By Angela Wibking
H.M.S. Pinafore
Presented by Nashville Opera
8 p.m. Jan. 29, 2 p.m. Jan 31, and 7:30 p.m. Feb. 2 in Polk Theater, TPAC
$10-$44, tickets available through Ticketmaster, 255-2787
Despite—or perhaps because of—its mainstream popularity, H.M.S. Pinafore and other operettas by Gilbert and Sullivan are considered by many opera purists to be beneath the lofty pursuits of a legitimate opera company. John Hoomes, artistic director of Nashville Opera, which presents Pinafore this weekend, understands that point of view—even if he doesn’t agree with it. ”Americans tend to present Gilbert and Sullivan as overly campy and cutesy,“ he says. ”The British treat them much more seriously in terms of the comedy—and the music.“
The duo of playwright William Gilbert and composer Arthur Sullivan achieved enormous success in Victorian England with their blend of operatic music, witty dialogue, and satiric characterization. The plot twists in their shows are outlandish and the characters stock types, but the music can be devilishly difficult. That’s why many Gilbert and Sullivan productions in this country don’t give the music its due, Hoomes says. Often, the performers are talented actors who aren’t quite up to the operatic demands of the music. The musical accompaniment itself is often scaled down to a piano and a few other instruments.
”The music is neglected,“ Hoomes says. ”It’s ill-sung at times and, besides, it’s very hard to hear the quality of music with just a piano and a snare set.“ That won’t be the case in this Pinafore, which will feature a full orchestra and singers whose experience extends to classical opera.
Steering the course for Pinafore is Linda Ade Brand, a director based in Kansas City whose credits range from Driving Miss Daisy and A Midsummer Night’s Dream to Don Giovanni and The Barber of Seville. Brand has also directed several Gilbert and Sullivan operettas.
”There are really three balls you have to juggle with Pinafore,“ she says. ”One is the comedy, because the main purpose of the show is to be fun, and you want the audience to have a wonderful time. You also have to be true to the show’s romantic side, because if you don’t care about the leading characters, the comedy wears thin really quickly. Then there’s the satire on the class differences in Victorian British society that you have to get across.“
Helping Brand with her juggling act is a cast that includes her husband Robert Brand, who plays the juicily satirical role of Sir Joseph Porter, the Lord High Admiral of the British Navy who has never set foot on a ship before. Brand’s character is assigned some of the operetta’s most famous ”patter songs,“ which dispense a lot of witty, complicated lyrics in a record number of musical measures.
Stereotypical characters like the admiral are a hallmark of Gilbert and Sullivan operettas, according to Hoomes. ”They loved to use stock characters, like the sweet but neglected older woman, who in Pinafore is Little Buttercup,“ he says. ”In Gilbert and Sullivan, the baritone is usually a father, whose actions drive the plot.“
In Pinafore, Captain Corcoran is the father figure whose marriage plans for his daughter Josephine produce romantic and comic complications. Josephine, played by soprano Tonna Miller, is in love with the handsome but lowly sailor Ralph Rackstraw, played by Curt Peterson. Captain Corcoran, played by David Small, is himself the object of the affections of Little Buttercup, played by Ory Brown. Backing them all up are a 24-voice Nashville Opera Chorus and the Nashville Symphony Orchestra, both under the direction of Raphael Bundage.
”People who think Gilbert and Sullivan isn’t really about the music will be shocked to hear it done with these voices and a full orchestra,“ Hoomes promises.
Folk wisdom
The Singing Tortoise
Presented by Nashville Ballet with Belmont Percussion Ensemble and storyteller Marilyn E. Thornton Tribble
2 p.m. Jan. 31 Massey Auditorium, Belmont University. Free
In the West African folk tale ”The Singing Tortoise,“ a young man’s pride costs him a unique friendship and the favor of his community. The tale is the inspiration for Nashville Ballet artistic director Paul Vasterling’s dance piece of the same name, which blends storytelling, movement, visual art, and music.
Geared toward young audiences and families, The Singing Tortoise is part of the ballet’s series of teaching performances at Metro public libraries. This weekend’s special public performance at Belmont University is made possible by a grant from the Metro Arts Commission.
”The story is about being true to one’s word—and to one’s world,“ Vasterling says of the folk tale. ”As the tortoise says in the story, åIt is man who imposes himself upon things, not things which impose themselves upon man.’ “
In the tale, a young man named Ama discovers a singing tortoise while hunting alone one day. After Ama promises the tortoise that he will keep the animal’s talent a secret, the creature agrees to return with the hunter to his village. But Ama breaks his promise and boasts of the tortoise’s singing. When Ama is ordered by the chief to produce the tortoise, the creature refuses to sing and Ama is banished in shame from his village.
A troupe of five student dancers, clad in unitards and oversized African animal masks created by Mimi Shimmin, performs Vasterling’s choreography to an original score by Belmont School of Music faculty member Todd Lunden. Lunden’s all-percussion score, performed by five members of the Belmont Percussive Ensemble, employs marimbas, congas, the ”talking drum“ used for communication among African tribes, and a variety of metal bells, shakers, and wooden instruments.
The dance segments are interspersed with the spoken story, related onstage by Marilyn E. Thornton Tribble. ”The dance piece is not quite as linear [as the folk tale],“ Vasterling says. ”It alternates between verbal sections and the nonverbal dance sections. It’s a way for kids to link hearing or reading a story to dance as a means of storytelling.“
The dance segments are interspersed with the spoken story, related onstage by Marilyn E. Thornton Tribble. ”The dance piece is not quite as linear [as the folk tale],“ Vasterling says. ”It alternates between verbal sections and the nonverbal dance sections. It’s a way for kids to link hearing or reading a story to dance as a means of storytelling.“
