Journey North Opera Company - B. Britten's "The Rape of Lucretia" - 1946

 Benjamin Britten, The Rape of Lucretia

The Creative Team

Conductor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brian Dowdy

Producer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Colleen Meier

Stage Director   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amanda Carlson

Stage Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stacie Cooper

Set Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Brittany Pooladian

Costume Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Stacey Palmer

Lighting Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Meredith McDowell
Intimacy & Violence Choreographer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mason Tyer

Rehearsal & Performance Pianist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Jared Miller

The Cast

Lucretia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Briana Moynihan

Tarquinius  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Sullivan Ojala Helmbolt

Male Chorus  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wesley Frye

Female Chorus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amy Wolf

Collatinus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Joel Mathias

Junius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joe Allen

Bianca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Christina Christensen

Lucia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Carole Schultz

Aerialist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Jolie Meshbesher

Rape of Lucretia, cast photo.

© 2019, Justin Sims Photography. Used with permission.

The other night (Monday, August 27, 2019) I experienced a most provocative and challenging gift: a preview (i.e., Act 1, scenes 1 and 2) of Journey North Opera Company’s upcoming production The Rape of Lucretia by English composer Benjamin Britten (1913-1976). Journey North’s website touts a mission statement aimed at introducing the world to “a new kind of opera,” declaring itself to be a company which “brings innovation to the traditions of Grand Opera.” In this production, such innovations manifest themselves in a variety of creative and personal ways. First, it must be said. Yes, this opera is exactly as its title asserts. This opera is about rape: a most violent act done to a female person by a male aggressor. And the creative team wants its audiences to know that its members themselves are not immune to the violence of such egregious assault, that the creative team itself contains those who have survived such evil, survivors who want their stories not only told, but heard and felt. Such feeling is palpable in this production. It’s in your face—from beginning to end. And it rightly disturbs, disrupts, and challenges one’s comfort zones.

Secondly, Journey North, in its quest for novelty and challenge, purposefully does not shy away from confronting the dark realities of our past and present, sincerely and desperately hoping that by shining light on these realities, such things will not be a part of our future as well. Journey North confronts age-old themes such as patriarchy and toxic masculinity as well as modern themes such as hetero- and cis¹-normative narratives of love, sex, and marriage. Journey North dives deeply into these themes, extricating emotion and affect that is all at once both unique and universal, societal and personal (yes, I adore chiasmus).

Frye (l) & Amy Wolf (r) as Male & Female Choruses. Costume design by Stacey Palmer.
© 2019, Justin Sims Photography. Used with permission.

Thirdly, in the spirit of innovative creativity, Stage Director, Amanda Carlson, introduces a new character to the cast: an aerialist, Jolie Meshbesher. Carlson writes on the inspiration behind the addition:

"In developing the staging of this production, and particularly doing so through the lens of a survivor in a post-#metoo era, I began to see circles. Everything from the omni-present nature of the Male and Female Choruses, all the way down to the simple act of spinning (thread) carried out by the female characters, and all pointing our attention back to the cyclical nature of humanity’s violence against women and against itself—the literal acts of violence themselves, the perpetuation of toxic ideals for both men and women… How do we look upon these events time and again, unable or unwilling to change, seemingly stuck in a circle throughout history? Can we break the circle, or is the answer to just inch it forward on the x-axis that is time? Once I started seeing circles, I saw them everywhere, and for that reason I was very excited to create a ninth role in the production for a female dancer and aerial artist."

I have experienced Meshbesher’s art and athleticism many times as a frequent Minnsky Theatre patron and attendee. But what she presents for this production is truly spellbinding—not only on the aerial hoop itself, but in her acting and demanding presence on stage. She meets drama and intensity with all the more drama, and her role in the first scene of Act I, surrounded by men who could give a f*ck about our modern understanding of women’s rights and dignity, well, for lack of a better word, it moved me. That’s really all I can say… it moved me, moved me greatly. It discomforted me. It challenged me. <exhales> What a performance. And what an amazing addition by Carlson. Brava. This role breathes new life into what is already a very vital production.

Wesley Frye, tenor. © 2019, Will Heller Photography.
Used with permission.

As far as for performances to look out for the weekend of September 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th, one cannot speak too highly for Moynihan. Briana Moynihan plays Lucretia, whose beautiful dark tones not only set her apart from the colors present in the rest of the female cast but also set the stage for her grave and dark role as the ultimate victim. She possesses a sublime voice, robust in passion and unwavering in technique. But, also be on the look out for Wesley Frye, who plays the role of Male Chorus. A big voice, a sensitive voice. Frye knows when to be center of attention and when to support. His embodiment of the role is… well, there’s just no words for it. Perfect? From the first note, from the first movement—gesture—I knew who he was and what he was about in his character. He is narrator extraordinaire, and I look forward to seeing him perform the full production come next Sunday, September 8. That being said, do not miss this exceptional performance of Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia, such a necessary and timely production given our current political climate. All performances will be held at the Minnsky Theatre:

Friday, September 6, 2019, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, September 7, 2019, 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, September 8, 2019, 2:00 p.m.

This seminal and appropriate production will feature a thirteen-piece orchestra, an ensemble cast of eight singers/actors, and (as mentioned above) the addition of one aerial artist/dancer. You don’t want to miss it. One can find more information for Journey North Opera Company at https://www.journeynorthopera.com/ as well as for Minnsky Theatre at https://www.minnsky.com/home.html . This is Mark Rodriguez, your reviewer of all things opera. Enjoy the show!

Meshbesher (l) & Moynihan (r), roles, aerialist and Lucretia (respectively)
in anticipation of Britten's The Rape of Lucretia. © 2019, Mark Anthony Rodriguez.

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¹ cis, pronounced “sis.” A term coined in 1998 and used to refer to people whose gender identity matches the gender s/he was assigned at birth