Find out what's happening in Opera - New York City and around the World
OperaNotes Review
State Repertory Opera (SRO) of New Jersey
April 16, 2005
By Charlene Frank
Il Trovatore
Music:
Giuseppi Verdi
Libretto:
Giuseppe: Salvatore Cammarano
Conductor:
James Sadewhite
Set Designer:
Laurie Hall
Stage Director:
Cindy Oxberry
Costume Designer:
Terry Wagner
Cast:
Manrico: Sung Chun Park
Leonora: Cecilia Angell
Count di Luna:
Frederick Frey
Azucena:Emily Howard
Ferrando: Thomas Sandri
Inez: Hanne Ladefoged-Dollase
When you are fortunate enough to live on the magical island of Manhattan you tend to think it isn't worth the effort to travel over a bridge or through a tunnel to see a local opera company perform in a neighboring state because whatever we want we can find right here. And, we can find just about everything right here on our own island, however if we don't sometimes take forays out of our center of the universe and visit our next door neighbors we will miss the occasional discovery that those of us who love this art passionately find so thrilling. Tonight it happened at Jersey City University in Jersey City, New Jersey and it was about a tenor named Sung Chun Park.
I took the ride through the Holland Tunnel because one year ago The Newark Star Ledger wrote an article called "Tenor is Top 'Lucia' Talent" about Mr. Park and his performance with the SRO of New Jersey. After reading this article, this rave, about Sung Chun Park's performance I promised myself I would see him in his next local opera. I did that, and found a young man with a superb, well controlled instrument that keeps on going, and sounds better and better as it warms up. For all of us, let's hope that it doesn't take another year for this strong tenor to be seen regularly on our side of the tunnel.
Il Trovatore is a difficult opera to do well. It is such a crazy story so filled with hatred, love, fury, guilt (throwing the wrong baby in the fire, whew) that it is hard to find the control to sing these roles without screaming. The reality is the characters are screaming, and the singer must convey that, yet not scream. The control that is necessary is tremendous. I have seen Trovatore at a few world famous opera houses and have yet to see an Azucena who can really go crazy (as she must) and still keep some kind of control of her voice, or a Leonora who does not scream when she sings. Ms. Angell (Leonora) and Ms. Howard (Azucena) did as well or better in these roles than some of the singers I have seen in the 'big houses'. Baritone Frederick Frey (Count di Luna) was also quite well received.
New Jersey is home to some good opera, and if you live there I hope you take advantage of it. The SRO, The Boheme Opera Company, many opera performances at NJ PAC. I am still mourning the loss of the New Jersey Opera Festival where I saw one of the best performances of Eugene Onegin I have ever seen. With talent like Sung Chun Park coming out of these companies, you should try and make it your business to explore and see what jewels you can discover. Talent like this does not come along everyday, and I would have missed it had I not simply gone through a tunnel.