Readers may recall that, this past November, Ars Minvera presented its latest “modern world premiere” of an opera first performed in 1681 and never performed since then. The opera, entitled La Flora, was composed jointly by Antonio Sartorio and Marc’Antonio Ziani earlier in that year in Venice. As I wrote in my preview of the Ars Minerva revival, it has never been performed since the year of its premiere.
Sadly, I had already made commitments for the dates of the three Ars Minerva performances. I was therefore glad that lightning struck again in the form a screening at the Roxie Theater earlier this afternoon. It may well be the case that the video was compiled from multiple recordings made at the “live” performances, but what I experienced at the Roxie could not have been smoother.
Soprano Alexa Anderson in the title role of La Flora (photograph by Valentina Sadiul, courtesy of Ars Minerva)
However, if the video work was smooth, the plot was definitely bumpy. The narrative takes place after the fall of the Roman republic when the Roman general Sulla (bass Wayne Wong) declared himself emperor. The title character, sung by soprano Alexa Andersen, is Sulla’s daughter. She is passionately in love with the Roman general Pompey (contralto Jasmine Johnson). However, Sulla wants her to marry Servio (contralto Sara Couden), another Roman general. As might be guessed, this all culminates in a plot line with more twists and turns than most mortal minds can sustain.
Nevertheless, the staging by Céline Ricci, Founder and Artistic Director of Ars Minerva, proceeds at a clip that borders on breakneck. Fortunately, the clarity of the interactions among the characters definitely assist attentive viewers in identifying who does what to whom as the plot progresses. More important is that there is an abundance of arias through which progress yields to reflection. In other words, we come to know all the necessary details about the characters through what they sing to us!
The quality of the projected video could not have been better with subtitles helpfully escorting viewers through the plot line. Audio served not only the sparkling vocal work but also the instrumental ensemble of period instruments. Matthew Dirst directed from a harpsichord; and the other musicians were violinists Cynthia Keiko Black and Gail Hernandez Rosa, Gretchen Claassen on cello, violist Daria D’Andrea, Richard Savino on theorbo, and trumpeter Dominic Favia.
The only downside is that this afternoon’s screening at the Roxie was a “one-shot.” Those interested in following Ars Minerva may benefit from joining the mailing list. This can be arranged through the bottom of the Web page created for today’s event. This is likely to be the best way to learn about future offerings, including further screenings of La Flora.
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