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Lomeli and Curran brilliant in Santa Fe Santa Fe
The Santa Fe Opera House
07/02/2011 - & July 8, 13, 22, August 2, 6, 10*, 13, 16, 23, 26, 2011
Giacomo Puccini: La bohème
David Lomeli (Rodolfo), Ana María Martínez (Mimì), Corey McKern (Marcello), Heidi Stober (Musetta), Christian Van Horn (Colline), Markus Beam (Schaunard), Thomas Hammons (Benoit/Alcindoro), Michael Daily (Parpignol)
The Santa Fe Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Leonardo Vordoni (conductor)
Paul Curran (director), Kevin Knight (set/costume designer), Rick Fisher (lighting designer) 
H. Stober, C. McKern, M. Beam (© Ken Howard)
Paul Curran's 2007 production of Puccini's La bohème made a revival this summer at The Santa Fe Opera. Curran's exceptional staging combined with superlative singing from the leading couple for a luxurious performance that any major company would envy.
Fast-rising Mexican tenor David Lomeli made his Santa Fe debut with this Bohème and showed why major houses in the world want him on their stages. Lomeli's powerful voice is graced with brilliant squillo without any burdensome heft to restrict him as he navigates his upper range. He sang "Che gelida manina" with expert legato and precise diction, and drowned out even the ringing voice of Ana María Martínez during "O soave fanciulla." He's not a bad actor, either. The chemistry between him and Martínez during Act I lit up the house. From both vocal and dramatic perspectives, you would have a difficult time today finding a tenor more suited to Rodolfo than David Lomeli.
Lomeli saw his superb Rodolfo matched in quality only by his Mimì, Puerto Rican Ana María Martínez. The soprano tossed off a series of exquisite diminuendi in her "Mi chiamano Mimì" and managed reserved elegance during "Addio, senza rancor."
D. Lomeli & A.M. Martínez (© Ken Howard)
Few weak links existed in the supporting cast. Corey McKern stood out as Marcello, using his lyric baritone effectively and elegantly without resorting to bluster. Christian Van Horn was a solid, reliable Colline, despite a "Vecchia zimarra" that came off a bit too straightforward. Heidi Stober as Musetta was less impressive. Her voice, a tad too small for Musetta, was marked by an unpleasant shrillness of tone throughout the performance. Markus Beam, despite strong acting, seemed the only other singer a notch below the vocal level of his other cast members. Leonardo Vordoni kept things brisk but was mostly anonymous in the pit, letting his singers shine.
Fortunately, Paul Curran's traditional production brought the best out of the entire cast. Santa Fe has mounted three other Curran productions in the last few years (Peter Grimes in 2005, Billy Budd in 2008, and Albert Herring in 2010). The quality of his final product provides enough evidence as to why the company continues to hire him. While La bohème surely proved less of a challenge in terms of putting people in the seats than any of his Britten productions, it's not always the case that Puccini (even done conservatively) is produced at a high quality regardless of director or cast. Fortunately, this Bohème has everything. Curran utilized Kevin Knight's sets to create a Paris both traditional and sleek. Clever positioning of the sets made for scene changes that were quick, smoothe, functional, and even fun to watch. Most importantly, Curran's Bohème stays out of the way and provides only a backdrop, not an interference, for the fine acting the director draws from his singers.
Santa Fe Opera's patrons can only hope that Lomeli and Curran will become mainstays in the company's repertoire in the future.
Paul Wooley
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