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Saturday, November 14th marked the day following the horrific terrorist attacks in Paris, as well as the premiere night of The Merry Widow in Chicago—a Paris-set opera directed by the 5-time Tony recipient and acclaimed Broadway director/choreographer, Susan Stroman. The premiere began with a somber act of solidarity with the people of France in the Civic Opera House, as the Lyric Opera’s general director, Anthony Freud, offered words of sympathy and music director, Andrew Davis, led the orchestra in France’s national anthem, “Marseillaise.”
The operetta that followed was one that celebrated the romance and beauty of Paris—a message of hope in this dark time. Composed in 1905 by Franz Lehár and librettists Victor Léon and Leo Stein, the German operetta The Merry Widow takes on new life (and language) as it is performed in English, using The Metropolitan Opera Score with text and translation by Jeremy Sams. Renée Fleming (soprano) stars as a Hanna Galwari of the fictional Balkan country, Pontevedro, who’s late husband left her with a fortune that could save Pontevedro from bankruptcy. Hilarity ensues as Hanna travels to Paris to try and meet a new husband and is greeted by throngs of Parisian suitors—nearly all of whom love her solely for her fortune. In effort to keep Hanna’s wealth within Pontevedro, the ambassador, Mirko Zeta (Patrick Carfizzi) and his flirtatious and (not so) respectable wife, Valencienne (Heidi Stober) strive to spark romance between Hanna and Pontevedro’s eligible bachelors: Camille de Rosillon (Michael Spyres) and Count Danilo Danilovich (Thomas Hampson). Hanna, however, has eyes only for one of these men—her old flame (and notorious playboy) Count Danilo, of course! The problem? He’s vowed never to marry!
Stroman’s award-winning choreography shines through in acts II and III of the production as soaring vocals combine with the swirling skirts of can-can girls in a playful, acrobatic performance that created a brighter, livelier tone less apparent in act I. The result? A smash ending that left the audience on its feet. As an opera virgin, I didn’t know what to expect from The Merry Widow. What I discovered was a delightful performance that appealed to a diverse audience with a clever dialogue that frequently left me snickering in my seat. For those that think opera is high-brow and not for everyone—let alone college students—think again!
The Merry Widow brings together the color, charm, and costume of old-world Paris with the wit, banter, and liveliness of rom-coms of today. Performances run from November 17-December 13. $20 tickets are available for college students through NEXT: on select performance dates. Visit the website https://www.lyricopera.org/concertstickets/specialprograms/next for more detail.