ON STAGE
What: Countess Maritza
Where: Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St.
When: Tonight through May 5
Tickets: $27-$174 from , by phone at 250-386-6121, or in person at the Royal McPherson box office
Information:
Countess Maritza has amassed something akin to a cult following since its premi猫re 75 years ago. Its supporters are vocal, but the numbers are modest enough that even opera buffs have only a passing knowledge of the operetta by Hungarian composer Emmerich K谩lm谩n.
鈥淚n Eastern Europe, it鈥檚 very popular,鈥� said director Linda Brovsky, who makes her 91原创 Opera debut with the production which opens tonight. 鈥淚t鈥檚 done all the time. But it is not something that is known in North America at all. When I posted on Facebook that I was coming to Victoria to do this 鈥� and that was all I posted 鈥� I had something like 150 responses from my colleagues all over the world saying, 鈥極h, I love that piece!鈥� I was shocked at who actually knew this piece.鈥�
Brovsky is akin to savvy veteran when it comes to Countess Maritza, having handled productions of K谩lm谩n鈥檚 1924 operetta for companies in New Mexico and California. She did it with Los Angeles Opera in the early 2000s, but the production was so 鈥渓ight years different鈥� from the one being staged at the Royal Theatre for four performances. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 really help [having done it before],鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou have to start from scratch again.鈥�
She worked closely with 91原创 Opera artistic director Timothy Vernon, who is conducting the Victoria Symphony, on adapting for the Victoria run a modest version of the one she directed for the Los Angeles Opera. Though smaller in scale and scope, her prior experience at the helm strengthened her approach to the 91原创 Opera production. 鈥淗aving experience means you more or less know what you don鈥檛 want to do,鈥� she said with a laugh.
鈥淵ou learn what was less successful, and knowing the certain elements you don鈥檛 need to tell the story.鈥� Brovsky and Vernon made substantial edits and cuts to dialogue and music from the Los Angeles version; the director figures the 91原创 Opera version is a third of the size, 鈥渁nd still it鈥檚 a huge show.鈥�
Countess Maritza is set in the 1920s at the manor of the titular young widow, who has no shortage of suitors. She announces her engagement, which turns out to be fictitious, choosing to name her husband-to-be Baron Koloman Zsup谩n, after a character in Johann Strauss鈥檚 operetta, The Gypsy Baron. When the real life Zsup谩n shows up, the production takes several comedic twists and turns before arriving a pair of surprise wedding engagements.
During a rehearsal at the Royal Theatre on Tuesday, performed in English with English surtitles, the crowd roared at several points during the final act, which showcases the acting, singing, and comedic-timing talents of Leslie Ann Bradley (in the role of Countess Maritza) and Adam Luther (Count Tassilo), among others. Brovsky鈥檚 experience was also evident: A veteran with a lot of big productions on her resum茅, from La Boh猫me with the Lyric Opera of Kansas City and La Traviata for Cincinnati Opera to Madame Butterfly for Pittsburgh Opera, she kept things moving quickly yet effectively.
That she also has extensive musical theatre and theatre experience, in addition to opera, helped immeasurably. 鈥淭his is like the best of opera, but with a theatrical slant to it. It鈥檚 not froth. It has a much deeper, sort of soul-searching essence to it. It鈥檚 really about longing 鈥� longing for home, the longing from that displacement people feel. And I find that very appropriate to what is going on today in our culture.鈥�
Brovsky, who was born and raised in Colorado, went to school at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York, and graduated with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in drama and Russian. The decision to study drama came after a short flirtation with contemporary dance. Brovsky enrolled in a summer academy program at Utah鈥檚 Ballet West before making the permanent switch to theatre and opera.
Dance informed her skillset, however. 鈥淥ne of the things dance teaches, aside from the unbelievable discipline and respect, is that you learn from watching other dancers. You learn to watch movement and memorize it very quickly. As a director, I can see staging and go, 鈥楴o, this needs a fix.鈥� 鈥�
Her experience with dance has a direct correlation to Countess Maritza, as did her experience with Russian language and culture.
鈥淩ussian was invaluable because I had phenomenal teachers who wanted to immerse you in the history and the culture and literature of the country, as well as the language. I learned about period style from Russian classes, not from my drama classes. You can apply that when you have a piece like Countess Maritza, and go, 鈥榃hat period are we going to set this in?鈥� It has come in handy, if nothing else, because it is such a rich culture.鈥�
