Last night I went to Utah Opera's wonderful performance of Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo and, even though it is very short (the last production I saw was part of a double bill), it is filled with emotion and I loved it. A traveling commedia dell'arte acting troupe arrives in a small town to give a performance, much to the delight of the crowd. The troupe consists of Canio (Jonathan Burton) who plays Pagliacci, his wife Nedda (Lydia Grindatto) who plays Columbina, Tonio (Darren Drone) who plays Taddeo, and Beppe (Aaron McKone) who plays Arlecchino. Canio is worried that Nedda might be having an affair but he is persuaded to drink at the pub with the townspeople and leaves Nedda alone. Tonio finds her and professes his love but she refuses his advances mercilessly. Nedda is actually having an affair with Silvio (Eleomar Cuello) and, when Tonio sees them together, he informs Canio in order to punish her for her harsh treatment of him. Canio is devastated but, singing what is arguably one of the most famous arias in the repertoire, he says that he will drown his sorrows with laughter when he plays Pagliacci on stage. Art imitates life as Columbina flirts with Arlecchino while Taddeo stands guard but, when Pagliacci comes home early to find the lovers, Canio's reaction is real and he declares that he is no longer Pagliacci. The crowd is impressed by the passion his performance but they are soon horrified when he dramatically kills both Nedda and Silvio, who is in the audience. Canio tells the crowd that the performance is over as he stands forlornly in the middle of the stage. I was very impressed by the entire cast! Burton's emotional performance of the aforementioned aria "Vesti la giubba" is so heartbreaking that I had tears in my eyes. I was also very moved by Grindatto's rendition of the aria "Stridono lassu" as Nedda yearns to be as free as the birds she sees in the sky (the Utah Symphony, under the baton of Joseph Coloneri, performs this beautifully because it is so light and airy that it really sounds like birds) and I loved her interactions with Cuello in the duet "Silvio! a quest'ora" because he also has a beautiful voice and the two of them have tremendous chemistry. In addition, the Utah Opera Chorus and the Choristers of the Madeleine Choir School are captivating and add a lot of energy as excited townspeople eager for a performance. Finally, I loved the colorful costumes and set (the set within a set for the troupe's performance is really clever) because they really bring the Italian countryside to life. I'm so glad I decided to get a ticket and I recommend that you get one (go here) for one of the three remaining performances.
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