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Grand gala – 10 years of Juventus Lyrica: Soloists, Orchestra. Conductor: Antonio Maria Russo, Teatro Avenida (Buenos Aires). 15.3.2009 (JSJ)

Director: Ana D'Anna
Costumes: María Jaunarena
Lighting: Sergio Ratti

Soloists:
Sebastián Angulegui (btn)
Santiago Bürgi (tnr)
Soledad De la Rosa (sop)
Lucas Debevec-Mayer (bass)
Norberto Fernández (tnr)
Fernando Grassi (btn)
Lara Mauro (sop)
María Luján Mirabelli (mzs)
Cecilia Pastawski (sop)
Laura Penchi (sop)
Laura Polverini (sop)
Leandro Sosa (btn)
Marcela Sotelano (sop)
Sonia Stelman (sop)
Carlos Ullán (tnr)
Fabián Veloz (btn)

The Act II Finale from the Marriage of Figaro
 From left Leandro Sosa, Lara Mauro, Sebastián Angulegui, Santiago Bürgi, Soledad De la Rosa, Laura Penchi, Lucas Debevec-Mayer

A decade ago opera in Buenos Aires was confined almost exclusively to the Teatro Colón, but that has now changed with the burgeoning of independent companies providing opportunities principally for young singers and making opera more widely available to a broader audience.

One of the first of these to be established back in 1999 was Juventus Lyrica. Over the years the company has gone from strength to strength, putting on 57 productions with more than 450 singers for audiences totaling more than 100,000 people.

To open its new season, and to mark its tenth anniversary, Juventus Lyrica put on a grand gala featuring highlights from its most popular productions. These were semi-staged in costume, with one item running into the next with minimal interruption and by and large this worked well, particularly in the first half, which included extracts from Mozart and Rossini, rather than in the more diverse second half. The small 16 member orchestra was also on the stage, adding a sense of occasion to the production that would otherwise have been lacking had it been in the pit.

The evening started with the trio Soave sia il vento from Cosi fan Tutte, finely sung by Lucas Debevec-Mayer, Soledad De la Rosa and Sonia Stelman, before moving into a series of six extracts from Don Giovanni, the work that launched Juventus Lyrica. Debevic-Mayer excelled as Giovanni, while De la Rosa provided a refined Donna Anna and Stelman a delightful Zerlina, alongside Lara Mauro’s spirited Donna Elvira and Carlos Ullán’s cultured Don Ottavio.

'C’est toi, c’est moi 'from Carmen: Norberto Fernández, María Luján Mirabelli.

Three extracts from the Magic Flute followed, with the most satisfactory being Papageno and Papagena’s Pa.. pa.. pa.. by Fabián Veloz and Laura Penchi. Fabián Veloz also was outstanding in the Largo al factotum, one of the three extracts from the Barber of Seville, while Cecilia Pastawski made the most of Cherubino’s Voi che sapete, one of the three extracts from the Marriage of Figaro, which also brought the first half to an end with the spirited Finale to the second act from Debevic-Mayer, Penchi and De la Rosa, along with Sebastián Angulegui, Lara Mauro, Santiago Bürgi and Leandro Sosa.

The second half comprised fewer extracts from a larger number of works and opened with one item from Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore, Una furtiva lacrima, finely sung by Norberto Fernández, and two from Don Pasquale equally well delivered by Bürgi and Polverini.

Verdi was represented by Nabucco, with the soloists joining together for Va pensiero, and Rigoletto, with an outstanding Un di se ben rammentomi from Fernando Grassi and María Luján Mirabelli with Fernández and De la Rosa.

Puccini was also represented by two works – La Boheme, in which Penchi sparkled as the provocative Musetta along with Fernández, De la Rosa and Grassi, and Tosca, with De la Rosa touchingly singing Vissi d’arte. Penchi also provided a mischievous Mein Herr Marquis from Die Fledermaus.

Other extracts were by Polverini from Romeo and Juliet, Debevic-Mayer from Tannhäuser, and Fernández and Mirabelli from Carmen, and the programme ended with the Barcarolle by De la Rosa and Mirabelli and Hélas! Mon coeur s’égare encore! from Les Contes d’Hoffmann by the whole ensemble. The special orchestra played well under the baton of Russo but was really on the small side for much of the programme, particularly the second half. Inevitably in a production of this nature some of the items proved to be somewhat uneven, but the enthusiasm and love for their art by the soloists was palpable and was warmly received by the audience.

Congratulations to director Ana D'Anna and Russo, who have been the driving forces behind Juventus Lyrica, and we look forward keenly to the company’s next ten years!

Jonathan Spencer Jones

Pictures courtesy of Teatro Avenida Buenos Aires


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