Capping off a rainy weekend in SF, Harry Bicket and The English Concert brought some sunshine with their effervescent and bright performance of Handel’s Rodelinda. Throw in superb singing from the cast, especially Lucy Crowe and Iestyn Davies, a score packed with arias, and genuine enthusiasm from the musicians, and you have a bona fide hit.
This is my second time seeing Rodelinda, again in concert version. The first time was in Paris in 2018, with Jeanine de Bique as Rodelinda, Tim Mead as Bertarido, and Emmanuelle Haïm and Le Concert d’Astrée. That was my first Handel experience and one which I’ll never forget. The singing was absolutely superb and Haïm and her ensemble were great. Coming back to Handel, and Rodelinda, 5 years later, I was ready.
For the most part, the cast was as dramatically committed as possible given the inherent limitations imposed by no staging and a restricted area in which to act. Here, the singers were not free from the clunky awkwardness that results from carrying a bigass book around and having to adjust the music stands. Only Iestyn Davies, who made the choice to use a slim iPad, and then leave his iPad on a stand was more dramatically in the action by virtue of not having to hold a book. Similarly, Lucy Crowe was also dramatically committed when she set the book down. Christine Rice was the most “in” on the dramatic limitations, smiling at the audience when walking off, and having a kind of knowing demeanor when her character was taken back in the end. It’s a minor gripe of mine, as the
Rodelinda’s plot revolves around palace intrigue. Prior to the opera, Rodelinda’s husband Bertarido had been deposed by Grimoaldo, with everyone thinking Bertarido is dead. Spoiler alert, he’s as alive as ever, and comes back to rescue his wife and son. Grimoaldo is in love with Rodelinda and wants her for himself, but Rodelinda could not care less about him. Grimoaldo was also engaged to Bertarido’s sister Eduige who’s more upset that Bertarido left her than the fact that he supposedly killed her brother. Like any good usurper, Grimoaldo has a counsellor, Garibaldo, who wants the throne for himself.
The Conducting
Leading from the Harpsichord, Harry Bicket guided The English Concert in a spirited and enthusiastic playing of Handel's score. Bicket is one of the most foremost Handel conductors around and his experience and enthusiasm shone throughout. I tend to have a hit-or-miss feeling about period piece orchestras (though I fuck with the Theorbo and Harpsichord) as I think they can occasionally sound stiff, but here no such feeling arose. Bicket's choice of tempo kept the action moving, and his players were able to match the feeling of the singers, invoking furor, pensiveness, sadness, and joy.
The Singing
As the titular queen, Lucy Crowe had the hardest assignment of the afternoon, singing eight arias, a duet, and carrying the bulk of the emotional weight of the opera. Crowe, with her pure, slightly smoky soprano, was more than up to the task, singing all her arias with bravura, evenness throughout her range, and as much emotion as the limited staging allowed. The extensive coloratura of the role proved to be no problem for Crowe as she dispatched the fioritura like it was nothing and displayed a good trill. Emotionally, the role of Rodelinda requires a singer who can span the emotional gamut, and convey despair, hope, joy, and lament. Here, I appreciated Crowe’s dramatic commitment. When you’re in a limited staging scenario, it can be easy to fall into a park-and-bark default, but Crowe made the most of the situation and interacted with her castmates, walked in and out of scene in character, and infused her voice with emotion. It’d be easy in a role like Rodelinda to default into an exaggerated campiness but Crowe kept her character dignified and believable. It was as complete of a performance as I could’ve hoped for.
As Bertarido, Iestyn Davies gave a commanding performance. His emotional act 1 aria, “Dove sei” was absolutely stunning with a pure tone, and seemingly endless breath. I’ve never heard a better rendition. Davies’ countertenor is a beautiful instrument, with a pleasing androgynous tone, even emission, and adeptness at coloratura. His Bertarido was brooding, occasionally coming off as academic to me, but appropriate for the role. Bertarido’s only focus in the opera is getting Rodelinda back, and he doesn’t even seem to really want the throne. Davies was excellent in this regard, seeming to home in on Bertarido’s character and getting at the core of who he is and what he’s about. A truly fantastic performance.
I feel the need to mention that Davies and Crowe were amazing together in their act 2 duet, “Io t’abbraccio” which comes when the characters have been reunited but caught and believe they’re going to be separated for real this time. The duet is one of my favorites in all of opera and is pure emotion as the couple lament the feeling that this is their true last embrace. Together, Davies and Crowe complemented each other emotionally and stylistically to give a pure-voiced and emotional rendition.
As Grimoaldo, Eric Ferring was overall great. It took a little for him to get going, and I sensed a bit of nerves as the opera commenced, but from act 2 on, Ferring displayed an elegant lyric tenor capable of handling the role’s coloratura and excelling in the more lyrical moments. As far as opera villains go, Grimoaldo has more depth than most. Sure, he’s basically a cuck, but his character is not entirely evil, and he displays genuine conflict. I enjoyed Ferring’s interpretation, and I thought he did a good job at conveying Grimoaldo’s internal conflict. My guess is that as the tour goes on, his first act nerves will dissipate.
As Bertarido’s sister Eduige, Christine Rice deployed her flexible mezzo to great effect. Vocally, Rice was up to the task, sailing through the coloratura demands of her role. Her character’s arc is all over the place which seemed to be a fact Rice knew. Her plot was the most convoluted and I enjoyed her essentially comedic take on the character, though it did create a slight unevenness with the rest of the cast being more earnestly in their characters.
I enjoyed Aryah Nussbaum Cohen’s Unulfo, and I thought his countertenor contrasted nicely with Davies’ voice. Cohen’s sound is more feminine, and like Ferring I think he took a little bit to warm up, but he dispatched his arias well, and made for a believably trustworthy companion to Davies’ Bertarido.
Being the true villain of the opera, Brandon Cedel’s Garibaldo was appropriately nasty as he manipulated Grimoaldo and Eduige. His voice is elegant and smooth, the qualities I like in lower voices singing Baroque music, and I enjoyed his performance.
Stray Thoughts
Going through the opera you’re like how did Bertarido lose his crown to this guy but then you see the weak ass stab and you’re like ok makes sense
Bertarido was totally looking for an out he didn’t even want the crown back and who would after that shitshow
Audience was on really good manners, except whoever’s phone went off during “Ombre piante”
Handel must’ve felt like Oprah while composing, giving everyone an aria left and right.
The limited movement here had all characters coming and going, causing the audience to applaud while the music was still going. I’m not sure if the English Concert were prepared for this as the few moments after each aria where you expect applause were awkwardly silent a couple of times.
Does the phrase, "As the Crow flies" have anything to do with this performance? no. I just wanted a clever title.