaps and blazing scale runs was stunning to behold — it’ll have listeners on the edge of their seats. One needs no knowledge of music or music history to appreciate it.
The rest of director Claire van Kampen’s production is quite strong. The musicians of Chatham Baroque, the Steel City’s resident early music group, bolstered by players from around the country and led by conductor Daniel Nesta Curtis, were energetic and excellent. John Holiday also was a standout for his passion and vocal control, while Wei En Chan displayed physicality and charisma in his aria about bravery and loyalty.
In opera, the music shares at least equal billing with the plot. In this case, the music took center stage — Quantum’s adapted version of “Idaspe” follows two child refugees who are separated and join rival crime bosses in Naples. One kidnaps two women from the other’s organization, the opera’s love interests, and Idaspe and Dario spend the opera trying to win them back without bloodshed, all in a 1960s, Fellini-esque aesthetic.
The opera is sung in Italian with supertitles in English, and it’s a bit difficult to follow closely.
This didn’t really matter.
The smaller emphasis on story allowed the artistry of the singers and musicians to pop against minimalist sets that paired rustic and modernist elements and bold color and lighting.
There was also a perpetual motion created by a team of dancers from different organizations around the city, including Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Attack Theatre and Hill Dance Academy. Collaboration and variety are nice goals, but the dancers’ different levels of training were apparent in the ballet-centric choreography. More uniformity in movement styles would have benefited the piece.
Baroque opera is fairly formulaic and alternates between plot advancing “recitatives” that aren’t in strict rhythm and static “arias” where a character reflects on her or his emotional state. The opera bogged down a bit in the second act during a run of slower, more ruminative arias, while the brighter, faster selections were stunning in their virtuosity.
Kudos also go to singers Pascale Beaudin, Shannon Delijani and Karim Sulayman for their arias and delivery.
Quantum’s “Idaspe” is an opera out of its own time, which presents some interesting fodder for reflection on the development of musical style (instrumentalists and singers all re-created historic styles in this production). This contrasted pleasingly with the production’s other elements, but on reflection I wonder if it could have gone farther.
Perhaps a narrator or dialogue between some of the music would help to better ground the story, which could have made the overall production more relatable. I also wonder if more could have been trimmed from the second act, which fronted the spectacle of aerialists and busy choreography to help keep the momentum flowing.
If such elements were adjusted, would it still be a “baroque” opera?
Does that matter?
“Idaspe” is a unique production, a special project that brought numerous cooks to the kitchen thanks to a special fund Quantum Theatre raised during the pandemic. And the sheer talent of the individual artists involved is staggering. Anyone who finds themselves inspired by mastery simply shouldn’t miss this show.
This production repeats Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Performances begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Byham Theater; tickets are $51.25 at trustarts.org.
Jeremy Reynolds: jreynolds@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1634; Twitter: @Reynolds_PG. Mr. Reynolds' work at the Post-Gazette is supported in part by a grant from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Getty Foundation and Rubin Institute.
First Published: October 9, 2022, 6:08 p.m.
