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Commentary: How exuberant, ambitious operas in L.A. score big despite small casts and modest budgets

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Los Angeles doesn’t offer a consistent opera scene like Berlin or Paris, with multiple options each night. Instead, our opera offerings are somewhat unpredictable, much like the changeable weather patterns of flood and drought. At present, there is an abundance of chamber operas being performed. In truth, February has turned into an impromptu Los Angeles Chamber Opera Festival.

Over the past week, four distinct premieres showcased a flowing stream of chamber opera and works resembling opera, both local and international. Each one was unique musically, theatrically, and even in purpose. Notably, all of them managed to resonate with the current times, offering a fresh perspective that is characteristic of this artistic form.

Instead of traditional large-scale operas with expansive casts, ensembles, and venues, these smaller productions prioritize intimacy over grandeur. With more budgetary flexibility, they foster creativity and innovation. The experimental nature of these performances offers a sense of urgency and risk-taking. Such opera can be staged in various locations, whether indoors or outdoors, and the creative possibilities are virtually limitless.

Known more for innovation than tradition, Los Angeles is actually a town famous for its chamber opera scene. The impromptu festival originated from honoring The Industry, one of America’s most remarkable opera workshops, as well as bidding farewell to its founder, Yuval Sharon, who has moved on to lead Detroit Opera and tackle the biggest test of his career at the Metropolitan Opera – modernizing their long-established Wagnerian methods with groundbreaking new interpretations of “Tristan und Isolde” and the “Ring” cycle.

Following this, The Wallis in Beverly Hills played host to the U.S. debut of an intriguingly interwoven opera of thoughts and visuals centered around the theme of exile titled “The Great Yes, the Great No”. This thought-provoking production received a warm welcome. It was conceived by William Kentridge at his South African lab for less conventional ideas, known as the Centre for the Less Good Idea. Through a blend of African and European musical styles, vibrant visual aesthetics, and a broad narrative, the opera delved deeply into the enduring impact of deportation on one’s identity, with themes that resonate universally.

As a film enthusiast, I’ve always been captivated by the transformative journey of the Long Beach Opera, originally known as the Long Beach Grand Opera. Early on, they realized that “grand” was too formal and ceremonious, opting instead for an intimate, experimental approach. Last week, they took things to a new level with their most daring performance yet, marking the start of an audacious season dedicated entirely to Pauline Oliveros’ productions. While it might be a stretch to label “El Relicario de Los Animales” as a traditional opera, this unique exploration of singers and musicians expressing their inner animals certainly pushes boundaries. The standout performance by the renowned mezzo-soprano, Jamie Barton, has already set a high bar for operatic performances in 2023.

The performance commenced featuring “Thirteen Changes” by Oliveros, a sequence of actions or visuals – standing bare in the moonlight, a singing bowl filled with hot soup – as extravagantly dressed performers took up positions in the hidden corners of Heritage Square. Inside the square’s church stood the relic, a bizarre collection of musical exchanges between vocalists and instruments, blending elements of a rap session and spiritual ritual. The sounds – some invitingly soothing and others piercingly howling with the wind – took on a recognized existence, embodying all the peculiarities of life, serving as the wisdom of the animal world guiding our doubts, indulgences, and disparities.

During this week, Los Angeles Opera stepped away from its usual location at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and instead, showcased another opera by Beth Morrison Projects at REDCAT. The opera titled “Adoration,” penned by Mary Kouyoumdjian, is a reinterpretation of Atom Egoyan’s 2008 film about a Canadian high school student dealing with racial prejudice.

Looking at reality through various cultural lenses, the deceptively elegant film is a nuanced deliberation on Simon’s fantasy, planted in his imagination by his racist grandfather, that his Lebanese father was a terrorist. The opera, with a workable Royce Vavrek libretto, is less concerned with the issues than the characters and what’s inside them, something opera is designed to do.

Kouyoumdjian’s upcoming opera isn’t her first; instead, she has been composing powerful string quartet music for over a decade and received recognition from the Kronos Quartet. The new recording by Kronos, set to release in March, focuses on those pieces and includes narratives about war and peace in the Middle East that are dramatically engaging. “Adoration” seems like a fitting progression. The string quartet creates an enigmatic ambiance. Her lyrics grapple with harsh truths, yet her style is always close to deep spirituality.

Regrettably, the opera fails to surpass other dimensions of reality. Vavrek’s libretto streamlines intricate problems. The performance, skillfully led by Laine Rettmer, boasts a sleek minimalist stage design by Afsoon Pajoufar and a strong ensemble with Omar Najmi as Simon in the lead role. The string quartet and conductor Alan Pierson are concealed behind amplification that is overly loud, lending an extra emotional intensity. Known for his insightful liner notes on Kouyoumdjian’s Kronos recording, Egoyan – a gifted opera director – demonstrates talent in this field. Here’s hoping that one day a composer and a director will collaborate on an opera together.

By chance, the Kronos Quartet, augmented by three new members, were in town last week at The Wallis for the Southern California debut of Michael Abels’ “At War With Ourselves — 400 Years of You,” a composition for string quartet, narrator, and chorus. Abels is renowned as a film composer (“Get Out,” “Us,” “Nope”), but also boasts an operatic pedigree, having jointly won a Pulitzer Prize with Rhiannon Giddens for “Omar.” Here, Abels delicately expounds on Nikky Finney’s powerful poem about social justice, line by lyrical line. Finney’s moving recitation of it was as much song as speech. The Los Angeles chorus Tonality brought a radiance that made the text bloom. It would not be unreasonable to categorize this performance as elevated music theater.

To conclude, the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center in Little Tokyo debuted Daniel Kessner’s “The Camp” for the first time last weekend at the Aratani Theatre. There will be additional performances this coming Saturday and Sunday as well.

This was the most traditional of all the chamber operas.

The heartfelt and rhythmically harmonious script by Lionelle Hamanaka narrates the tale of a Japanese-American family during their confinement in World War II, providing limited scope for substantial music. Yet, the narrative is powerful as it explores how various generations grappled with tradition amidst a challenging setting.

“The Camp” boasts numerous benefits. Composer and flutist Kessner from L.A. enhances the drama with a pastoral elegance and soothing softness. Yuri Okahana-Benson’s minimalistic design for this production lends an air of simplicity, reminiscent of Isamu Noguchi’s sets for Martha Graham. This setup complements Kessner’s score, which features elements of Copland with subtle Japanese undertones, skillfully performed by a versatile chamber ensemble led by Steve F. Hofer. Diana Wyenn’s direction is effortlessly natural, never overstepping its bounds.

I, a follower, am immersed in an opera masterfully directed by Kessner, where the captivating baritone Roberto Perlas Gómez embodies Mas Shimono, a father whose life unravels as he clings to traditional beliefs. This opera itself, in a world undergoing change, preserves classic opera values and makes them, along with chamber opera, relevant and significant.

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2025-02-28 14:33

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