La Bohème Live at McCaw Hall

A year and a half later than expected, La Bohème will finally reappear at Seattle Opera. La Bohème was supposed to conclude the 2019/2020 opera season with a run of performances in May 2020. Well, we all know how that May turned out. Seattle Opera heroically transformed into a film company and put together a season unlike any other last year. But now they’re back on stage at McCaw Hall with the long-delayed La Bohème. I got to see it on the second weekend.

La Bohème

With the exception of a widely panned traveling production of Carmen assigned by my high school music teacher, La Bohème was the first opera I ever watched. I saw it in London on a trip I took in memory of my grandmother and it made me cry. When I saw it years later in Seattle, it made me cry again. So that’s my history with La Bohème. But nearly everyone has one.

La Bohème is one of the most widely known operas in the world. Puccini’s story of four young struggling artists in Paris in the 19th century is so iconic that people who have never seen or heard it know it’s general outlines. The libretto is based on a play based on the novel, Scènes de la vie de bohème. The novel was more a collection of vignettes than a story, but the play introduced the plot of Mimi and Rodolfo’s doomed relationship. Of course Mimi dies, because it’s Puccini. We put up with it because Puccini’s music is so beautiful.

What Live is Like Now

La Bohème is my third time in a theater since the pandemic shut things down last year, and my second in McCaw Hall. I saw PNB’s Singularly Cerrudo a few weeks ago, and Jesus Christ Superstar at the Paramount after that. As glad as I was to be viewing art in person again, it would be a lie to say that everything was back to normal. I’m grateful for the requirements that patrons be vaccinated and masked. But these efforts do change the experience. For me, it is a challenge to remain masked for hours at a time, and the effort I spend fighting off a claustrophobic panic attack does impact my ability to focus on the performance and enjoy it. Both PNB and Seattle Opera were wise to reopen with such crowd pleasing selections, because I don’t think I’m alone in feeling like only the most must-see shows will be able to draw me out of the house this year.

I always go to the opera talks, but considering my mask limitations, this time around I listened to the podcast ahead of time instead. But with each performance I attend (even as each one has been longer than the last) I find it a little easier. Even when it’s hard, it has been worth it.

La Bohème This Time

Reviewing La Bohème is a little bit like reading someone’s tarot; it reveals as much about you as it does about the subject. I suppose it’s true that your attitudes about any piece of art reflect who you are. And any quality piece of art will lend itself to multiple interpretations. But some works always serve as a measuring stick for your own growth as you revisit them over the years. For me, The Chronicles of Narnia were different every time I read them growing up. La Bohème was an accurate reflection of life when I saw it the first time. At the time I had no more patience for the artists’ drama and jealousy than I had for recently purged friendships. The second time, the characters were “characters” and I judged their choices within the narrative. Now I view their youthful folly more indulgently, with some of the same nostalgia that Puccini did.

I also have seen enough opera now to appreciate that Puccini treated the women in La Bohème better than in his other operas. Even though Mimi dies, it is not for love and not by suicide. She is already dying when we meet her. She and Musetta are both artists (albeit unrecognized even by their peers) in their own right, and neither one of them puts up with their boyfriends’ shit, choosing to separate rather than be subjected to irrational jealousy. Musetta is a drama queen and sometime gold digger. But while philosopher Colline (new to me Ashraf Sewailam ) sings an admittedly touching ode working up to the sacrifice of his coat, Musetta quietly sells her earrings to make Mimi more comfortable. Then lets Rodolfo take the credit.

The Performances

I make no secret of my preference for low voices, so La Bohème is a treat. Except for Rodolfo’s tenor and Mimi’s soprano, the cast presents a mezzo, two baritones and two basses. In this production, two of my favorite performers, baritone John Moore (whom I’ve enjoyed as Eugene Onegin, Steve Jobs, and Figaro) and mezzo Ginger Costa-Jackson (Carmen), play the on-again off-again Marcello and Musetta, a double threat that could easily upstage many lead couples. They were as good – individually and together – as I expected.

But surprisingly, soprano Karen Vuong and tenor Yosep Kang held their own next to their more flamboyant counterparts. My only other experience of Karen Vuong was in last year’s Flight where I was impressed by her acting. But was her voice this sweet back then?

Yosep Kang is new to Seattle Opera. Now it’s possible that La Bohème is just really written to make a tenor sound good (one of the only other times I’ve felt compelled to comment on a tenor’s voice was the last time I saw La Bohème). But Kang’s performance sparked a discussion on resonance and pitch after the show. So many tenors sound like they’re going to pull something, especially on the high notes. But Kang had a fullness that felt like a baritone. He still hit the high notes, but he made it sound easy. He shifted from quiet moments to filling the hall with sound with what I can only call steez.

Even with a mask on, I enjoyed every minute of this La Bohème.

The Details

La Bohème

La Bohème will be performed again Oct. 27 & 30.
Tickets are available online.
Performed in Italian with English subtitles, La Bohème is rated PG.

Music: Giacomo Puccini
Libretto: Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa
Premiere: February 1896, Turin
Seattle Opera Premiere: September 1965

Performance Time: Approximately 2 hour and 35 minutes.

Cast That I Saw:

Rodolfo
Yosep Kang

Mimi
Karen Vuong

Marcello
John Moore

Musetta
Ginger-Costa Jackson

Colline
Ashraf Sewailam

Schaunard
Theo Hoffman

Benoit/Alcindoro
Barry Johnson

{My tickets to view La Bohème were purchased as part of a season subscription.}