Seattle Opera 2018/19 Season Preview

Today I am sad. Berlioz’ opera Beatrice & Benedict opens at Seattle Opera tomorrow, and I don’t have tickets. I could not go on the day press tickets were offered, and I haven’t figured out how or if I will buy tickets for this production I really want to see. For today, I am consoling myself by looking at the 2018/19 opera season announcement. This is not the sort of season Seattle Opera subscribers are used to. Aidan Lang became the director of Seattle Opera in 2014. We often forget what an incredibly long lead-time opera’s have. Even though the 2018-19 season was just announced a few weeks ago, it might actually be the first season that Lang has chosen all the operas. Here’s what’s coming up.

Porgy and Bess – an american story

By George Gershwin, DuBose and Dorothy Heyward, and Ira Gershwin
August 11-25, 2018
English

The great American opera boasts some of the best songs ever written—including “Summertime,” “I Got Plenty O’ Nuttin’,” “I Loves You, Porgy,” and “It Ain’t Necessarily So,” alongside rhapsodic orchestral music and superb choral writing. Dozens of characters experience a gamut of emotions in this slice of life story set in Heywards’ fictional Catfish Row. Boldly combining action, humor, romance, struggle, and celebration, the Gershwins’ vibrant, one-of-a-kind masterpiece will inspire you to “rise up singing.”

I admit, I’m ambivalent. On the one hand – yay! representation. On the other hand – the Gershwins? Is it even opera? I know sometimes the line between opera and musical can be blurred. But even a “proper” opera in English is a little bit of a hard sell for me. Opera is like anime – when you’re watching anime in Japanese and reading subtitles, it sounds so cool. When the same lines are delivered in English, you realize how stupid they are. Still, Porgy and Bess is the Great American Opera (it says so in the blurb) and Mary Elizabeth Williams will be in it. It’s not like I hate musicals, so maybe I’ll enjoy watching a musical on the Seattle Opera stage.

The Turn of the Screw

By Benjamin Britten
October 13-27
English

An unnamed governess travels to an isolated mansion, hired by a mysterious guardian to care for two orphaned children. What follows are a series of increasingly ominous encounters with “the others” –menacing spirits of the manor’s previous staff. Are the ghosts supernatural in origin, or are they the products of her overactive imagination? Britten’s seductive, luminous, and brilliantly structured score utilizes a variety of musical expression. A tantalizingly veiled portrait of psychological disintegration, with tangible tension throughout.

Oh god, Aidan Lang you’re killing me! I hated this book in college and I hated the movie they made out of it. Benjamin Britten also wrote the opera for Billy Budd – another story I hated in college. If ever there was an opera I wouldn’t feel bad about skipping, it would be this one. Except opera does love a crazy woman, so the story could be more palatable in this context. And Elizabeth Caballero is singing the governess. She’s probably my favorite soprano and I would gladly listen to her sing cat food commercials. And the opera has to be better than a cat food commercial, right?

Il Trovatore

By Giuseppe Verdi
January 12-26
Italian

Packed with more hit songs than any opera but Carmen, Verdi’s hot-blooded melodrama thrills with swift action, intense pathos, and multiple moments where singers shine. During a time of civil war, a mother’s love clashes with a dark secret from her past as two rival soldiers feud for the favor of a noblewoman with a secret of her own. The abundance of masterful music audiences shouting “Viva Verdi!” after its premiere.

Now we’re talking! I’m an unabashed bel canto fan. Verdi is my reward for facing the challenges of the first part of this upcoming season. I know I’ve seen this one before, but it was a long time ago – before I started blogging. This production is reusing period costumes from 2010, which is probably the production I saw, although it could have been the time before that. I look forward to seeing how my impressions of the opera are different now that I’m watching so much more carefully.

The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs – a different story

By Mason Bates
February 23-March 9
English

Following the world premiere’s “rapturous reception” (The Washington Post), the smash hit of the 2017 Santa Fe Opera season makes its West Coast debut at McCaw Hall! This innovative and crowd-pleasing portrait of Apple’s visionary co-founder “does what opera does best: giving audiences a glimpse into the inner life of its title character” (Marin Independent Journal). Bates’ score dazzles with a glossy mix of lyrical and rhythmic music, combining traditional and electronic instrumentation. Campbell’s compelling, funny, and touching libretto interweaves universal themes of communication and connection, treating its subject with respect and humanity.

I know Seattle Opera is working on accessibility, but I am not happy about all these English-language operas. I am happy about the use of technology in operatic stage production, and if an opera about a tech tycoon doesn’t shine on the staging front, I’ll eat something unpleasant. Of course it seems like a bit of a no-brainer to stage a technology story in Seattle. Modern stories and settings are a turn-off for some people, but I like it when opera tackles something besides nobility behaving badly (even though, period costumes aside, that topic will always be timely). The real question for me on this one will be the music. I look forwarding to hearing the answer. Plus, John Moore will sing Steve Jobs.

Carmen

by Georges Bizet
May 4-18
French

Bizet’s sexy thriller about an everyday soldier’s ill-fated obsession with the ultimate femme fatale is arguably the world’s most popular opera. Featuring an unrivaled procession of celebrated/hit melodies, Bizet’s lavish score brims with brilliant orchestration. Moving like a runaway train from its rollicking, iconic overture to the shocking, tour-de-force finale, Carmen packs all the vibrancy and volatility of a bullfight into an irresistible theatrical event.

Carmen was the first opera I ever saw. I was in high school and my music teacher gave extra credit to anyone who attended the traveling performance. I fell asleep, only to be startled awake by a gunshot on stage. It was panned in the reviews. I can not wait to see it again as an opera-loving adult.

Season Tickets

Tickets to individual productions will not go on sale until later, but you can buy season tickets now. Season tickets can be surprisingly affordable, and if you plan to go more than once, it’s probably a good idea.