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Lyric Opera presents new-to-Chicago production of The Pearl Fishers


How can one enter an exotic world that consists of vibrant colors, magical music, dramatic emotions, electrifying dances, and southern warmth without leaving Chicago? The new-to-Chicago production of The Pearl Fishers that started November 19 has it all. It runs until December 10. Attend and forget about the wind, rain and falling leaves that surround us now. Lyric Opera of Chicago is proud to present to its audiences the magical sounds of this captivating opera by Georges Bizet, the beloved French composer popular for creating memorable and expressive melodies.

The opera is written in the form of opéra lyrique, which literally translates from French as “lyric opera”. Certainly, Lyric Opera of Chicago couldn’t avoid presenting an opera that reflects its own name and represents the main characteristics of this operatic form – an emphasized melody and a romantic theme. More than fifty years ago, on November 11, 1966, Lyric Opera of Chicago performed The Pearl Fishers for the first time, and then revived it in 1998 and also in 2008. This year, Lyric Opera is happy to surprise its audience with a production that is absolutely new to Chicago and will capture everyone’s attention.

What makes this production so unique? Lyric Opera’s General Director, President and CEO Anthony Freud unveils its secrets: “The Pearl Fishers production we’re presenting this season has enchanted audiences throughout the United States. Originating in 2004 at San Diego Opera, it marks the first time fashion icon Zandra Rhodes designed both sets and costumes for an opera production. For more than four decades, Zandra has enlivened the international fashion scene with her breathtaking gift for color and her truly astounding imagination. I am very pleased that Lyric audiences will at last be able to experience her designs for Bizet’s opera.”

Written in 1863 by a then young composer – at the time of the premiere Bizet was not even twenty five years old – The Pearl Fishers first was not met enthusiastically by critics of that time. However, the public liked it from the first beginning. Hector Berlioz, himself a renowned French romantic composer, was the one who actually praised this opera for the beauty of its score. This through-composed opera, with its relatively continuous and non-sectional music, stood out because of its dense and lush orchestration. It was written twelve years before Bizet composed his famous opera Carmen, but even then his talent was remarkable.

Bizet found the best way to demonstrate the dramatic relationship between two men, Zurga and Nadir, who in the midst of a romantic island Ceylon fell in love with the same beautiful woman called Leïla. The composer used different musical colors to show their vows of friendship, struggle with their mutual passion, the betrayal of one of them, and the tragic end of another. Bizet also used bright musical strokes to portray Leïla, who broke her promise to Nourabad, the high priest of Brahma, and disobeyed the law that ordered her to wear a veil and to pray for the protection of the pearl fishers for a day and a night. She fell in love with Nadir, had an intimate relationship with him, tried to hide it from Nourabad, but eventually the lovers got caught. The priest’s rage and Zurga’s anger, who by that time had been chosen to be the king of that village of fishers, gave no choice to the lovers – they were supposed to be killed. However, at the end Zurga saved them because of his love to Leïla, his appreciation of Leïla saving his life many years ago, and his feeling of devotion to his former friend Nadir. His kindness cost him his life and he was killed by the villagers.

To many of us the ending might seem tragic, but if you look at this story deeper and analyze it, you will understand that this is a story of triumph and victory. It is a victory of such immortal human values as love, friendship, appreciation and sacrifice. You can blame Leïla and Nadir for their betrayal, but true love justifies everything. Although the libretto by Michel Carré and Eugène Cormon was originally considered to be weak and poor, the genius of Bizet made it shine and sparkle with the help of various colors of the musical palette.

Zandra Rhodes, set and costume designer, used her own palette of artistic and creative skills to make the production of this opera even more juicy and exotic. Before designing this opera, she took a trip to Sri Lanka, former Ceylon, and absorbed all the beauty of its nature, architecture, culture, and people. She added her own artistic touch to it and came up with a brilliant result that became a trademark of the modern version of this production.

“When I began designing The Pearl Fishers, I was so thrilled and got so into the music. I never even imagined the production would eventually travel all over America! It’s been quite wonderful seeing it in different performances. I feel so fortunate to be able to watch it from the wings, seeing the singers giving their own interpretations, and hearing how magical the voices are. In opera you’ve got all your senses being attacked, with the voices, the music, combining with the visual element – it’s far deeper than one even realizes,” Rhodes said.

The cast includes only four main characters – Zurga, Nadir, Nourabad and Leïla – which makes the role of each of the soloists especially important. Supported by the brilliant accompaniment of the beloved Lyric Opera Orchestra directed by Sir Andrew Davis and by the skilled members of the Lyric Opera Chorus directed by Michael Black, the soloists highlight the most powerful moments of the opera with their strong, touching and marvelous voices.

The most remarkable part of the opera is its duet, which is sung by Nadir (tenor) and Zurga (baritone) in Act One, and is often referred to as the “Pearl Fishers Duet”. First introduced by flutes and harps, the main theme of this touching duet is repeated every time the issue of the two men’s friendship arises. Opera historian Hervé Lacombe even calls it “the most highly developed poetic scene in the opera”.

Sure enough, Polish baritone Mariusz Kwiecień (Zurga) and American tenor Matthew Polenzani (Nadir) demonstrate not only their outstanding voices, but also their great ability to perform in a brilliantly unified ensemble where their voices complement each other. Both of these great singers are well known at Lyric Opera of Chicago. Kwiecień previously performed the roles of Onegin, Don Giovanni and Count Almaviva, and Polenzani performed thirteen roles since 1995/1996 season, including the roles of Duke, Tamino and Tito Vespasian. Both internationally known, these singers continuously demonstrate their stellar vocalism and stage presence that are brightly demonstrated in The Pearl Fishers.

The gem of this production is, of course, the Latvian soprano Marina Rebeka (Leïla), who first demonstrated her portrayal of this vibrant character in 2014 at the Zurich Opera House. Characterized by Director Freud as a singer with “extraordinary vocal dexterity and theatrical flair”, in her role of Leïla Rebeka demonstrates even more of her vocal mastery and careful, yet confident approach to each note. The glorious beauty of her voice, face, figure and the artistry with which she performs this role will sure enough leave unforgettable memories in the heart of every audience member.

Andrea Silvestrelli (Nourabad), the Italian bass with rich and deep timbre, captivates audiences not only with his strong voice, but also with his artistic presentation and charisma. The role of Nourabad fits him very well, as well as all other roles that he continuously performs around the world. Since the season of 2000/2001, Silvestrelli has performed eleven roles at Lyric Opera of Chicago, including the roles of Oroveso, Ferrando and Commendatore.

As a French opera, The Pearl Fishers demonstrates not only the beauty of the soloists’ voices, the role of the orchestral part and the chorus, but also the great contribution made to it by the dancers. The opera starts with the electrifying dance of the fishermen who gather and dance at the beach. Their precise movements captivate the audience right away and keep its interest until the end of the opera. The intriguing choreography by famous American choreographer John Malashock adds enough spice, elegance and emotion to this production to make it outstanding.

The approach to staging choreography for this opera cannot be called traditional. Director Andrew Sinclair notes that “if we were to emphasize the conflicts in the production, we knew it was essential to avoid dance in a classical and balletic form, which would work against the primitive society in which the opera takes place.” The dancers move in an unusual, sometimes even sharp manner with some elements of acrobatics, which helps to complement and enhance the most emotional parts of the opera. Sinclair especially underlines Malashock’s choreography at the very end of the production calling it “powerful and aggressive”. The production features such talented dancers as Jacob Ashley, Nikolas Chen, Sam Crouch, Marian Faustino, Tom Mattingly, Ginny Ngo, Jimi Loc Nguyen, Michelle Reid, Todd Rhoades, Jacqueline Stewart, Nicholas Strasburg, and Jessica Wolfrum.

In spite of the “powerful and aggressive” choreography at the end and the death of one of the main characters, this opera still remains a beautiful, touching and kind fairy tale that shows all the beauty of human nature. Once heard, its warm and delightful melodies will forever stay in your heart and mind, as a reminder of the elegant beauty of Bizet’s talent.

Natalia Dagenhart

Photo: Courtesy of Todd Rosenberg

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