Appreciative full house
JOHAN BOTHA & FRIENDS in an Opera Gala presented by The Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra in collaboration with the Cancer Association of South Africa. Conductor Bernhard Gueller. Directed by Christine Crouse. At the Artscape Opera House. FIONA CHISHOLM reviews
CAPPING a week in which Vienna Kammersänger Johan Botha had been made Honorary Patron of Cape Town Opera, the Rustenburg-born tenor gave the performance of his life in celebration of his 51 years, to an appreciative full house on Saturday in the Opera House.
After the “dark months” of cancer treatment and the joy of rediscovering that he still could sing – a joy denied Gregorio Fiasconaro a famous baritone of an earlier era – Botha went one better than Pavarotti. When Pav widened his circle of fans by inviting pop stars friends to appear and record with him, the results were like mixing honey with coarse salt. Horribly indigestible.
Not so Botha’s “friends”. Soprano Goitsemang Lehobye and mezzo soprano Bongiwe Nakani were both semi-finalists in the 35th International Hans Gabor Belvedere
Singing Competition held recently in Cape Town. The third friend, baritone Mandla Mndebele, was the recipient of an engagement with Gauteng Opera as a prize awarded in that same contest.
Moreover Lehobye has the confidence, presence and vocal powers to carry off a fully-staged production of Tosca, (I hope she gets the chance) and Mndebele possesses the physical stature, personality and audience appeal to be a star. Nakani’s rich and mellow mezzo and soaring top notes and gentler personality will be an asset on any world stage.
Great care and thought had gone into this concert. At the front of the stage was a huge display of white lilies while at the back was a painted backdrop depicting the balcony of some famous Italian opera house, possibly La Scala, visible between real red velvet curtains. There was something, or somebody, on a chair on that balcony which before the stage was lit, might have been Banquo’s ghost. It turned out to be just an empty chair, presumably awaiting for the arrival, or non-arrival, of the King of Italy.
The programme was designed to show the singers in various moods and genres. Perhaps it was aimed more at regular opera goers than those who had come along to hear Botha. Operatic arias when sung out of context and without any prior knowledge of the plot, are not that accessible. To their credit all the performers acted out their roles and tried to instil life and emotion into their characters.
Here Botha’s professionalism and distinguished stage career was so apparent. He seemed to know everybody’s part and all the nuances of his own. Even in a black evening suit he made his characters come alive through his internalisation of the individual and his wonderful voice, always used to best effect.
The first half was all Verdi. It began with CPO’s performance of Nabucco’s overture with its big brass opening followed by alternatively lush and nervous passages. Then came the beautifully crafted and heartfelt solo of Botha’s Celeste Aïda, followed by two arias from
Don Carlo and three from Otello including, Desdemona’s Piangea
cantando the Willow Song and Ave Maria which she sings sensing she is going to be killed by her husband.
It is one of the most beautiful and moving scenes in any opera but it did not have quite the same effect on my heartstrings sung without the atmospheric setting created by a live production. This was no fault of Lehobye as Desdemona or Nakani as Emilia and the audience gave them full value for their efforts singing and interaction.
The outstanding first half performance was the fiery duet between Botha and Mndebele Dio, che nell’alma infondere amor during which Botha, as Don Carlos, confides his heartache to his friend Rodrigo at giving up his beloved Elisabeth to marry his father for the sake of peace between France and Spain. Their voices blended well together and the energy and passion of their performances was exciting.
While some of us expected fireworks from Botha in the second half because of the arias he was to sing, we were in for a disappointment. It was announced that he would not sing two of the “biggies” listed in the programme. We realised that Botha was a tired man and not a very well one.
Nevertheless we were treated to an unexpectedly humorous start by Mandla Mndebele sauntering on to the stage with a cap and coloured braces to sing Leoncavallo’s
Si Puo from I Pagliacci with bags of emotion and confidence. What a character!
The Act I love duet from Tosca, followed by the popular E lucevan
le stelle was sung with passion and controlled despair by Botha as the condemned Cavaradossi. After one, instead of two arias from Cavalleria Rusticana the mood was lightened with well-known songs from Franz Lehár’s only full scale opera Giuditta and Die lustige Witwe. Here we had the pleasure of seeing Botha in romantic mood gently dancing the
Merry Widow waltz with the seductive and triumphant Lehobye.
What’s interesting about the plot of Giuditta is that it upset Mussolini because the soldier hero Octavio leaves the army to become a pianist. To the dictator it was unthinkable that in Fascist Italy in 1934 an Italian officer would desert for a woman!
A special word about Bernhard Gueller. His role in this concert went way beyond that of conductor of the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra bringing as he always does that special ability to bring out the best in the musicians as apparent in the orchestra’s second half solo, the famous Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana.
His podium was so close to the soloists that he was like a caring father at their elbows to guide and support. This was particularly so when Botha was obviously feeling the effects of a hectic schedule in Cape Town so soon after surgery and chemotherapy
The sustained embrace between Gueller and Botha at the end of Botha’s single encore – which had to be Nessun Dorma from Turandot – said it all. The tenor was exhausted and Gueller was relieved to have helped him through it.
This poignant moment reminded the audience that real life is as dramatic, unpredictable and wonderful as anything you can ever hear or see on an opera stage.