Letonja bows out on a high note

OPERA- IN-CONCERT events have been highlights of Marko Letonja’s period as chief conductor and artistic adviser of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra.

Gounod’s Romeo et Juliette followed on from previous spectacular successes with Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde and Bizet’s Carmen. Once again the original opera had been condensed for concert purposes.

Outside of France this work has never enjoyed the popularity of his masterpiece Faust, possibly because the libretto tried to mirror, with only partial success, the structure of that work, and was later subjected to several revisions of the 1867 original.

This shortened concert version enabled focus on the key scenes, thereby avoiding that direct comparison.

Lushly scored and very French, the melodic and dramatic inspiration does not always rise to the level of Juliette’s famous Act I aria Je veux vivre, Tybalt’s death in Act III, and the finale to Act V.

The performance was mostly quite brilliant, with convincing acting and superb vocals from leads Adriana Kucerova (Juliette) and Pavol Breslik (Romeo). The rest of the large cast offered distinguished and unified results, with James Egglestone (Tybalt), David Parkin (Frere Laurent) and Samuel Dundas (Mercutio) standouts, and a brief but powerfully sung appearance by expat Tasmanian baritone Michael Lampard (Le Duc).

The well-prepared TSO Chorus provided sterling and important support throughout.

As expected, Marko Letonja, making his final appearance as chief conductor, was firmly in control, bringing out the best in the score and urging his performers on to considerable heights, especially the fired-up end of Act III.