Opera travelling: Fall in love @ the canadian opera company

One warm October weekend was just the perfect setting for a getaway to the Six! And with the Canadian Opera Company presenting two operas, I was sure to treat myself just right. Richard Strauss' Arabella and The Elixir of Love by Donizetti; a sublime double bill to showcase the range of talents the COC secures year in and year out.
Maybe some were reluctant to attend two operas back-to-back revolving around the theme of finding one's true love. Not me. I'm a sucker for love, a timeless romantic, put Notting Hill on loop please kinda girl. Plus, I don't have the luxury to visit Toronto twice in one month and I need to make it worth the 6-hour bus ride. I carefully choose which concerts I want to attend when I'm travelling and these were just a perfect match. Which opera did I like best? Hard to say... 
In any case, a weekend trip is never complete without discovering the city you're in, so I've added a few musts for you to enjoy too!

Une publication partagée par ChatdOpera (@chatdopera) le 21 Oct. 2017 à 8h46 PDT

Arabella by Richard Strauss

Erin Wall (Arabella) and Corey Bix (Count Elemer), photo: Michael Cooper

I'd actually never heard about this opera before the COC announced their 2017-2018 season. Basically, the opera is somewhere between La Traviata's intense drama and Die Fledermaus' comic corniness (if that makes any sense). A count wishes to marry his eldest daugther, Arabella, to one of his wealthy - yet way older than her - friend because their family is broke. So he writes to him and sends a portrait of Arabella. Turns out, the friend has passed away but luckily, his nephew Mandryka is also rich and has already fallen in love with Arabella. On her side, even though she has many suitors, she wants to marry for love. She noticed a stranger on the estate (Mandryka!), and falls in love with him. They  declare their love for one another during a Viennese ball, and Arabella turns down all the other men who wanted her for their wife. But wait, it's not happily forever after just yet.
Because the count only has enough money to marry one of his two daughters, he disguises the other daughter Zdenka as a young man. Now she's in love with Matteo, an officer, who of course is in love with Arabella (all men are apparently). Although Zdenka means well, she makes Matteo believe that Arabella feels the same way and gives him a key to her sister's room during the ball. Oh no wait! She gave him a key to her room! But Mandryka saw the exchange and believes that his new betrothed is unfaithful! He confronts Arabella in front of her family and Matteo, but Zdenka, dressed as a woman for the first time admits what she has done. Arabella forgives Mandryka for his behaviour while Matteo and Zdenka are promised to each other.

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The Elixir of love by Donizetti

Andrew Haji as Nemorino and Simone Osborne as Adina in the Canadian Opera Company’s new production of The Elixir of Love, 2017, photo: Michael Cooper

On my second night in Toronto, I saw The Elixir of Love (L'elisir d'amore) by Donizetti. A comic bel canto opera exactly like you imagine it to be, and luckily often but not too often performed.​ The way the COC staged it reminded me very much of when I saw Falstaff in Stockholm. As for how the story goes, Nemorino is a young man with not much going for him, and he's head over heels for this girl Adina. Yet, she's playing hard to get. She's also being courted by Sergeant Belcore; he's a total Gaston from Beauty and the Beast. However, a doctor comes into town and convinces Nemorino that he has this elixir (aka a love potion) and that it will get him Adina's heart. Honey, we've all had this elixir. It's cheap wine and it comes with a free headache the morning after! Unfortunately, Adina is to marry Belcore that night...
Hence the elixir isn't working, and Nemorino does not have enough money to buy more cheap wine. So Belcore convinces him to join the army. In the meantime, the women of the village learn that Nemorino has just inherited a huge sum of money, and they all throw themselves at his feet (#basic). Seeing this, Adina becomes jealous. She tells Nemorino that she has bought back his military contract and that she is no longer to be married. They declare their love, learn that they are rich, and that odd doctor takes all the credit for it while all the other characters line up to have his ''elixir''!

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The Highlights

Seeing both operas

Had I only attended one of the two operas, I'm pretty sure that I would have been less satisfied with my overall experience. Like I mentionned, if I'm gonna be travelling outside of Montreal, I'm gonna try and get as much opera in my plans as possible. And although both operas are love stories with happy endings, they are different in so many ways! And they complement each other too. The Elixir of Love is Italian opera at its best, and the COC did not try to modernize it too much. Themes in opera are often translated to fit our modern society, however this production was set at the turn of the 20th century. So modern, but with a trendy vintage touch! Compared to Arabella, which had a My Fair Lady circa 1860 feel to it; the set and the costumes, in their greyish tones, was like watching a black and white movie. It was more serious than The Elixir; I mean that story could have gone so wrong so quickly! Had Mandryka been a touch more impulsive, everyone would have surely died. Plus, because it is a contemporary opera, the music is completely different than Donizetti's. You don't walk out of the hall with a musical worm, but you still feel drawn to at least try to sing an excerpt. Or the closest thing to an excerpt that you can hum.

Jane Archibald

Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro is often the go-to trouser role. If there is one place that seems to accept cross-dressing, it's opera. And Jane Archibald performed Zdenka (Zdenko) to a T. ​You could feel her innocence as she suffered when Matteo would only talk about her sister Arabella. Yet, she loved her sister oh so dearly. Not quite naive, simply wishing the best to the ones she loves most.  Jane was true to her character's feelings throughout the entire performance, absolutely in sync during duets with Erin Wall (Arabella). The COC is incredibly fortunate to have a singer of this calibre performing throughout their 2017-2018 season as COC Artist-in-Residence. I certainly cannot wait to see her again on stage for The Abduction from the Seraglio by Mozart.

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the haji-osborne-bintner trio

I loved everything about these three. They're young, they're Canadian, and they're graduates from the COC Ensemble Studio program. It is unquestionably amazing that the COC hires their graduates, having now reached the appropriate level of quality to star in their productions. Andrew Haji is such a sweet Nemorino, you just want to hug him and comfort him! He does not let you down during the most popular aria of the opera, Una furtiva lagrima. Well-known opera excerpts are difficult to perform, not necessarily because of their technical complexity, but rather the public's expectations of the performance. And the audience on Saturday night was completely swept away! 

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Completing my Opera trip with these musts!

1. Shopping at UNIQLO. I mean, we couldn't possibly not go. I still don't understand that Montreal does not yet have this store on Ste-Catherine St. Awesome basics at an amazingly affordable price, it is a must for anyone visiting Toronto! 
2. Having a glass of wine at Archive. This wine bar was the perfect destination after seeing The Elixir of Love. Except with a way better selection of ''elixirs'' paired with deliscious appetizers. On our first night in Toronto, we walked from the concert hall to WVRST on King St. for some cider tasting and some great hot dogs. Because Toronto doesn't have decent poutine. #justsayin
3. Strolling down Queen St. Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's basic for a lot of you reading this, but these boutiques are absolutely unique and adorable! That's where I got the green fascinator I wore to The Elixir of Love!

See you soon Toronto! 

Une publication partagée par ChatdOpera (@chatdopera) le 29 Oct. 2017 à 19h36 PDT