Aida at Seattle Opera

Even if you’re not into opera, you’ve heard of Aida. It’s one of the iconic operas like Carmen and Madame Butterfly. I am into opera, and I love Verdi, but the current production at Seattle Opera was my first experience of Aida.

I completely forgot to prepare. It’s such a famous opera that I kind of forgot I didn’t actually know what it was about. I went to lunch with my opera buddy and by the time we got our tickets scanned the pre-talk had already started. So we got wine instead. At least we read the educational posters on display in the lobby. Nowhere near as informative as the pre-talk, they are a low-key way to pull the drinkers into discussion.

Verdi Represents

The posters addressed representation, because the protagonist of Aida is an Ethiopian princess. Seattle Opera is ahead of the curve casting African-American performers (although, ironically, neither of the sopranos singing Aida this time around are Black); SO hosts community discussions and selects operas that deal with issues of race; and they’ve even hired a racial equity consultant.

Opera needs to make an extra effort to be accessible to a broad audience because it literally originated as an entertainment for the richest Europeans. That’s why I was surprised to read the poster arguing that Verdi – a quintessential opera composer – was an equalizer for his day. I had never thought of it that way, but two of his most famous operas have Black protagonists (Aida and Otello). Of course, in mid-nineteenth century Italy, race was not the issue it is to 21^st century Americans.

It seems that Verdi did write more than his share of operas about people his society neglected. Opera is full of glamorous La Traviata-style courtesans, but Verdi’s other fallen women were often truer to life, socially ruined and destitute. He gave us the physically disfigured Rigoletto, a Jewish interfaith romance in Nabucco, and gypsy leads in Il Trovatore. Those stories could be considered offensive today but in Verdi’s day, portraying these characters at all was progressive.

Operaganda

Aida was commissioned by the Khedive (like a viceroy) of Egypt to celebrate the construction of Cairo’s first opera house. At the time, Egypt was officially part of the Ottoman Empire, but it was on the path to nationhood. I expected the opera to portray Egypt in a pretty shining light, the same way Shakespeare’s plays made the Tudors look good. I was pretty surprised when the story turned out to be about Egypt as an oppressor. Colonialism was all the rage in Verdi’s day, but when the protagonist is enslaved and the focus is on her suffering and doomed love, it seems to undercut any nationalistic message.

Verdi was born before Italy became a single nation, and his home region had repeatedly been conquered and occupied. It made me wonder if Aida was something like the Lenin statue in Fremont, which depicts a heroic-looking Lenin surrounded by flames that quietly indict the violence of his reign. The triumphal march seemed like it could have been as much a statement on the excess of imperialism as a genuine “triumph.” On the other hand, Verdi was an Italian nationalist, so maybe I’m just falling into a long-standing trap of over-politicizing his work.

Interdisciplinary Opera

The beating heart of opera is its music, and for that Verdi is one of the best. Every single aria in Aida sounds like the hit single. If there’s any criticism to be made, it’s that the songs have that pop music quality of being almost too easy to digest. Like potato chips, you dig in unconsciously until suddenly you’ve eaten the whole opera.

But opera is also loved for spectacle, and Aida delivers on that front, too. This particular production has two stand-out collaborations. First is the set design by RETNA. A mixed-race artist with an interest in calligraphy and ancient cultures, RETNA got his start making graffiti in LA. A long way from illegal street art, nowadays does work for brands like Louis Vuitton and Chanel.

The other is choreography by Jessica Lang. Lang choreographed Her Door to the Sky, which has been performed by Pacific Northwest Ballet. I have read that ballet started as divertissement in opera, but this is the first time I’ve seen a ballet in an opera.

The ballet in Aida is integrated into the opera’s pseudo-religious ritual. It doesn’t interrupt the plot or the choruses. (I kept remembering a line from MST3K “This liturgical dance sure brings in the parishioners.”) Cynical commentary aside, I loved seeing two of my favorite art forms united onstage.

Performance

I’ve already mentioned how great Verdi’s music for this opera is. When I first read the plot synopsis I thought it sounded like the dumbest story ever. But Seattle Opera really sold it to me. Verdi had a knack for turning opera tropes into genuine human stories. Aida even allows each of its main characters to grow.

It seems like a wasted opportunity that SO did not cast a Black soprano for Aida, but Alexandra LoBianco has an incredibly powerful voice. She cuts right through the volume of Aida’s busy scenes and demands the audience’s attention – then conveys the most internal, tender emotions. Aida is a rare opera heroine. Yes, she dies for love, and has a severe case of Stockholm Syndrome. But when her father reminds her of her duty, she steps up as a princess of Ethiopia and fulfills her responsibility before indulging her feelings.

Maybe I’m learning to love the tenor, because Radamés really worked for me. David Pomeroy doesn’t have that strained rubber band sound that annoys me with most tenors. His character Radamés may be the first time I’ve ever seen character growth in a male romantic opera lead. He starts out all, “Hey baby I’m going to conquer a kingdom [yours] and make you a queen [she already is].” Then, in the course of one aria, he changes from “you’ll be the garland of my glory” to “I’ll give up my success and follow you.” In the end, he dies for love. Another masculine first.

Even antagonist Amneris, (Elena Gabouri, whose unique mezzo captivates) moves from a selfish love for Radamés to praying for peace. Aida’s father doesn’t get enough stage time for an arc, but Alfred Walker’s expressive bass-baritone is always welcome. Marcy Stonakis’ sounded so good as the High Priestess she made the role bigger than it was probably meant to be.

Cast (that I saw)

Aida                   Alexandra LoBianco
Amneris             Elena Gabouri*
Radames            David Pomeroy*
Amonasro          Alfred Walker
Ramfis               Daniel Sumegi
Messenger         Eric Neuville
The King            Clayton Brainerd*
High Priestess    Marcy Stonikas

Or. Stage Director Francesca Zambello
Stage Director       E. Loren Meeker
Conductor             John Fiore
Artistic Designer    RETNA*
Set Design            Michael Yeargan
Costume Design    Anita Yavich*
Lighting Design     Mark McCullough
Choreographer      Jessica Lang*
* Company Debut

Principal Dancer           Laura Mead
Dancers:
Charmaine Butcher
Alice Cao
Matthew Dibble
Trevor Hansen
Thomas House
Molly Levy
Bradley Schlagheck
Reed Tankersley

Aida Details

Music by Giuseppe Verdi
Libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni
In Italian with English captions
Marion Oliver McCaw Hall
Performances: May 5, 6m, 9, 11, 12, 13m, 16, 18, 19, 2018
Approximate Running Time: 3 hours including one intermission
Evening performances begin at 7:30 p.m., matinees at 2:00 p.m.
Premiere: Dec. 24, 1871, Cairo Opera House
Previous Seattle Opera Performances: 1962, 1968, 1976, 1980, 1992, 2008

 Buy tickets here.

Disclosure: I attended this performance of Aida compliments of Seattle Opera. All opinions are my own.