Week 1 of rehearsals are nearly done and I have so many Italian words running through my brain that I sometimes forget that I speak English! Along with staging, dance movements (yes, I said dance movements) and trying to remember my cast mates' names, it's a wonder I can keep my head on straight. (It should be noted that I got lost trying to find my way out of DC and back to Baltimore where I am staying.)
I have to say that for my first "L'Italiana in Algeri" AKA "The Italian Girl in Algers," I am pretty happy with my level of preparation. I have a good understanding of the role and characterization. (Pats himself on the back.) Of course I had lots of help--thanks to Nico Castel's text and translation, hours and hours of practice and memorization, the various people who helped coach the role and the "additional" coaching I received via the fabulous singers who have performed this opera in the past. YouTube rocks!
Besides the total amount of text associated with Rossini, the greatest challenges come from being able to make musical lines out of the patter (lots of fast text), sing legato when there is a line and try to find the balance between vocal beauty and character in the voice. Taking a cue from Johnny Depp who is known for fusing two personalities to create his characters, I have decided that my character Taddeo, the former lover of Isabella (the Italian Girl,) is a cross between Fred Sanford and Snagglepuss--exit stage left as I have a heart attack.
Making a role debut is always filled with excitement (and some fear--I am a neurotic singer after all.) Add onto that a debut with a company and you get the idea that the level of preparation needs to be very high. It's helpful to have colleagues whose level of preparation is as high, a stage director who wants to milk the comedic elements with precision and a conductor who is as passionate about Rossini as I am.
We still have several weeks to explore, stage, create and play and I am looking forward to every minute as I add another Rossini role to my repertoire. Viva Rossini!
Peace,
Eric
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