#frederic chaslin

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Symphony No. 9 "Ode to Joy" - Chaslin / JSO / Beethoven

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Symphony No. 5 "Fate" - Chaslin / Beethoven

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Opera Per Tutti's seduces listeners with concert performance of vampire opera 'Clarimonde' (review)

A collage of scenes from On Site Opera's recent production of Frederic Chaslin's "Clarimonde." Cleveland-based Opera Per Tutti performed the work last week in concert at Cleveland Public Theatre.

on November 03, 2014 at 9:31 AM, updated November 03, 2014 at 9:39 AM By MARK SATOLA http://www.cleveland.com/musicdance/index.ssf/2014/11/opera_per_tuttis_seduces_liste.html

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Opera per Tutti celebrated Hallowe'en in an appropriate style at Cleveland Public Theatre, with two performances of the opera Clarimonde by French composer and conductor Frédéric Chaslin, to a libretto by P. H. Fisher, who adapted the short story "La Morte amoreuse" (literally, "The Dead Woman in Love") by Théophile Gautier, best known to English-speaking readers in its 1908 translation by the American author Lafcadio Hearn.

Billed as a vampire opera with a twist, "Clarimonde" tells the story of a young priest, Romualdo, newly ordained but sorely tempted by a creature of bewitching beauty, the titular Clarimonde, who seeks to seduce him away from his priestly vows in order to prolong her unnatural life.

The battle for Romualdo's soul is joined by two satellite characters, the Bishop Sérapion Romualdo's mentor, and the Vampire Maker, the latter an expansion by Fisher of a minor character in "La Morte amoreuse," where he is simply a groom, albeit a quite demonic one, who appears on two occasions to aid in the transport of Romualdo to Clarimonde's side.

In Gautier's story, Clarimonde has always existed as an inevitable evil, seducing men for the sake of their life-giving blood. In Fisher's retelling, she is herself the product of a greater evil, personified in the Vampire Maker (an inelegant appellation, unfortunately), which has the effect of making her much more sympathetic.

An orphaned child, Clarimonde was taken by the Vampire Maker and molded into a vampiric goddess. The actual mechanism of transformation from innocent mortal to decadent immortal is never explained; it merely exists as an example of evil for its own sake.

Chaslin limns this tale of heaven and hell with an attractive score that partakes of a fluid and restless tonality, often evoking, but never quoting, modern popular music, in a way that reminds one, not inappositely, of Francis Poulenc.

Opera per Tutti's production presented the work in a concert performance, with costumes and a modicum of stage movement to enhance the drama. The singers were uniformly outstanding, especially tenor Benjamin Bunsold as Romualdo. With his full tone and fine diction, he fully conveyed his character's anguish as he is torn between faith and desire for the beautiful vampiress. As Clarimonde, soprano Rebecca Freshwater was convincing and moving, bringing out the depth of her character's own inner contradictions.

Baritones Benjamin Czarnota as Sérapion and Brian Keith Johnson as the Vampire Maker were also fine, though Johnson's occasional forays into buffo style, especially in a long self-explanatory cavatina describing his creation of Clarimonde, seemed unnecessary.

Particular applause must go to Lorenzo Salvagni, who played the piano reduction of the score with great sensitivity and no flagging of energy during the opera's 80 or so minutes. Katherine Kilburn conducted the performance with a flexible sense of tempo that allowed the music to breathe naturally without losing its drive.

Leah Mulheim designed costumes that were simple but highly effective; Clarimonde's off-the-shoulder concoction of white lace and red satin enhanced the character's sensual appeal. Scott Skiba's light stage action was just enough to suggest what a fully produced version might be like, and the minimal lighting design was effective without being obtrusive.

Opera per Tutti's production was the first after Clarimonde's premiere in August by On Site Opera, which performed it in a concert setting in St. Francis de Sales Church in Phoenicia, New York. Given the opera's musical appeal and its refreshingly direct narrative of good pitted against evil, a fully staged production would certainly be welcome.