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| THE TENOR BOOK3 NO SMALL ROLES: Getting To Be Someone Else | |||
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Getting to be someone else is
something that appeals to all actors. It's not hiding behind a character's personality,
for the more honest the actor, the better the actor, the more he reveals of the character
as filtered through his own personality. His true self. In opera, of course, the actor-singer has the music as well as the text to guide him in his portrayal. This can be a help, or occasionally, a complicating factor to be worked in, balanced out. |
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| OFFSTAGE ROLES | |||
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Jerry Hadley and Richard Leech are two of the most prominent American tenors of their generation. While their voices are quite distinct and different, they have sung overlapping repertoire throughout their careers - Rodolfo, Des Grieux, Nemorino, Werther, Hoffmann. Competitors? not a chance. They're good friends, with the greatest admiration for what the other one does - and regret they can't see the other's performances more than once a year or so. They share a longevity of career (both made professional debuts in their early twenties) - a great sense of humor - and an overriding desire to communicate with the audience. The first time you hear either one sing non-operatic material, your first thought is "What a great singer!" And when you hear both of them sing opera, the thought is "What a great singer!" Forget the old jokes about tenors not being overly bright... Jerry and Richard are both extremely intelligent as singers and as actors, knowledgeable about music, vocal technique, and the stories behind the operas and songs they sing. Each brings an intense dramatic presence to their work onstage. Now in their mid/late-forties with the voice darkening, each is moving away from the purely light-lyric roles that were prominent in the early parts of their careers. Richard is singing Cavaradossi, Don José and Riccardo/Gustavo these days, along with Pinkerton and Rodolfo - while Jerry can often be heard as Jimmy Mahoney and Tom Rakewell, or creating roles in premieres of American operas, such as The Conquistador and The Great Gatsby. Of course there are hundreds of specific roles - but for the leading tenor, they usually fall into a couple of major categories: Hero and/or Lover. It's great to be the good guy! |
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| ONSTAGE ROLES | ||
| Tenor as Hero Jerry Hadley as Mozart's Idomeneo King of Crete - his first aria Summer 1999 was the first time Jerry portrayed the King, though he has sung the King's son, Idamante, dozens of times throughout his career. Idomeneo is a role usually sung by a mature singer - it requires an energetically youthful agility in the voice, but the gravitas of the King and his emotional burdens are best handled by a tenor in his prime. [For another take on this, see the interview with Scott Wyatt.] Santa Fe Opera |
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| Tenor as Hero Richard Leech as Verdi's Gustavo, King of Sweden - his last words 1999 was the first time Rick had played this role in about five years. It's always a new experience, in a sense, learning new aspects of the roles, when a singer works with different colleagues - the conductor, the stage director, and his fellow singers all make contributions. In five years' time, the maturing of the voice and of his characterization also resulted in a new experience for him. San Diego Opera |
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Tenor as Lover Richard Leech in Carmen - with Adria Firestone I've always thought the opera should be called "Don José" since he's the one who changes the most, following a path from quiet desperation to murderous rage. Here, in rehearsal, he's still "just the guy in love"... San Diego Opera |
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Tenor as Lover Angst-ridden throughout most of the evening, Des Grieux can only react to Manon's pushing and pulling - but here, early on in the opera, he's "just the guy in love..." San Francisco Opera |
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| Preparation Making the first entrance. Richard Leech as King Gustavo of Sweden, 1792, enters his court in Verdi's Un Ballo in Maschera (A Masked Ball), here, seen from the backstage view. The only reason there are curtains and a finished look to this side is because this particular set piece can be turned around and used in a later scene - otherwise, it would be unpainted, open-structure from this view. The Assistant Stage Manager, who gives the entrance cue, is backlit at the right. Richard is typical of most singers, saving his energy for the onstage performance - up until a few moments before the cue is given, he stands casually at the foot of the platform, sipping ice water. As he hands the glass to his dresser, he starts to get into character. By the time he hits the top step, he's no longer Rick... but the King. San Diego Opera |
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| THE ROLE OF A LIFETIME | ||
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Beauty,
handsomeness, goodness coming to trial. How can I condemn him? How can I save him? My
heart's broken... It is not his trial, it is mine, mine. It is I whom the devil
awaits. Before what tribunal do I stand if I destroy goodness? The angel of God has struck and the angel must hang - through me. Beauty, handsomeness, goodness, it is for me to destroy you. For I could have saved him... - CAPTAIN VERE |
| RT:
"I basically learn that although he says he has been saved, he hasn’t. I
basically learn that he didn’t really... I think somewhere deep down in himself was
afraid to save Budd because having him near was too much for him to bear. So it was the
terrible relief in an awful way that he had, I mean, I’m saying that it is very
deeply psychologically… but I learn this from it all. "I didn’t know much about it at all when I first started playing him. I mean, it’s taken... every performance, I learn a bit more. It was very black and white when I first did it, and now it’s very, very chiaroscuro." |
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| mlh:
As Captain Vere, because it is such an emotional role, do you find that you have to
consciously distance yourself from him? RT: Basically, all I have to do is mean it, I’ve decided. I used to sort of “act it,” but I’ve given up acting. mlh: [laughs] RT: So I’m just there doing it now. And in that case, it’s slightly easier. mlh: Easier… dramatically? RT: Dramatically. mlh: Or vocally? RT: Both. I notice now that I’ve got so, so much time when I’m on stage. It’s endless time. Nothing is rushed. There’s no need to rush. It’s interesting. mlh: I think it was Alec Guiness who said that he spent the first ten years of his career learning to move on stage and the rest of it learning to hold still. RT: Yes! Absolutely right! So when I said to you, I’m not acting this piece, I’ve given it up… mlh: Yes. That’s what it reminded me of. RT: [laughing] Yes, that’s fantastic. mlh: But I’m interested – if we can go back to that for just a moment – that it does become easier for you by not “acting” it. RT: Oh yes! Absolutely. Well you can breathe, to start off with. mlh: Okay. Is it more relaxed? RT: Yeah, the whole body’s more relaxed. But it’s just as intense |
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| MORE OPERA PAGES
FEATURING THESE TENORS: Billy Budd | Roméo et Juliette | Un Ballo in Maschera | Carmen | The Conquistador | Tosca |
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| AUTHOR'S JOURNAL Editing | ||
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Half the structure of the book is based on the interviews; the other half is the selection of photographs. From the rehearsal hall and on stage, the images show the tenors in their daily work. The style is documentary rather than posed, and it's the cumulative effect of the images that tells their story. Choosing the images... that's an interesting process, one that changes as the structure of the book changes, as I change, too. Certainly there will be a cut-off point for the changes! but I'm finding the ones I'm considering now are different than I would have chosen at the beginning of the project, different even than six or eight months ago. And integrating the images and the text is something that goes in a two-steps-forward, one-step-back kind of dance, each segment affecting the other. Making the portraits of my interview subjects has also been fascinating. Photographing performers is always a challenge - the ultimate goal is to capture who the singer is as a person, but still keep some of what gives him the drive to be on stage in the first place. Is that a mask? in some ways perhaps. But if you think about all the roles that any of us play in our everyday lives, in a sense, we are all wearing masks. So which is the performer and which the person? If I knew the answer, I wouldn't have to make the photographs in an attempt to find out... so I'm glad it's an unanswerable question.
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| THE INTERVIEWS - in conversation with FERNANDO DE LA MORA | |
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Quite possibly, the quintessential tenor role is Rodolfo, the poet in Puccini's La bohème. He certainly gets the quintessential tenor aria... in Act I he sings Che gelida manina.
Excerpts from the interview with Fernando de la Mora in which he talks about living the dream of singing Rodolfo.... coming soon. The transcript isn't finished yet. |
| "What a
cold little hand! Let me warm it in mine, until the moon rises. Who am I? A poet, a penniless one, but rich in dreams and hopes. What do I do? I write. And how do I live? I live! But all my illusions vanished when I saw your beautiful eyes. That is my story. Now tell me yours." |
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Fernando
de la Mora
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NAVIGATION
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OperaBasics
- An Introduction The Art of Making Opera - Inside the Book Explore More: Top 10 Ways to Fall in Love With Opera Principal Singers
& Singing |
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WORDS & MUSIC SHOP recommended recordings by tenors & Artist Profiles of many favorites LOTS OF
TENORS!
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| "This is
the ideal book for everyone who loves opera."
"... a distinguished book with heart." |
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original content © copyright
1998-2006 ML Hart and images/graphics © copyright 1999 ML Hart Marilyn Horne quote from: Winthrop Sargeant, Divas: Impressions of Six Opera Superstars (1959) exclusive excerpts from ML Hart's
interviews with: no part of this page, site, or any
components may be borrowed, downloaded, acquired, or otherwise used by any person(s)
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