Strong performances, beautiful scenery make up for lagging plot in ‘Arabella’

Friday’s opening performance of “Arabella” started out slow. Soprano Elizabeth Baldwin’s first aria about how she (Arabella) is waiting for her one true love, though masterfully done, was tiring. As the curtain fell on the first of three acts, I wondered if the story line would be thick enough to hold the audience’s attention.\nThe pace of the opera picked up early in the second act, however, when the first plot twist happened. Arabella is the lovely daughter of Count Waldner, who is played by bass Wayne Hu, and the busy, bustling Adelaide, mezzo-soprano Patricia Thompson. Her father suffers from a not-so-mild gambling addiction. Between his bad habits and her mother’s love for fortune-tellers and palm readers, they manage to squander the family fortune.\nTheir younger daughter, Zdenka is forced to dress as a boy to cut the costs of presenting two girls to society. Arabella, on the other hand, is pandered out to every eligible bachelor with enough gold to line the family’s empty pockets. \nArabella relishes her reputation as a “flirt” and takes great pleasure in leading no less than four suitors along. Count Elemer, Count Dominik and Count Lamoral pine for her equally convincingly, but it is Matteo, the dashing officer played by tenor Joshua Lindsay who would willingly die for Arabella’s hand. He confides in Zdenka, whom he believes is the family’s page. She falls in love with Matteo and sends him letters that he presumes are from Arabella. \nWhen Zdenka learns that Matteo will leave town or commit suicide if Arabella chooses another suitor for a husband, she panics. She knows Arabella does not love either of the suitors, because she is waiting for a handsome stranger with “big, serious eyes” whom she sees from her window to make a proposal.\nSoprano Rachel Copeland played a darling Zdenka. Her crystalline voice clearly conveyed the pains of unrequited love, which were matched by Lindsay’s excellent performance. The orchestra played magnificently, especially given the technical difficulty of composer Strauss’s piece.\nThe sets and lighting for all three acts were gorgeous. I give major props (no pun intended) to set and costume designer Robert O’Hearn. The audience actually cooed over the second act’s set – a beautiful staircase and ballroom scene.\nDuring her coming-out ball, Arabella learns that her mysterious stranger, Mandryka, is the nephew of one of her father’s old war comrades. The dashing baritone Scott Skib skillfully portrays the man who, too is smitten with Arabella, but it is he who is fortunate enough to gain her love. They announce their engagement, but Arabella wishes to spend the last evening of her girlhood dancing and laughing with her old lovers. Elizabeth Koonz plays a stellar Fiakermilli, the lascivious cabby.\nZdenka plays a clever bed trick during the festivities and manages to get Matteo to sleep with her, under the guise of Arabella. The audience must pay close attention at this point to not get lost in the numerous plot twists that make up for the lost time in the first act.\nEverything turns out wonderfully in the end, with both sisters happily married to the men they love. This somewhat dry opera is a stark contrast to last week’s rollicking “Arlecchino” and “Too Many Sopranos.” The contrast was a good decision and is a transition into the tragic “Madama Butterfly,” which opens April 6. \nI prefer the silly antics of a straight comedy or a gut-wrenching tragedy to the simple structure and lengthy arias of the in-between “Arabella.” Though it could be considered a comedy of errors, there is entirely too much pining for it to pass as light-hearted. The music and impeccable performances made up for the lack of action, however.\nI would recommend you see “Arabella,” next Friday or Saturday at the Musical Arts Center. Showtime is at 8 p.m.\nCarol Dusdieker, whom you might recognize as Fiordiligi from IU’s production of “Cosi fan tutte” and Musetta from “La Boheme” will star as Arabella. Alexis Lundy will play Zdenka, Robert Brandt will be Arabella’s lover, and Christopher Sponseller will play next weekend’s Matteo.