The Florentine Opera’s Charming 'Merry Widow'

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The Florentine Opera’s season opener, The Merry Widow, turned out to be a mixed bag of delights offering a series of delightful plot and musical confections. Franz Lehár’s comedic approach to the romantic misadventures is designed to move with effortless aplomb. The cast as a whole moved through their roles with an infectious commitment that almost convinced the audience that they were having fun, despite some strenuous effort.

Yet, almost without exception, they were clearly having difficulty inhabiting the vocal demands of their roles, limited by their efforts for greater volume and clearer delivery. Corey McKern as Count Danilo came off best as he tried to ease himself gracefully into his role as he pursues the wealthy widow. The lovely Alyson Cambridge, well-remembered as the Florentine’s Madame Butterfly a few seasons ago, sounded strident at times and scooped strenuously for her high notes, which did not require that much effort because she possesses a lovely high range. Part of the problem was the dry acoustics at Uihlein Hall, which seemed to force the singers to over-project where a less self-conscious approach would have been more pleasing.

Stacy Dove and Vale Rideout as the young lovers did not fare much better in roles that challenged their vocal endowments. The better-known numbers, “Going to Maxim’s” and the lovely “Vilya the Witch of the Woods,” sounded tentative. The cast almost concealed their vocal shortcomings with a fervor that usually kept the audience delighted.

The sets were appropriately middle-European, and the Milwaukee Ballet provided a much-needed sense of freewheeling bon vivant under the skillful direction of Petr Zahradníček—especially stunning in the “Maxim’s” number in the last act. Some acting honors must go to Jamie Offenbach as Baron Zeta and to Rodell Rosel in his amusing shtick as his sidekick. The overall charm of the production carried the day.