Review: On Site Opera Is Back Performing Live and In-Person--and It's No GIANNI Come Lately

Celebrating its 10th anniversary season, On Site Opera gave its audiences a present: The lively, fun-filled GIANNI SCHICCHI--the only comedy in Puccini's trifecta, IL TRITTICO, which had its world premiere at the Met in 1918 and is surely the most popular of the triptych of one-acts. Of course, the composer's written about greed, love and violence before, but never in a way to lift the spirits and tickle one's fancy, using Giovacchino Forzano's libretto.

Directed by the company's General and Artistic Director Eric Einhorn with a light hand and a full heart, the opera provided 50 minutes of joyous entertainment. Its company of able singers who were also talented farceurs with the split-second timing, showed off Puccini's score under the baton of Geoffrey McDonald with members of the American Modern Ensemble. And the site-specific production in the glamorous looking Prince George Ballroom on East 27 Street in New York was just right for the tale of greedy family members of the wealthy Buoso Donati (Martin Pfefferkorn) being outwitted by their own mendacity. (Donati and Schicchi were historical characters taken from Dante.)

As the title character, baritone Luis Ledesma used his rich voice to wheel and deal his way through the plot--and get his way at the end. As the young lovers, Lauretta and Rinuccio, Laura Leon and American John Riesen were a fine match, with the soprano giving a full-bodied account of the opera's most famous set-piece, the aria, "O mio babbino caro." Other standouts in the cast were mezzo Patrice P. Eaton, a lively presence as Zita; tenor Michael Kuhn as her nephew Gherardo; and bass Brian McQueen in the dual roles of the doctor and notary.

But there were no weak links in the game cast, including Jay Lucas Chacon (de Signa), Alexandria Crichlow (la Ciesca), Jonathan R. Green (Marco), David Kahng (Pinellino), David Langan (Simone), Savannah McElhaney (Gherardino) and Sara Beth Pearson (Nella).

Yes, it might have seemed even better if it were paired or tripled with the other parts of the trio of operas, with their grim counterpoint to SCHICCHI's brio. Indeed, Puccini originally demanded that the three parts of IL TRITTICO--with IL TABARRO and SUOR ANGELICA--be performed only together, until SCHICCHI's popularity bent his will. (Those haven't been the only downbeat one-acters to use SCHICCHI as a contrast: For example, I saw it as part of a triple bill in San Francisco with Poulenc's LA VOIX HUMAINE and Dallapiccola's IL PRIGIONIERO and, in 1958, the Met paired it with, of all things, SALOME!)

The production team included Susan Memmott (costumes) and Shawn K. Kaufman (lighting).

For more information about On Site Opera's activities, please see their website.

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