BY JAMES BANHAM AND STEPHANIE ESLAKE
Problem: Can’t get enough of the opera.
Solution: Roll two shows into one.
Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci is a double-bill event presented by Opera Australia this month. It links together the two productions by Mascagni and Leoncavallo, respectively, into a sort of opera showdown, if you will. The works are united in themes of poverty; slices of life. Oh, and a 1980s setting thanks to the vision of OA director Damiano Michieletto.
A star of the show, Samuel Dundas, will make his debut in the role of Silvio. Samuel is a graduate of the Melba Conservatorium of Music. He’s been part of Victorian Opera’s Artist Development Program and won the 2013 Lady Fairfax New York Scholarship and 2014 Dame Heather Begg Award.
Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci features two different operas combined into one. Can you tell us why you think they work so well together and what makes this such a special production?
This is a special production, without a doubt, and I think that comes of the strength of the relationships and the drama. The music becomes the backdrop to a very realistic and intense scenario that plays out among the characters.
Having the two productions linked means that certain characters and relationships that would only appear in Pagliacci can be introduced and developed during Cavalleria Rusticana. This means that the audience is already invested by the time the second opera commences. It then also allows closure to some of the relationships in Cavalleria during Pagliacci.
This is your debut in the role of Silvio in Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci for Opera Australia. What are your thoughts on the role?
Vocally, the role is tough. For a baritone, it’s consistently high, which can be a challenge. Dramatically, it is just very intense, made even moreso by this production. Finding the balance between good singing and poignant sentiment is the challenge here.
It could be said that your character Silvio is a bit of a heart-throb. How do you go about depicting that character on stage?
To me, Silvio is the innocence, rather than the heart-throb. As all the chaos and immorality goes on around him, he is the one looking out for those that he cares for, and always seeing the best in the world. He gets caught in a dangerous web, all for a love that he can’t live without.
Do you have a favourite part of the opera that we can all look out for?
I do have a favourite part, but I refuse be to a plot spoiler.
What’s next on the cards? Where can we hear you sing again?
Next up for me is singing the Marchese d’Obiney in Opera Australia’s production of La Traviata as well as the Sacristan in their production of Tosca, both at the Sydney Opera House.
Visit the Opera Australia website for tickets. The show runs until February 4 at the Sydney Opera House. Want to learn more about it? Check out James Banham’s story in The F.
Image supplied. Credit: Keith Saunders.
