Opera Saratoga’s ‘Cradle’ rocks the stage

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. » The present is colliding with the past at the Little Theatre in Saratoga Springs where Opera Saratoga is offering a fascinating production of Marc Blitzstein’s “The Cradle Will Rock.”

It is an achievement that breaks with custom by performing the work, which straddles the line between theater and classical, as the important opera that it is.

The approach is revelatory as it transforms a work that has had a major influence on Broadway musicals into an exciting and grand musical event, as well as a presentation that offers insights about the fears and torments of those who experienced the Great Depression.

“The Cradle Will Rock” is a pro-Labor, anti-capitalist work that tells how one dominantly wealthy man, Mr. Mister, controls the town of Steeltown, USA. An anti-union group operating as the organization the Liberty Committee is mistakenly arrested at a Labor rally and appears in night court. Also in court is Moll, a prostitute arrested for soliciting.

As the evening progresses, it becomes clear that the true prostitutes are the respected citizens, who for various reasons, let themselves become pawns of Mr. Mister. During the performance doctors, the clergy, academia, the small independent businessman and artists reveal themselves as greedy and cowardly citizens concerned for their own personal welfare.

Considering the original work was first produced at the height of the Great Depression, it is understandable that this powerful and potentially inflammatory material was repressed by the government. The performers were locked out of the theater and forbidden to appear on stage. Under the leadership of Orson Welles and John Houseman, the piece was presented in an empty theater with Blitzstein playing the piano score on stage and the actors performing from seats scattered about the house.

Because of this history, the work has traditionally been accompanied by a single piano. This production recalls another staging I attended in the early 1980s, also in the Little Theater of Saratoga Springs. It was produced by The Acting Company directed by John Houseman and starred Patti LuPone as Moll and David Schramm as Mr. Mister. That production was more theater than it was opera.

The Opera Saratoga production, which offers its final production on July 16, is definitely opera. Indeed, it is one of the rare times in the show’s performance history that it’s been performed with a full orchestra. This alone is reason enough to see the production as you can more fully respect the score that is revealed as being as melodic as it is declaratory.

However, at the acoustically poor Little Theatre it also causes a major problem. The orchestra is placed on stage behind the performers causing problems with balance. This placement has the orchestra overpower the singers, especially the delicate female solos. I estimate I missed at least half the lyrics to most songs – and because it is performed in English there are no Supertitles to help.

The loss was frustrating, but the power of the score and the talent of the performers is so good that the emotional context of the material was always clear.

Director Lawrence Edelson does the audience and the piece a favor by not adhering to traditional staging. The set by designer Martin T. Lopez creates a space that offers a multilevel playing area that permits the individual stories their own focus. Edelson finds both the comedy and the passion that exists in the material and does not depreciate the earnestness of the message.

The cast also serves the work. Best among them are Ginger Costa-Jackson as Moll, whose rendition of “The Nickel Under the Foot,” is brilliant. Brian Wallin’s “The Freedom of the Press” foretells fake news, and the work of Justin Hopkins as Reverend Salvation shows the hypocrisy of clerics. Perhaps most touching is the tragic story of Harry the Druggist, which is painfully told by Keith Jackson. Edelson has great fun with the Liberty Committee, with super help from costume designer Anya Klepikov.

However, it is the direct conflicts between the labor and capital that makes the work potent. Christopher Burchett is a virile Larry Foreman, the labor leader who brings a powerful presence to the work. Matt Boehler is arrogance personified as Mr. Mister.

As always, at Opera Saratoga the voices are superb and the musicians wonderful. All the elements combine to make “The Cradle Will Rock” a worthy experience that is terrifyingly pertinent to the times in which we live.

“The Cradle Will Rock” Opera Saratoga at the Little Theatre, Saratoga State Park. Performances are July 13 and 16. Tickets and information 584-6018 or go to operasartoga.org