La boheme – Performance 1

Last night was the opening of La boheme, and I think I am in very good company in how pleased I am with how the performance went.  Everyone in the cast was in very good voice, the chorus sang wonderfully, and the orchestra was terrific.  And most exciting– the KIDS!  The kids were spot on, and after the final dress rehearsal, this was a particular relief.

Our cast of 7 principals represent a wide range of boheme-experience, and that has been fun to watch throughout the production process.  We have one boheme-newbie in the cast– Benjamin Covey (Schaunard).  His debut was a great success, and I am sure he has many boheme’s in his future.  Our Musetta (Miriam Khalil) was making her role debut, but has previously sung the role of Mimi.  Similarly our Colline (Jon-Paul Decosse) has sung Schaunard in this very production, but was singing Colline for the first time on this set (and maybe for the first time?).  Our Mimi (Laura Whalen) sang the role only once before, and it was a number of years ago– so this has been a nice journey of discovery.  Eric Fennell, Etienne Dupuis and Doug MacNaughton (Rodolfo, Marcello, and Benoit/Alcindoro) each have a number of productions under their belts, and so the process has been a re-exploration of the characters as they relate to this particular staging by Brian Deedrick.  It is always a give and take, a sharing of knowledge and experience, and a rediscovery of this FABULOUS score through this unique collection of performers.

Two days off now, and then two more performances.  It is always fun to see how the production grows, and each singer’s performance settles in with opening-night nerves out of the way.

The weather in Edmonton has turned cold.  Good incentive to hole up in the apartment and get as much studying done as possible with the free days!

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