Utah Opera's Thaïs

I have been looking forward to Utah Opera's production of Thaïs by Jules Massenet all season because it is an opera that I was not familiar with.  I finally had the chance to see it last night and I absolutely loved it!  It is a big production that is staged very dramatically with beautiful music and powerful performances that kept me captivated.  Athanaël (Troy Cook) is a devout monk who has been disturbed by dreams about Thaïs (Nicole Heaston), a courtesan and devotee of Venus who lives only for love and pleasure.  He believes the dreams are a sign from God that he should travel to Alexandria to convert her to Christianity.  Once in Alexandria he seeks out his friend Nicias (Dominick Valdes-Chenes), who is Thaïs's current lover, and is invited to a feast later that evening where Thaïs mocks him for daring to defy Venus.  However, after the feast, she laments that she will grow old and die.  When Athanaël visits her room she attempts to seduce him but he refuses her advances and promises her eternal life instead.  She agrees to enter the convent after a night of meditation but suffers greatly on the journey through the desert.  Athanaël pushes her to continue as penance for her sins but begins to take pity on her and they share an idyllic moment together at a spring.  He reluctantly places her in the care of Mother Superior Albine (Aubrey Adams-McMillan) knowing he will never see her again but, when he is haunted by dreams of her, he renounces his vows in order to return to her.  He discovers that she is dying so he declares his love for her but Thaïs chooses God's love and eternal life instead which leaves him bereft.  The music, performed by the Utah Symphony under the baton of Steven White, is incredibly beautiful (I loved the themes played by the harp).  Even though I had never seen this opera before, I immediately recognized "Méditation" from the second act.  Concertmaster Madeline Adkins gave an emotional performance of the dramatic violin solo and the staging of this scene, featuring eight dancers with Repertory Dance Theatre, is spectacular.  I heard audible gasps from the audience when a dancer emerged from behind the sleeping figure of Thaïs as if her soul was ascending to a higher plane and all of the lifts in the choreography continue this theme culminating in a final haunting pose.  I was also struck by the juxtaposition of the staging in the scenes with the monks who circle Athanaël as he prays and the revelers who circle Thaïs as she performs.  The set and costumes also emphasize this juxtaposition because the gilded panels surrounding the stage appear silver in the monastery and gold in Thaïs's palace and Athanaël and the monks wear black while Thaïs, Nicias, and the revelers appear in a riot of sumptuous gold.  The role of Thaïs is a demanding one and Heaston's performance is brilliant.  Not only does she have a beautiful and powerful voice, the aria "Dis-moi que je suis belle" is a highlight, but she is convincing as both a licentious courtesan and a newly converted supplicant.  Cook is also believable in the role of an ascetic who is corrupted and I especially loved his voice in the duet "C'est toi, mon pere" with Heaston.  Another impressive performance was that of Katrina Galka as La Charmeuse as she entertains Nicias and the revelers.  I enjoyed every aspect of this production and I highly recommend taking advantage of this opportunity to see this rarely-performed opera.  There are two more performances (go here for tickets) on Friday and Sunday.