Imagine a 5K triathlon that takes you through the thorniest patches and most verdant of pastures, only to leave you exultant rather than exhausted at the end. That’s more than a bit how the Merola Opera program’s Nozze di Figaro felt at its first of two performances. As zippily conducted by Xian Zhang, cleverly directed by Robin Guarino, and hilariously designed by wardrobe queen Donald Eastman — you’ll get it when you see it — this Marriage served as a stunning showcase for some unquestionable future stars of the operatic stage.
The Prologue – which sets up the “opera-within-an-opera” – opened in a salon of Pinecroft, the mansion of the Cincinnati-born inventor and entrepreneur, where the cast of characters made their entrance through a set of grand doors. The scenic design by Ryan Howell included a larger-than-life sea painting, covered in the Prologue and uncovered later to provide a backdrop to Ariadne’s rocky island of Naxos. A large armoire doubled as her cave.