Review: West Bay Opera delights with a rare Mozart work Review: West Bay Opera delights with a rare Mozart work (October 20, 2004)

By Mort Levine
Special to the Almanac

A few months before he died in 1791, Mozart completed a unique opera set in imperial Rome in 80 A.D. and commissioned for a coronation in Prague called "La Clemenza di Tito" (The Clemency of Titus).

It had a mixed reception and sank out of sight for nearly two centuries. Rediscovered in the late 20th century, it has come alive because its genuine humanity shows through.

In West Bay Opera's current production at the Lucy Stern Theatre in Palo Alto, the work proves rewarding for its message of reconciliation but even more so for the quality of the musicianship and vocalism the company achieves with this rich score.

It's a tribute to the skill and talents of David Sloss, the music director and principal conductor, along with a cast of outstanding young singers.

Presented as a concert version with spoken English recitatives between the Italian arias, the opera's dramatic story line was easy to follow. Overhead supertitles gave insight into the sung passages, although they seemed superfluous.

The tale of a young, generous-hearted Roman emperor might seem oxymoronic, but humanizing some of the tired, old operatic forms makes one even more aware of Mozart's genius.

The emperor is in the process of choosing a consort. Thinking she is out of the running, Vitellia, daughter of an earlier emperor, wants him killed and leans on Sesto, who is desperately in love with her, to handle the job.

The plot fails but the Senate sentences Sesto to be tossed to the lions in the Colosseum. Tito pardons him and even winds up marrying Vitellia, after she confesses her guilt.

Implausible, but everyone goes home happier for the demonstration that not all those Romans were nasty bullies.

West Bay Opera's 28-piece orchestra was on stage with the singers in the foreground, resulting in a nuanced and elegant acoustical blending.

The opera demands a quintet of good voices. It has them in this production. The two pants roles of Sesto and his friend Annio are both sung by mezzo-sopranos.

Megan Dey-Toth was an impassioned Sesto, who commanded a wide tonal range, including some forcefully delivered contralto notes. Her "Parto, Parto" aria, agreeing to carry out the murder, is particularly powerful. The Annio role was handled competently by Sonia Gariaeff.

Soprano Shana Blake Hill created a Vitellia capable of great anguish in her final aria "Non piu di fiori." She had a few pitch problems early on.

A sprightly contrast was provided by another contender for the empress job, Servilia, sung by the bubbly, high soprano, Heidi Moss.

The tenor, Todd Wilander, was Tito. He has a voice with warmth and scope.

Baritone Michael Rogers gave a serviceable account of Publio, the prefect of the Praetorian guard, who mostly just stood around.

The 17-member chorus -- supposedly ambassadors, senators and just plain Romans -- sang forcefully from the rear of the stage and later behind the audience at the fiery climax of the first of the two acts.

INFORMATION

West Bay Opera will perform "La Clemenza di Tito" at 8 p.m. Friday, October 22, and 2 p.m. Sunday, October 24, at Lucie Stern Theatre, 1305 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto. For ticket information, go to www.wbopera.org.

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