Review: NABUCCO at Four Seasons Centre For The Performing Arts

Canadian Opera Company launches their new season with a monumental first for the company - the premiere staging of Nabucco, directed by Katherine M. Carter and conducted by Paolo Carignani, the opera that firmly planted Giuseppe Verdi's name as a celebrated composer, first performed in 1842. This epic tale of enslavement to freedom features Soprano Mary Elizabeth Williams as Abigaille, Mezzo-soprano Rihab Chaieb as Fenena, and Baritone Roland Wood in the title role of Nabucco.

Nabucco is a shortened form of Nebuchadnezzar II, the Babylonian King who lead an army to Jerusalem to conquer the city and enslave the Israelites. Inside the Temple of Solomon, the high priest Zaccaria (Simon Lim, Bass) holds Nabucco's daughter Fenena hostage. As Nabucco's army draws near, Ismaele (Matthew Cairns, Tenor), nephew to the Israelite King, warns Zaccaria of the incoming threat. Leaving Fenena under Ismaele's watch, Zaccaria prepares for battle. Little does Zaccaria know, Ismaele and Fenena are in love. As the lovers reconnect, Nabucco's elder daughter Abigaille, secretly in love with Ismaele, enters catching the two in the act. Outraged, Abigaille demands Ismaele give up Fenena or she will accuse her of treason. Ismaele refuses as Nabucco's army approaches the gates. Nabucco orders the burning of the temple and Ismaele is deemed a traitor to his people. 

As Fenena and Abigaille quarrel over the love of their father, the love of Ismaele, and their desire for power, the Israelites and Babylonians are left to struggle in the sisters' wake. The true driving force behind this performance is the power of the people, the chorus that make up these two war-torn nations. Interestingly, Verdi wrote Nabucco with the citizens in the forefront opting to give both peoples the same text with different musical ques to illustrate the double meaning in words. As such, the large chorus here that fill the stage is a delight to behold. The collective sound of their voices is simply extraordinary and visually they make for a sumptuous presentation.

Williams stands out in her role as Abigaille as she beautifully embodies a woman driven by ambition and passion and yet fueled with vengeance when she learns of her father's great deceit. The sheer strength and bravado in Williams' voice is captivating. She commands the stage with the regalness befitting a queen with the exceptionally challenging singing required of her. Juxtaposing that, Chaieb as Fenena leads from the heart, her love for Ismaele and the Isrealites crosses her fielty and obligation to her father. Her voice is gentle and loving but reveals the anguish beneath.

Lim as Zaccaria is intriguing as Zaccaria, a character I found myself surprisingly drawn to due to Lim's quiet magnetism on stage. Zaccaria is the high priest of the Temple of Solomon, keeper of the faith, who the Isrealites turn to in their moment of despair and Lim embodies this well in his resonate voice. Equally Wood fits his character as the tyranical Nabucco like a glove. As king he conquers with an iron fist, but as father his love for Fenena placates and enables him to surrender. 

Visually, Nabucco is a feast for the eyes thanks to set designer Michael Yeargen and Costume Designer Jane Greenwood. From the Temple of Solomon to the throne room first occupied by father then daughter, the sets remarkably capture the essence of regality and opulance. Greenwood's costumes speak volumes of the of the people who inhabit them, in particular when seen in the chorus' great numbers. From the sheen and bold colours of the modernistic uniform worn by the Babylonian army, to the haunting threadbare robes of the Isrealites her costumes do wonders in establishing the mood.  

Nabucco is an opera that has captivated the world, particularly in times of great tragedy when the world needed a unifying anthem. As a debut production for a season opener, the Canadian Opera Company has created an experience that is surely not to be missed. 

Photo Credit: Michael Cooper

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